New Church Life
Vol. XIII, No. 1. PHILADELPHIA, JANUARY, 1893=123. Whole No. 147.
God is One in Essence and Person in Whom is the Divine Trinity, and the Lord God the Saviour Jesus Christ is He.- T. C. R. 2.
Title Unspecified 1893
Two years ago the English Conference of the New Church ultimated its rejection of the Doctrines contained in the Second Part of the Work entitled The Delights of Wisdom Concerning Conjugial Love, after which follow the Pleasures of Insanity Concerning Scortatory Love, by strongly condemnatory resolutions directed against this Journal and its English agent, because they publicly proclaimed and taught the Doctrines referred to.
This attack has been continued at an extraordinary meeting of Conference specially convened for the purpose at Manchester on the eighth day of November last.
At this meeting (a full report of which has been published in Morning Light of November 19th and 26th) the following Article was adopted with only five dissentient votes:
"10a. If any member of the Conference, whether a Minister, Trustee, or Representative, shall by a resolution passed at a General Meeting of the Conference by a majority of two- Thirds of all the Members of the Conference, be declared to be guilty of:
"(a) Misconduct or immorality.
"(b) Conduct calculated to bring scandal upon the Church.
"(c) Teaching or preaching, or otherwise circulating doctrines which shall have been declared by a Resolution of a previous General Meeting of Conference to be
"(1) Immoral or tending to immorality, or
"(2) Contrary to the fundamental teachings of the New Church concerning the LORD in His Divine Humanity, the Holiness of His Word, and the necessity of a life according to the Ten Commandments,
"the name of such Member shall be forthwith removed from Register of Members, and he shall from the time of the passing of such resolution cease to be a member of Conference, and to be entitled to any of the rights or privileges of membership; provided that no such Resolution shall be submitted to any meeting, unless notice, in writing, shall have been given through the Secretary of the Conference to the member concerned, at least twenty-eight days before the date of the Meeting of the Conference, of the intention to bring the question of his conduct before the General Meeting, and such notice shall state the acts with which such member is charged.
"Any member whose name shall have been removed for any offense under this Article shall not again he eligible to be a member of the Conference until he shall have been declared eligible by a vote of a majority of members present at any General Meeting of the Conference."
Since the Conference, by resolution adopted at the Kensington meeting of 1890, has practically declared that the circulation of the Doctrine concerning Pellicacy brings scandal upon the Church and encourages wickedness, no member, whether a Minister, a Trustee, or a Representative, will hereafter dare, unless prepared to be expelled from the Conference, teach, preach, or otherwise circulate anything relating to the subject.
Bad as is this position of Conference, it is made worse by the underhanded manner in which the Doctrines are attacked, in which the LORD is "wounded in the house of His friends."
The Declaration of Faith, which members must sign at every meeting, was altered at Manchester, so that the latter part now reads:
"I believe in the Word of God, or Holy Scriptures, and in the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem drawn therefrom, and contained in the Theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg."
The intimate connection of this change with the new article is sufficiently evident. It is made more so by the mover in his opening speech. By inserting the words "drawn therefrom" provision has been made against the time when the issue will arise to expel a member for publicly avowing his belief in the Doctrines concerning pellicacy and concubinage, since the claim may then be made, as it has been made in the past, that these Doctrines are not drawn from the Word. And to make assurance doubly sure, the definitive adjective "Theological" has been prefixed to the "writings of Emanuel Swedenborg." For the claim that has been made can again be urged when the time arises, that the Work on Conjugial Love is not theological, but only moral.
Protests were indeed raised against any inference of this kind, but such protests only confirm the impression of the cowardice of Conference, for it is well-known that there are other members who make the claim that the Book is not to be classed among the Theological Works, and it was maintained in open Conference by a speaker who is among those that profess belief in the Divine authority of the Writings that even such a Work as Heaven and Hell, is not drawn from the Word. If that be not, how much less Conjugial Love?
But, whatever the opinions of individuals, the attitude of Conference toward the Book is plain enough from its action in the past.
Conference is interiorly averse to what has been written by Swedenborg on the subject of pellicacy and concubinage, but it dares not as yet openly reject it. Hence such protests. At the same time Conference wants to be, and now is, in a position to visit its displeasure at his teaching upon those who have the courage to accept it. That is the gist of the whole matter.
THE Rev. Thomas Child analyzed the situation very well, when, during the discussion in the Conference, he said of the new Article:
"Surely this appeal is going expressly in the face of the Doctrines themselves. It is an appeal to the special inclinations of the members of this Conference, that is, to what they feel and desire, and not to what are the Doctrines of the Church; and the Doctrines may go to the winds in a charge of heresy where there is strong feeling against the party so charged. All these considerations ought to make is very chary about being a court of appeal at all."
Title Unspecified 1893
ON the other hand, the prime mover of the changes in the Articles expressed surprise that any one should attribute to future Conferences a spirit of "narrowness, bigotry, intolerance, and persecution." As if the Conference of 1890 had not manifested all of these vices! And, with an air of injured innocence, he asked, "Who ever thought of . . . determining such a question apart from the Writings of the Church?" Who, indeed! Not the Conference, surely, with its black record of the Kensington meeting, in the year 1890, when it passed judgment on precisely such a case, without referring to the Doctrines at all! Nay more, without even subject-matter of its condemnation freely before itself. Out upon such pharisaical cant! To pose as the embodiment of justice, when the very grossest injustice remains uneffaced upon the records of the past! Instead of showing some sign of repentance for the wickedness and sin committed, Conference justifies it, and takes measures to perpetuate it and to continue in its path of evil and deceit.
Not without good and weighty reason were voices raised against the permanent establishment of such a tribunal: a tribunal consisting of a number of uninformed men, who, without the necessary ability, time, or opportunity, are to enter into a judicial investigation of questions of the highest import, and affecting the weal and the standing of brethren in the Church! What of the two- Thirds majority by which the question is to be determined? In an assembly like that of the Conference, the great majority blindly follow a few willful leaders, who arrogate to themselves whatsoever they will, secure under the cover of numbers.
Title Unspecified 1893
WILLFULLY blind to the fearful corruption of the age, in which those also share who are called to the New Jerusalem: adoring the sham morality of the world, which sacrifices all interior purification and growth to the Moloch of a hypocritically fair exterior: the Conference fears to face and receive the Doctrine mercifully given by the LORD for the purpose of preserving in men the jewel of human life and the very repository of the true religion, and adopts measures to prevent any future attempt to lead men whose uncontrollable passions would otherwise burst forth as an unholy and consuming fire, to the Doctrine which teaches them the means by which, such fire can be controlled, and gradually purified, that it may burn with the steady, the holy, the nourishing flame of chaste conjugial love.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE base plotting of the Conference can have only one result: that of injury to itself. In a body whose members have manifested little courage of the right sort, the last remnant of a love for freedom from control of man, in the service of the LORD, will be crushed out by such measures, and the spiritual life of the body must inevitably suffer. Freedom can be found only in' the Truth, and in the pursuit of it with a single eye. But, by its course, Conference turns its back on the Truth, and walks in the opposite direction, bound with the fetters of a traditional, false, and hypocritical morality.
Title Unspecified 1893
T. C. R. 2 No mortal could have been saved unless the Lord had come into the world.- T. C. R. 2.
BENJAMIN, THE MEDIUM OF VICTORY IN TEMPTATION Rev. C. T. ODHNER 1893
And saw Jacob that there was provision in Egypt; and Jacob said to his sons, why do ye look at one another. And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is provision in Egypt; descend ye thither and buy for us thence and let us live and not die. And the ten brethren of Joseph descended to buy corn from Egypt. And Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, Jacob sent not with his brethren or he said, lest, peradventure, hurt befall him. And the sons of Israel came to buy in the midst of those who came, for there was famine in the land of Canaan.-Genesis lxii, 1-5.
THE subject treated of in this text is the necessity of procuring for one's self a living faith of the heart as the only means or medium whereby the LORD in His Divine Truth can become conjoined with the external good and truth first received in the progress of the regeneration of the natural man. It is therefore the doctrine of mediation which must at present receive our especial consideration.
The chapter, of which this text is a continuation, told the story of Joseph's elevation to be ruler over Egypt. Seven good years of abundance followed thereupon, during which provision was stored up against seven subsequent evil years of famine, when every land came to buy from Joseph in Egypt.
Joseph is the Human which the LORD made the Divine Truth itself when He was in the world. Joseph as the ruler in Egypt is this Divine Truth revealed in the form of ultimate expressions of rational doctrines, accommodated to the apprehension of natural minds. He thus represents the Word as now revealed in the sacred Writings of the New Church.
Divine Truth, when it is first received by man, is always received in the form of doctrinal scientifics. Be it the simplest teaching from the Letter of the Word, or the most interior and sublime truth from its Internal
Sense, it is always at first received through the external understanding and stored up in the external memory. It remains there undigested, neither understood nor appropriated until a medium has been established, whereby the genuine truth itself may inflow and fill with life the dead scientific. It may, therefore, be seen that the Heavenly Joseph, when He first comes to man, must always be received in the Egypt of the mind.
Now Egypt, though a low and narrow valley, is an exceedingly rich and fruitful land, well watered and warmed by the burning African sun. So the natural mind has been blessed by the LORD with rich soil, in which sciences and knowledges may increase and multiply without number under the fructifying influences of natural intelligence and the ever- Active affection of knowing. Take, for an illustration, the case of a man whose astonished eyes have for the first time been opened to the glories of the New Revelation of the LORD in His Second Coming. To him a new era has dawned of abundance of provision. How greedily does he not pore over those wonderful books, on every page of which he beholds new and rational truths, new and unfathomable springs of the pure and limpid water of life. It is the period of seed time, followed rapidly by the richest harvests. He learns quickly the general doctrines of the Church, and he gladly admits the Writings as his spiritual guide and enthrones them as the ruler over his mind. But, let it be remembered, this mind is still Egypt or the natural mind. His understanding of the Doctrines is still external and scientific. His faith is more of the memory than of life, for his regeneration has not followed on apace with his information. The Writings are indeed admitted to be most wonderful and glorious books of doctrines ever produced, but they are not yet recognized as the Word itself, the Divine Truth Itself, the LORD Himself, or if they have been so recognized, this recognition itself is at first only a scientific of the natural rational and of the memory.
This being the case, years of famine are sure to follow the first enthusiastic and fruitful reception of the Truths, as they do, at times, in Egypt, when the inundations of the river fail, or when destructive storms of locusts or of burning desert sand sweep over the land.
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The external, scientific faith received into the highest parts of the natural mind does not prevent the evil lusts and false persuasions of the proprium from being excited; on the contrary, as soon as they are permitted, they rise up again with increased fury and power, endeavoring to blast in the bud the beginning spiritual life. The old interest in selfish and worldly objects of love is revived, causing a decrease of interest in spiritual things. The Writings, after a season begin to appear rather dry and abstract. The reading, if continued at all, is pursued more as a matter of duty than for pleasure, and the reader gradually weans off by resorting to externally pleasing, but doctrinally diluted collateral literature. Old notions of pelf-derived intelligence, and old, self-flattering affections of natural good again appear on the surface, like so many thorns and thistles preventing or choking the spiritual growth. The famine increases and becomes grievous in the land of Egypt.
This is more or less the case with everyone, be he born within or without the Church. Take, or example, a man or a woman born within the pale of the nominal New Church, and even educated in a school of the Church. It would be a grievous mistake to suppose that New Church Education will make sure the salvation of any one. The school merely facilitates the reformation of those within its protecting and guiding arms. It stores the minds of the young with scientific knowledges of genuine truths, represses and corrects the affections of evil, endeavors to excite and nourish the affections of good and truth, and thus points out the path that leads to the LORD and conjunction with Him. But the school cannot shun the evils for any one, or compel him to walk the path that has been so lovingly indicated. The individual must do this for himself alone.
The school years are thus a delightful and most necessary season of seedtime and harvest, and of gathering the doctrinal knowledges into the granaries of the natural mind. But when this season is over, the former pupil begins to live his own individual life, and must pass through the same process of regeneration as that of every other man. His loves of self and the world will now have greater freedom to assert their power. Evils and fakes of various kinds will lift up their attractive and seductive voices. He will come into states of obscurity and doubt and doctrinal lethargy, when the, teachings received at home and at school will seem so many empty and tiresome words. He is still in Egypt, and the famine that is raging in every land is sure to overtake him also.
And such states of famine will occur again and again throughout the earthly life of the regenerating man. States of light and joy, of faith and life, will ever be followed by states of obscurity and distress, whenever evils arise and tempt to sin. Then the truths of the Church will as it were disappear from the view. The terrible, threatening, overwhelming love of the evil will alone be seen towering above the inundated mind. Former progress and victories are forgotten. Vastation and desolation reign supreme. No help appears, and grievous despair takes possession of the mind. But, though not seen, the LORD is near, He, Whose Human, in the last agony of temptation, in the last throes of inexpressible despair, cried out, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachtani," "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me!" Such is the state of the Church, and of the man of the Church, when it is said that "Jacob saw that there was provision in Egypt." A new state is now beginning, and it is introduced by a new sight. The man begins to recognize his famishing, perishing condition, and he turns his eyes to Egypt for help and sustenance of spiritual life. He begins to remember the stores of knowledges collected in youth and in former states, and, at first, especially those most ultimate teachings from the LORD which begin with the words, "Thou shall not."
And to Egypt Jacob sends his sons. To the doctrinal scientifics in his natural mind the regenerating man directs his thoughts, to seek help in his dire distress. But though the sons of Jacob returned to their father with grain in their sacks and a gift of silver, the ruler of Egypt seemed harsh, they did not recognize him as their brother, and the relief gained was but temporary, for the famine still continued in the land. Though enough assistance is received to continue the combat of temptation by resorting to the commandments of the Law and the doctrinal statements of the Writings, yet it is vain to hope that these will win the final victory for us. The evil still continues to seem fair and enticing, and the truth still appears harsh and forbidding. Benjamin has not yet accompanied his brethren to Egypt. The medium is still wanting through which the LORD, with the omnipotence of His Divine Truth can inflow into the natural mind, conjoin Himself with the doctrinal truths there stored, and make the faith of the memory a living faith, by means of which the final victory can be gained.
What, then, is the medium represented by Benjamin, and how may we procure it for ourselves?
As, in the Divine Order of Creation, the LORD first created the ultimate material world, and then from the purest things in nature raised up man to serve as the medium between the Creator and the created, so also according to the Divine Law of Influx, by which man is regenerated, the LORD provides the internal human soul with an external human envelope; these, in the beginning are widely separated, but may be conjoined by the final creation of a medium which can be gained only through regeneration. The medium is thus created the last, and Benjamin, therefore, was the last born of Jacob.
Again, a medium, in order to be provided, must be formed out of the influx of the internal into the external, and, more particularly, by the influx of the lowest degree of the internal into the highest degree of the external. Take for an illustration the sense of sight, the medium of which is the eye. Sight is from the sun operating upon the brain, not immediately but by the means of light from the sun acting upon the optic nerve from the brain. Take the establishment of the Priesthood as another illustration. The Priest in his use is the medium through which the Holy Spirit is communicated to the church in general, and the Priest is created by the influx and especial reception of the Divine Truth into the highest form of the charity of the Church, which is the love of providing for the eternal salvation of souls. From this we may be able to understand the character of the societies in Heaven which are intermediate between the Celestial and the Spiritual Heaven. We are taught, further, that these intermediate, or spiritual- Celestial angels, are what is represented in the Word by Benjamin, who signifies, in general, truth of good, or truth from good and truth in good. What, then, is meant by the expression "truth of good"?
From the Divine Love and Wisdom, Life from the LORD descends, to man in a continuous chain of goods and truths, or of truths proceeding from good, and of goods produced by means of truth, the last link in this chain of life being scientific truth received in the natural mind of man.
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From this as a basis, man is able, if he is willing, to rise up to meet and become conjoined with the source of life by means of an ascending series or stairway of truths and goods, truths producing goods, and these goods again producing truths. This is the ladder which Jacob beheld in his dream, "set on the earth, and its head reaching unto heaven, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon it" (Gen. xxviii, 12).
With the natural man who has begun the process of regeneration, who is here represented by Jacob as Israel- Truth is the only means whereby good may be produced. His own natural good cannot receive Truth from the LORD, for this good is in itself nothing but infernal evil. But for the sake of his salvation, the man has been enabled to receive truth in its most external form into the faculty especially separated and protected for this purpose- That is, into his natural rational understanding. This truth is, in general, called "the truth of faith." At first this truth compels the evil will to obedience by the fear of external punishments, such as the loss of life, freedom, honor, gain, power or self-respect, and is thus the only active force in assisting man to resist-not to shun, observe-but merely to resist the most insane impulses of his evil lusts. Afterward as the mind is stored with scientific knowledges of a more interior character, he learns to resist the more, interior and therefore less gross, affections of evil, the compelling force now being the fear of internal torments of conscience, and of punishments and eternal misery in the life to come. But still he merely resists evil, the roots of which still remain, for he has not yet shunned evils as sins against the LORD, and the evil is still attractive in itself. By the very effort of resistance anew, though most external good is, however, beginning to be formed. The rudiment of a fruit is beginning to be produced by the continued straining and re-straining of the sap in the leaves, of the natural affections in the understanding. This good, which has thus been produced by a man's compelling himself to obey the truth, is called the good of truth. And as the fruit ripens, and its juices become sweeter, as the motives for resisting evil gradually become purer and more internal, seeds are created in the midst of the fruit, new and more interior views of truth are obtained. Thus is then called the, truth of good.
Some examples from life will best illustrate this process. A youth learns the scientifics of the trade or the profession to which he desires to devote his life. These, when grasped and stored in his memory, are the means or truths, whereby he can perform his use, first imperfectly, and gradually with more and more skill. The uses he then performs are his goods of truth. And as, he performs them, he successively gains a further and more perfect insight into the interior laws governing his use; the truths then perceived are his truths of good. It is the same, in the development of the conjugial with man. A youth reads with conjugial delight the work on Conjugial Love, and thus stores his mm a with truths of faith concerning this Love. From these truths he learns to resist the inclination to wandering lust. He is led from the general love of the sex to the love of one of the sex, with whom he is conjoined in marriage. He is then in the first good of conjugial love, the good of truth. And as he progresses in this good, his eyes are opened more and more to the realization of the genuineness, of the truths which as a youth he had learned concerning this love. Every day he gains a deeper, holier, and more living understanding of his relations with his wife, and thus he comes into the truth of good, or, what is the same, into interior wisdom, from which he learns not only to resist, but also to abhor, hate, and shun every inclination to what is anti- Conjugial.
And this new light, which is signified by Benjamin, comes to every man, who, in a state of temptation, makes an earnest effort to resist the evil. He comes first into a state of vastation and desolation, in which he thinks he can conquer by the power of the knowledge of the truth in his mind. This, however, will only help him to continue the combat. But as he continues to combat and resist, and as he humbles himself in despair of his own natural power and of the final outcome of the fight, a plane of simple, innocent good begins to be developed in his mind, into which the LORD can enter with consolation and help. He now can begin to see and confirm with himself from actual experience the reality of the living power of the Truth, of which he had before seen only the beauty and clearness. Benjamin has now come with his brethren into Egypt, for this interior perception that Truth is not merely knowledge, but is life from the LORD, is that medium through which heavenly Light can now enter and illumine the darkness and desolation of the natural. This recognition that all power is from the LORD alone by means of His Truth is the "Son of the right hand," the lust born of Jacob, the young Benjamin. This is the true innocence in which is power from the LORD to win the final victory in the temptation. The evil is now stripped of its beautiful mask, and can be seen in all its disgusting filth, deformity, and malignity. In contrast with this, the Truth is seen in heavenly light as the LORD himself in His Mercy and Glory and Power, and the regenerating man is no longer in obscurity and hesitation as to the choice.
Only when in this state can the man begin to procure for himself a living faith of the heart in place of the former faith of the memory. He can now form a truly rational judgment of his own, for he now sees for himself and not merely from the judgment of others. He can now approach the Writings, not only as true Books of Doctrine or as Books which he has been told are the Word of God. He now sees for himself, and knows from living experience, that in them the LORD is with him. They are now no longer, dry and wearisome, but of all things the most delightful and quickening. The first enthusiasm has now become a gently burning flame of steadfast, interior love of the Truth.
Only by means of Benjamin, only by means of this medium of an internal perception that the LORD is the Truth and the Truth is the LORD, can the New Church, with its infinite and eternal blessings, be established within and without us. But until this medium has been established, all our work is in vain. As long as the men of the Church look upon the Writings merely as books of doctrinal scientifics, their organizations and institutions, their missionary boards, their tract societies, their educational establishments labor in vain. There is no wisdom or life in them, for they do not approach the Word as the LORD. They believe in the Truth from themselves, and not because it is Divine. Years of famine, of vastation and desolation will surely come upon them, and may even now be seen overtaking them. If, then, when despair sets in, they suffer their pride of self-intelligence to be broken, and they humble themselves before that Joseph whom they have cast into a pit, and betrayed and rejected, the general and nominal New Church, now so grievously fallen from its first love, may yet be reformed and restored to its LORD. If not, a new beginning will have to be made with others, who, mindful of the sad lesson of the past, shall seek to approach Joseph directly, in company with Benjamin.- AMEN.
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Lord came into the world 1893
The Lord came into the world that He might remove Hell from man.- T. C. R. 2.
CONJUNCTION OF TRUTH FROM THE DIVINE WITH THE TRUTHS OF THE CHURCH 1893
(GENESIS XLII, 23-38.)
(23.) FROM the natural light, in which the truths of the external Church were it was not believed that all things appear from spiritual light, wherefore spiritual things were taken altogether otherwise by those who were in the truths of the Church not yet conjoined by good to the internal man than by those who were in good. This appears a paradox, but still it is true; for truths are taken spiritually by those who are in good, for they are in spiritual light; but truths are taken naturally by those who are not in good, for they are in natural light; wherefore truths have truths continually conjoined to them by those who are in good; but they have very many fallacies and also falses conjoined to them by those who are not in good.
(24.) Wherefore there was somewhat of a drawing back of the influx of good from the Divine; for the LORD never turns Himself away from any one, but He moderates the influx of good according to the state of the man or the angel; this moderation is what is meant by drawing back; this is on account of Divine Mercy, which is the Divine Love grieving because the Human Race is of itself in Hell, wherefore He inflowed with the celestial of the spiritual or truth from the Divine into the truths which were in the natural, and separated faith in the will from those truths because the medium of conjunction was not yet present; for Truth from the Divine inflows by a medium into the good of faith, and by this into its truth, or, what is the same, into willing truth, and by this into understanding truth, or, what is the same, into charity toward the neighbor, and by this into faith; no other way of influx is given with the man who is regenerate nor any other way of influx with the angels. The separation was as to apperception.
(25.) The influx from the celestial of the spiritual, gifted scientifics with good from truth, without any power on their part, wherever there was a receptacle in the natural, for scientifics are receptacles of good, and thereby sustained the truths which were of the external Church; the effect was (26) that truths were collected into scientifics, and they had life thence.
(27.) It was observed that they had been gifted with good, when they reflected upon scientifics in the exterior natural, it was perceived that it was without any power of their own- That goods were given and stored up in the entrance of the exterior natural.
(28.) Those in the truths of the external Church had the general perception that there was nothing of aid from them, that they had goods even in the exterior natural; whence they were in fear and general terror, in the will and in the understanding, on account of so great Providence.
(29.) Thence there was a successivity of reformation of the truths of the Church to the good of truth of the natural which is of the Church external, and reflection, from the good of that truth upon the things which had been hitherto provided. The reflection was from the good of truth; for all reflection and thence thought, which belongs to the inferior or exterior, comes from the superior or interior, although it appears to be from the inferior or exterior, it was so also with the consequent perception.
(30.) The celestial of the spiritual reigning in the natural, in the two things which are in the natural, namely, scientifics and the truths of the Church, was not conjoined with the truth of the external Church, on account of non- Correspondence; for where there is no correspondence of what is external with what is internal then everything that is internal and everything that comes from the internal is in no conjunction with the external. And it observed that the truths of the Church were held for the sake of obtaining gain. (31.) But those who were in the truths of the Church for the sake of gain denied that it was so.
(32.) All truths in one complex which are from one origin, although the Divine spiritual from which is conjunction does not appear, still by it are adjoined to spiritual good.
(33.) It was apperceived concerning the celestial of the spiritual- That is, the LORD, as to Truth from the Divine- That He willed that if those in external truths, were in truths not for the sake of gain, that faith in will might be separated, in order that they might look forward for themselves in the meanwhile in that desolation, and thus might live.
(34.) If there were a medium there would be conjunction, and then truths would no longer be for the sake of gain, thus there would be correspondence, and truths would become goods, and thus be fructified by good, and would all yield use and gain; for truths which are fructified by good, with those who are in good do not remain truths, but by them are committed to life, and become uses, wherefore they all yield use and gain.
(35) By the use from truths in the natural came the freely-given ordinations of truths, in each receptacle, and the apperception that it was so- That is, that the ordinations were freely given-which apperception was from truths and the good of truth in the natural, whence inflowed the holy; for when there are such things as are of Divine Providence, as here that truths were given gratis, the holy then inflows and induces something of fear together with a holy reverence.
(36.) These truths- That is, those in these truths-now had perception from the good of truth, that there was no longer a Church when it was deprived of its truths and goods; for then there was no internal, no faith in the will, and if the medium also be taken away, what is of the Church would be destroyed; for when there is no internal in the Church, nor faith in the will, and if the conjoining medium be taken away that which is of the Church is destroyed.
(37.) The things which were of faith in doctrine and understanding apperceived from the good of truth. For the Church is here treated of, in which faith in doctrine and the understanding apparently acts the first parts, and also teaches what is to be done; in the present case lest those things which are of the Church be destroyed it taught that both things of faith, namely, the doctrine of truth and the doctrine of good would not live unless a medium be conjoined, so far as was in the power of faith in the understanding, when it would be restored.
(38.) But the good of truth as to the spiritual of the celestial would not let itself down toward inferiors, since the internal which is the celestial of the spiritual or Truth from the Divine was not present, and the spiritual of the celestial was now in place of the internal; for with truths alone in the natural separate from the internal, it would perish, and thus there would be an end of the Church without the hope of resuscitation; for if in the Church there is neither an internal, nor a medium, nor faith in the will or charity, there is no longer any hope of its resuscitation.
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Lord removed Hell from man 1893
The Lord removed Hell from man by combats against it and by victories over it.- T. C. R. 2.
GENERAL INFLUX 1893
(GENESIS XLIII, 1-8.)
THE subject is continued concerning the conjunction of the Truths of the Church in the natural with the Celestial of the spiritual, or Truth from the Divine, by a Medium: but in this chapter, in the Internal Sense, only the general influx which precedes conjunction is treated of
(1.) The state was now one of desolation from the, want of spiritual things around about those things which were of the Church.
(2.) There was now a new state, when the truths failed, which were from scientifics, and the internal spiritual Church perceived from those things which were of the Church that in order that those things might live, they must procure for themselves the good of spiritual truth which is the good treated of in what now follows.
(3.) The good of the Church, perceived from the good of spiritual truth which is to be acquired, and which is what conjoins the medium, that the spiritual. from the internal was averse to those who were in the truths of the external Church, or in truths for gain, and would have no commiseration, unless there should be a medium between the internal and the external, or between the spiritual and the natural man, which medium is the truth of good which proceeds from the truth from the Divine; that truth of good is called the spiritual of the celestial.
The internal and the external of man are most distinct from one another; for his internal is in the light of heaven, and his external in the light of the world; and because they are most distinct they cannot be conjoined, except by a medium which draws from both. When there is no conjoining medium, it appears to man as if there were no compassion in the LORD; this is because if there be no conjoining medium, there is no reception of good, and when there is no reception of good, there is evil in its place; if man then cries to the LORD, since he; calls from evil, thus for the sake of self against all, there is no hearing; this appears as if there were no commiseration, nevertheless, the LORD is Mercy Itself.
(4.) If the Church were thus to be adjoined, there must be a medium; then good of truth would be acquired.
(5.) If it be not with the Church to be so adjoined, the good of truth could not be acquired, for it was perceived concerning the spiritual that in such case there, would be no commiseration, except by a medium with the things of the Church.
(6.) The Church now perceived from spiritual good, that they had separated from them the truth of good to conjoin it to the spiritual from the internal. Spiritual good is Truth which has been made good; for truth becomes rood when one lives according to it, for then it passes into the will, and from the will into act and be comes of the life, and when truth becomes of the life then it no longer is said to be truth, but good but the will which transforms truth into good is the new will in the intellectual part; this good is what is called spiritual good, which is to be distinguished from celestial good in this, that celestial good is implanted in the voluntary part itself of man Here the truth of good had been separated from the externals of the Church to conjoin it to the spiritual from the internal.
(7.) The celestial of the spiritual clearly perceived the things of the Church which were in the natural, concerning the truths of faith therein, concerning the spiritual good from which those truths are, and concerning interior truth, or, what is the same, the truth of good, or truth in which is good, or the spiritual of the celestial which is the medium between truth from the Divine and truth in the natural. The spiritual of the celestial perceived those things suitably, for they were the things which it was desirous of apperceiving; but those in external truths did not believe that the celestial of the spiritual desired that the good of truth should be conjoined to himself.
(8.) The Church now perceived from its good that interior truth ought to be adjoined to it, namely, the good of the Church, whereby the Church would have life according to degrees as follows: first, elevation to superior or interior things, consequently, to those things which are of spiritual life; second, spiritual life therefrom; third, further spiritual life; and fourth, whence it would be no longer damned. These degrees of life would be enjoyed by the external of the Church, by its internal, and by the things which are still more interior.
Lord subjugated Hell 1893
The Lord subjugated Hell and reduced it into order and under His obedience.- T. C. R. 2.
LANGUAGE 1893
[A resume of Lectures by the Rev. Enoch S. Price, Professor of Language at the Philadelphia Schools of the Academy of the New Church.]
THE ESSE OF LANGUAGE.
Etymology.
THE word language came into England in the form of language, through the Norman conquest. In the Latin it is lingua, in Old Latin it was dingua; in Gothic, tuggo, (pron. tunggo); in Anglo-saxon, tunge; and in English it is tongue; therefore, so far as etymology is concerned, it is the same whether we say language or tongue.
Speech, a word nearly synonymous with language, which but for an accident would have been spreech, is derived by descent and mutation from the Anglo-Saxon word spraee, which was the substantive derived from the verb sprecan, to speak. The accident was the loss of the r. In the kindred Teutonic languages this word is, in Old Friesic, spreka; in Dutch, sprekken; Old Saxon, speekan; German, sprechen; and in Old High German, sprehhan; it is also probably allied to the Sanskrit sphruj, to crackle, to thunder. One etymologist says that it is allied through the German sprechen, to speak, with brechen, to break, and that this is allied to the Latin precor, to pray, and this Latin word again with the Hebrew word [Hebrew] (ba-rakh), to bless.
Definition.
Language may be defined in general as any mode of communicating thoughts and ideas from one mind to another; but, as the words language, tongue, and speech, which mean respectively what is produced by the tongue, the tongue itself, and articulate sounds, indicate, the more usual meaning is, connected sounds that may convey a meaning from one person to another-sounds that enable the hearer to know how the speaker or producer of the sounds is feeling, and what he is thinking- That is, that enable the hearer to know the state of affection and thought with the speaker.
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The Esse of Language.
God is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself and those two make His Essence. Now since God is the very, and only, and thus the First Substance and Form of which the Essence is Love and Wisdom, and since "from Him were all things made that were made," it follows that He, created the Universe with all and its single things from the Divine Love by the Divine Wisdom, and that thence' the Divine Love together with the Divine Wisdom is in all and single the created subjects. Love, therefore, is not only the Essence forming all things, but also uniting and conjoining them, and thus holding them in connection when formed.
But God is not only Love Itself and Wisdom Itself, but He is also Good Itself and Truth Itself, because Good is of Love and Truth is of Wisdom. Further, because God is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself, He is Life Itself, which is Life in Itself. The Love and Wisdom in God make a ONE.
All the good of love and of charity is from God, likewise every truth of wisdom and of faith. These things are the Essence of God.
Now while there are two things which make the Essence of God, namely, Love and Wisdom, there are three things which make the Essence of His Love; for the essence of love is to love others outside of Itself, to will to be one with them, and to make them happy from Itself. The same three make the Essence of His Wisdom, for Love and Wisdom in God make a one; but love wills those things and wisdom produces them.
The First Essential, which is to love others outside of self, is acknowledged from the Love of God toward the whole human race, and for the sake of the human race God loves all things which He has created; for they are means, and he who loves the end loves also the means.
The Second Essential of God's love, which is to will to be one with those who are outside of It, is also acknowledged from His conjunction with the Angelic Heaven, with the Church in the earths, and with every good and truth which enters into and makes man and the Church. Love also regarded in itself is nothing but an effort to conjunction.
The Third Essential of God's Love, which is to make those who are outside of It happy from Itself, is acknowledged from Life eternal, which is blessedness, happiness and felicity without end, for those who receive His Love into themselves; for God, as He is Love Itself is also Blessedness Itself; for every Love breathes forth from itself delight, and the Divine Love breathes forth blessedness itself; happiness and felicity to eternity.
Thus God makes the Angels happy from Himself, and also men after death, which making happy is effected by conjunction.
Those three essentials of the Divine Love were the cause of the creation of the Universe, and they are also the cause of its conservation.
The first essential- To love others outside of self-is a cause; for the Universe is outside of God as the world is' outside of the sun, and into it God can extend His Love, and in it He can exercise that Love, and thus come to rest.
The second essential- To will to be one with them-is a cause; for man was created, into the image and similitude of God- That is, he was made a form receiving love and wisdom from God; thus he is such that God can unite Himself with him, and for the sake of him with all and the single things of the universe, which are nothing else than means; for conjunction with the final cause is also conjunction with the mediate causes; for all things were created for the sake of the human race.
The third essential- To make them happy from Itself-is a cause; for the Angelic heaven is provided for every man who receives the Love of God.
Those three essentials of the Love of God are also causes of the conservation of the Universe; for conservation is perpetual creation, like as subsistence is perpetual existence. (For a more extended view of the above doctrines see The True Christian Religion, n. 37-46.)
Recapitulation.
God is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself; these two make His Essence. He is Good Itself and Truth Itself; for Good is of Love and Truth is of Wisdom. Because He is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself, He is also Life Itself; which is Life in Itself. His Love and Wisdom make a ONE; but while there are two things which make the Essence of God, namely, Love and Wisdom, there are three things which make the Essence of His Love- To love others outside of Himself- To will to be one with them- And to make them happy from Himself. To the end, therefore, that the LORD may love others outside of Himself, He created the Universe and placed man therein as the very object of His Love, with whom He wills to be one- That is, to be conjoined. But the LORD is conjoined with man by residing in what is His own with man; He therefore created receptacles for Himself with man; for the Divine Essence Itself is Love and Wisdom, and from this man has two faculties of life, from one of which he has Understanding, and from the other Will. The faculty from which is the understanding, derives all it has from the influx of Wisdom from God, and the faculty from which is the will derives all it has from the influx of Love from God. If these two faculties were taken away, all that is human would perish. To be human, is to think, and from thinking to SPEAK; and to will and from willing to act. The Divine in man, therefore, resides in those two faculties. (See The Divine Love and Wisdom, n. 30.)
Man is a receptacle of God, and a receptacle is an image of God, and because God is Love Itself and Wisdom Itself, man is a receptacle of these, and the receptacle becomes an image of God according as it receives
(T. C. R. 48.) Thus man becomes an image of God by reception of what is of God- That is, by the indwelling of God with him in His own receptacles, whereby man becomes love and wisdom as of himself. Man therefore must also love others outside of himself; will to be one with them, and so make them happy from himself. This he can do only by communication. All communication between God and man is by the proceeding of the Divine Love by the Divine Wisdom, and therefore all communication between man and man is by the proceeding of his love, or, what is the same, his affection, by his wisdom, or, what is the same, his thought. The vehicle of this proceeding love by wisdom is with man what is called language, and its end is that man's love and wisdom may proceed. Communication, then, by proceeding, is what is meant in a universal sense by language or speech.
Summary.
From the first of the three things that make the Essence of God- To love others outside of Himself-became the creation of all tangible, visible, and thinkable things that are outside of God, with man as the crown of all; from the other two- To will to be one with them, and to make them happy from Himself-was established proceeding, influx, or communication, which is the universal of all language.
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This, therefore, is the Esse of all language-is why there is such a thing as language, because the LORD wills to be one with man, and to make him happy from Himself.
Lord came into the world 1893
The Lord came into the world that He might glorify His Human, which He took on in the world- That is, unite it to the Divine from which.- T. C. R. 2.
NOTES ON ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 1893
[For the VIth instalment of the notes, see the June number, p. 87.]
VII.
THE MOST ANCIENT CHURCH.
Its Evening and Vastation.
1. THE ORIGIN OF EVIL.-In our review of the History of Mankind we have now arrived at that momentous period when the whole course of human life began to be turned from its upward tendency to God, and was inverted downward to the proprium; the state in which evil originated, and the "conflict of the ages" first began. A very complete statement of the origin of evil, regarded on the purely spiritual plane, will be found in the work on Conjugial Love, n. 444. The teaching there, in a summary, is that good was from creation, but not evil; that there is a decrease of good to a lesser good, and that when the least good comes nothing, evil arises on the other hand; that man himself is the origin of evil, by having turned from God to himself; and that man was able so to turn himself by the appearance in which his freedom consists that he wills, minks, and acts of himself.
2. In order properly to understand this teaching it is important to notice that the desire for self-life began with the posterity of the Most Ancient Church, and not, with the members of that Church itself; who were regenerated to the celestial degree. Evil began with such of that posterity who had not yet reached a high degree in their individual regeneration, but who still-were kept in the middle ground between their native inclination to the proprium and the insinuated remains of good and truth, in the beginning given to the first men. With these a choice was possible, first, between a greater good and a lesser good, and afterward between good and evil.
Why some of these men chose a lesser good is not within the scope of our present investigation. Each one must examine himself for an answer to this question. But we may investigate the influences surrounding these men in their fatal choice, and describe the gradual process of their decline.
3. THESE INFLUENCES PROM THE SPIRITUAL WORLD came from the spirits of Preadamites, with whom The spiritual had not in this life been developed except in a very imperfect degree; men who in this life had not fully emerged out of the man- Animal state of the external man, but who entered the spiritual world in their state of fallacious appearances and sensual appetites. From these ignorant and undeveloped spirits continual suggestions must have come to the men of the Most Ancient Church, suggestions tending to draw their attention to the apparent possibilities of a life in some degree derived from the proprium. These suggestions were of course instantly rejected by the celestial men of the Church; yet, occurring again and again, they would finally find a lodgment in the memory of man, whence, with the first posterity, they would operate in conjunction with the native inclination to the proprium. From this conjunction a doubt at first could originate, whether man, perchance, did not actually live from himself, and whether he would not, perhaps, lead himself in the affairs of his life.
4. This doubt some of the first Posterity began to confirm by the misunderstanding and misapplication of this truth which they had learned, "that natural things correspond to spiritual things." Hence they thought: what harm can come of reasoning concerning the mysteries of faith from the external things of the senses, when these, being correspondences, cannot be contrary to the internal things to which they correspond? (A. C. 128).
5. EXTERNAL INFLUENCES.-Mankind, in its first infancy, possessed and required but few external comforts of life. These were successively given to them, as, in the course of several generations, their store of worldly experiences gradually increased. They gradually learned to tend the herd, to till the ground, to prepare garments, erect dwellings, make ornaments, etc. Those of the first men who became regenerated regarded all these things only as further evidences of the tender mercy of the LORD, their Heavenly Father, in providing for His children. But, as these external objects of delight multiplied, their attractions increased, and afforded to the younger generations a further occasion to place, if they chose, their delights in these externals themselves apart from internal things. The wise counsel and instruction of their celestial fathers were not, however, wanting, so that the responsibility and blame for choosing a lesser good still rested with these men themselves. The origin of evil cannot, therefore, be referred to any combination of overwhelming circumstances.
6. THE BEGINNING OF THE DECLINE from the celestial state is represented by the creation of "the woman" out of the rib of "the man." The LORD said, "it is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him a help as with him" (Gen. ii, 18).
By this is signified that this posterity of the Most Ancient Church was no longer content to "dwell alone"- That is, to be a celestial man, or to be led by the LORD alone-but that they began to lust after a proprium by which they might, to some extent, be led by themselves. But as the man of the Church, who began to lust for this self-life, was still of a good genius, the LORD granted him not a real-i. e., an infernal proprium-but one of such a kind that it only appeared as his own, "a help as with him" (A. C. 137-141).
The LORD'S restraining and warning mercy is represented in this bringing to the man "every beast of the field and every fowl of the heavens to see what he would call it." The LORD made known to him every celestial affection of good and every spiritual affection of truth, in order that the man, at this momentous crisis, should be in the most perfect equilibrium. "But for the man there teas not found a help as with him." Not withstanding the fullest demonstration of good and truth by the LORD, this posterity still lusted for a proprium (A. C. 142-146).
JEHOVAH GOD then "caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept, and He took one from his ribs, and closed up flesh in the place thereof" (Gen. ii, 21). The LORD permitted the man to lapse into that obscure state in which it appears to him that his life is self-derived. A proprium was granted him, but the LORD mercifully and miraculously removed this "rib" from his breast.
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[Photograph: the Berlin School of the Academy of the New Church.] Flesh was closed up in the place thereof; and the rib was built into a woman, which was brought to the man. The LORD filled this apparent proprium with life. He led the man to love his proprium, not directly in himself; but, as it were, out of himself; in others. Since man was no longer willing to love the LORD supremely, he was permitted to love man, and from this, derivatively, to love the LORD. Thus he would still be kept in the Garden of Eden, for mutual love is also a heavenly love. The character of this posterity was, in this manner, changed from celestial to celestial-spiritual (A. C. 161); the former celestial perception now became more obscure, so that they no Longer perceived the internal man to be distinct from the external, but confused these two into one. Since, however, charity could yet be insinuated into their proprium by the LORD, they were still innocent of evil. They were still "naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." (A. C. 147-165).
7. THE FALL.-With the next following posterity the inclination to the proprium increased so as to become actual love of self. Though still perceiving the unlawfulness of that to which they inclined, knowing that "dying, they would die" if they ate from the tree, their perception still became obscured by this excusatory doubt, that by sensual examination they might be able to see for themselves the truth of what they had heard from their forefathers, and so have their eyes opened and become like God, knowing good and evil (A. C. 905).
They now no longer perceived any distinction between the internal and the external man; the "woman," or the proprium, was persuaded by "the serpent," or the sensual, native to every man, that it was allowable "to eat from the tree of science of good and evil," that it was right to believe nothing but what could be comprehended by the senses, and to subject the truths of Divine Revelation to the scrutiny of sensual science. And "the woman ate, and gave to her man, and he ate." "The man," the rational, which was placed as that faculty of the natural man that would in freedom choose between the good and the evil now consented to the sensual promptings of the proprium. This was the "fall "itself, and this was the end of the Most Ancient Church with men.
All perception, and all remains of good and truth, were not, however, at once lost to them by this act.
"Their eyes were opened." They were still able to know and acknowledge, from an internal dictate, "that they were naked," that they were no longer in innocence, but in evil, stripped of all true intelligence and wisdom. They were still held in natural good, so that they could be affected with shame at their degenerate state. But, instead of repenting, they confirmed their evils by excusatory reasonings from natural truths or scientifics, they "sewed fig leaves together and made themselves girdles." They were still able to perceive or "hear the voice of JEHOVAH GOD going from Himself in the garden." The LORD in His never- Changing mercy still taught and warned them, but they feared and were averse to the Divine voice that condemned their evils (A. C. 211-233)."
8. THE "CURSE" which was now pronounced over the man and the woman and the serpent indicates the enormity of the change which had taken place with all the faculties of man. The sensual, which before had not been evil in itself; but merely inclined to external appearances and appetites, now became infernal in itself, and the seat of all persuasions and lusts. The Church "the woman," perverted by the proprium, now became the scene of violent war, of spiritual conflicts, torments, and anxieties, instead of the former celestial peace. In place of the internal perception of the Divine Truth which guided the Most Ancients in all their actions, the woman, or the Church, was now under obedience to "the man," or the natural rational, which itself had become infernal and cursed (A. C. 242-279).
Miserable, indeed, was now the state of mankind. Instead of the garden of God, their habitation was a wilderness, in which the rational, deprived of all affection for spiritual truth, was doomed to dig for its sustenance among the barrens of dead scientifics, productive only of thorns and thistles. Freedom and Rationality-everything truly human-was now lost to these degenerate descendants of the Golden Age. They were henceforth a helpless prey to the evil lusts that had taken possession of their will, hastening them on to a state worse than that of fierce beasts. Thus Hell began.
9. THE PROPHECY OF THE COMING OF THE LORD.-But the Divine Love is eternal and unchanging. No sooner had the love of self begun to reign among men than the LORD in His Mercy gave to mankind this Divine Prophecy, that He Himself would finally become "the seed of woman," that He would take upon Himself an evil human proprium such as theirs, and in it crush "the head of the serpent," the root of all evil, the dominion of the love of self (A. C. 250-260).
To those in whom there were any remains of good and truth, this prophecy remained as the chief anchor-ground for their hope, not only during the waning day of the Most Ancients Church and the subsequent pitch-dark night, but also throughout the Ancient and Israelitish Churches. Spreading hence, it became, in more or less perverted forms, a central feature of the ancient mythologies.
10. THE EXPULSION FROM EDEN, consequent upon the Fall, signifies the total deprivation of intelligence and wisdom which this posterity of the Most Ancient Church now underwent. The LORD "made cherubim from the East to dwell at the garden of Eden, and the flame of a sword turning itself to keep the way of the tree of lives" (Gen. iii, 24). The "cherubim" signify "the Divine Providence of the LORD, lest men should insanely enter upon the mysteries of faith from the proprium and the sensual and scientific, and thus profane F them and destroy himself" (A. C. 308). For the posterity of the Most Ancient Church inherited from their celestial forefathers such a disposition that love or the will ruled the whole mind. When the will, therefore, with these had become totally evil, they could not but pervert and profane every truth of faith entering into their minds. Lest, therefore, they should commit the most direful kind of profanation, the LORD closed their minds to the perception of spiritual truth, and gave them instead natural truth, "the flame of a sword," which they might turn and twist according to their evil pleasure, without committing internal profanation. Remains of celestial perceptions continued, however, to exist until the end, making possible the unspeakable state of the antediluvians.
Lord holds Hell 1893
The Lord holds Hell in order and under His obedience to eternity.- T. C. R. 2.
Academy of the New Church 1893
THE Academy of the New Church has opened a school in Parkdale, Ontario, Canada. The Rev. Edward. S. Hyatt has been appointed Head-Master, with Miss Carswell as Assistant Teacher. School is held in a house rented for the purpose.
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BERLIN, CANADA 1893
THE NEW SCHOOL- HOUSE.
THE school- House of the Academy of the New Church Berlin, Ont., an illustration of which accompanies this issue, is now occupied by the school and used for the worship of the Church of the Academy. The house is situated 150 feet back in a lot having a frontage of 260 feet and a depth of 650; the trees in the background of the picture are at the limit of the lot. The grounds in front of the building and around it have been beautifully laid out by Mr. Swain Nelson, of Chicago. The house is very nearly a cube, measuring about 42 feet each way. It is built of wood and has two stories and a mansard roof; also a basement, half of which is above ground. There are 75 windows in the building. The house is painted white with red trimmings. The main door of entrance is in the middle in front. Entering by this door we find ourselves in a hall from which stairs lead to the basement, and also to the second story. Descending to the basement, we find it divided into three parts.
The apartment on the right will be the boys' clothes room, wash room, etc., and also play room in bad weather, and the one on the left will serve the same purpose for the girls. In the girls' basement will also be the kitchen, which will communicate with the first story by means of a dumb-waiter. This will be a great convenience for the social gatherings. The third apartment of the basement is between the other two, and contains the furnace and fuel. Returning to the first floor, we see six doors opening from the hall, two on each side, and two at the farther end; these lead to as many rooms. The four rooms on the sides measure about 14x14 feet each, and the two in rear 15x20 each. The two large rooms have a movable partition between them, and so can be thrown into one, making a large hall. The inside of the building is not plastered, but is finished with oiled ash, which gives a very pretty effect. Returning to the hallway, we go up-stairs into the hall for worship, which measures 30 by 40 feet, and as the part under the roof is included in the hall, it has a height of 20 feet. At the sides of the hall, on each side of the stairs, there are two small rooms, one of which is the vestry and the other a retiring room for the ladies. Over these two rooms and the stairs there is a gallery, which can be used in time of need. The entire upper story is finished, like the first floor, in ash.
OPENING THE NEW BUILDING.
THE opening of the school in the new building took place on the 30th of October. The hall in the upper story was not finished, and the first story was accordingly used. Parents and friends gathered at 10 o'clock, and took their places in the rear of the hall on the first floor. In front were the chairs for the children, but these were as yet unoccupied. The teachers and children assembled in the old school- House, not far away, and marched to the new building together. After laying aside their hats and wraps in the side rooms they formed in line to enter the hall. Before entering they sang the first two verses of the "Color Song" (see Life, p. 124). With the third and fourth verses they marched into the hall to their seats, placing their offerings in the basket as they passed the door. The head-master then retired, and soon after entered clad in the priestly robe. The Word in the letter and in the spiritual sense was taken from the Repository and opened upon the altar. The LORD'S Prayer was then offered by all, after which [Hebrew] was sung. The priest then read the lessons, after which followed the Hebrew Anthem [Hebrew].
The head-master then addressed the children, impressing upon them the teaching that all the blessings which man enjoys are a gift from the LORD. So must they regard this beautiful school- House: it is a gift from the LORD, given that the great use of educating children in and according to the Doctrines of the Church might be well performed. He called their attention to the fact that the LORD is now giving to the Academy homes for its schools in the various places where it is performing its high use. The LORD sees that the Academy is worthy of these gifts, and He gives them, so that it may do its work even better in the future than in the past. After the address a psalm was sung, and the service closed. The remainder of the morning was spent socially by the teachers and pupils.
A FEAST OF CHARITY.
ON Friday, November 4th, the members of the Church attending the worship of the Church at the Academy gathered to enjoy a feast of charity, so that in the sphere of mutual love they might give expression to their happiness because of the new home of the Church. At seven o'clock all took their places at the supper table. The prayer was repeated by all in unison. (See C. L. 16.) When due time had been spent in enjoying the food amidst lively conversation, the toast-master, Mr. Rudolph Roschman, rose, and with appropriate remarks, proposed the first toast, "The Church." After "Our glorious Church" had been sung, the Rev. J. E. Rosenqvist responded. Then followed the toast to "The Academy," whereupon all sang, to the tune of the national song, the following verses prepared for the occasion:
"All with united voice,
In thy success rejoice,
Academy!
And for the blessings great,
We have received of late,
We pledge our love and faith
Ever to thee."
The Rev. F. E. Waelchli then responded to the toast. The next toast was "The Schools of the Academy," to which Mr. Richard Roschman responded, after the singing of the "Color Song." The last toast was "The New Home of the Academy School in Berlin," which, after the singing of "Alma Mater," was responded to by Mr. Jacob Stroh. The tables were then removed, and the remainder of the evening spent in conversation, games, and dancing. A most enjoyable evening was spent by all, and many expressed the hope that the future feasts of charity to be held in this place may be equally happy and delightful.
Title Unspecified 1893
C. L. 71 To the extent in which a consort shuns extra- Conjugial conjunctions even as to the lusts of the will, and intentions thence, that love is purified with them and becomes successively spiritual, first while they live in the earths, and afterward in heaven.- C. L. 71.
NEW CHRISTMAS SERVICE 1893
THE Festival of the Incarnation was celebrated by the Philadelphia Schools of the Academy on Christmas evening.
At three o'clock the procession of six Priests, (two Bishops, three Pastors, and one Minister,) all in the robes of their holy office, entered the hall and proceeded to the chancel, while the people were standing.
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A beautiful service composed of selections from the Word in the revealed Internal Sense and in the Letter had been prepared, and as every one present was furnished with a copy, it was conducted smoothly and harmoniously. It is too long to be reproduced here. But the general feature was this: One of the Bishops would read a general statement of the doctrine taught in a certain selection from the Word. The other priests would then read in unison a more particular presentation of the Internal Sense of the same selection, and then the schools and the people responded by either reading or singing the selection in the literal sense. These selections were divided into three groups. The first consisted of prophecies about the Advent of the LORD, the second consisted of selections from the Gospel story of the Incarnation, and the third group presented the spiritual phase of His Coming. A short address introduced each of these three divisions of the service.
A special feature was a four-fold response in connection with Psalm cxxxvi, the male voices reading the first lines of every couplet of the literal sense, and the female voices responding with the constantly recurring words, "For His Mercy is forever."
As customary for the past two years, offerings were brought to the altar, and fruit was distributed to the schools and the people.
The close was especially impressive, as in addition to the usual benediction, the priests read the blessing contained in the last verses of Psalm cxv, and sang the last line in Hebrew, and finally the Chancellor spoke the words in Apocalypse xxii, 20, "Yea, I come quickly; Amen," and all responded, "Yea, come LORD JESUS" (see A. R. 960).
On Christmas day the Holy Supper was administered. Five priests took part in the services.
Notes and Reviews 1893
THE Teachers' Journal, to which subscription was invited in the October issue, has now been published, and may now be obtained through the Academy Book Room, at 50 cents a copy.
New Church Tidings for November contains a sermon on "The Word not understood without Doctrine from the Word." It also contains a brief but very interesting history of the Parkdale Society.
Morning Light for December 10th states that an important though not a very large work may be expected from Dr. Garth Wilkinson shortly, the subject being "Epidemic Man and his Visitations."
L'Eglise de l' Avener is the title of a new Monthly Journal in the French language, published by the New Church people in Paris. The journal is in the charge of Mr. C. Humann, assisted by Mr. Decembre- Alonier.
Our Monthly Paper is the title of the Manual of the Bristol (England) Society of the New Church. The Calendar contains notices of two lectures by Old Church ministers, the subject of one of them being "Love, Courtship, and Marriage."
BOUND copies of New Church Life for 1892 will, be ready during this month.
Price to non-subscribers, $1.50; to subscribers, $1.25; 75 cents when complete, well-preserved sets are received in exchange. Postage, 20 cents.
The Swedenborg Concordance, part 58, like the preceding part, is almost entirely devoted to the subjects of names.
The entries extend from "Jew," which is continued from part 57, to "Judge." This latter entry includes "Judgment." The reader will await with much interest that part which deals with the subject of the "Last Judgment."
THE third volume of Concordance is completed with the fifty-ninth part to be received this month. Subscribers wishing to have their copies bound can have this done through the Academy Book Room at the moderate price of $1.25 a volume, if delivered for binding before the 20th of this month.
The Dawn, in its issue of December 8th 1892 contains an article by Mr. L. P. Ford, in which he complains that the English Conference devotes too much time to financial matters, and he suggests that an entirely new Constitution be framed for the Church and that a Congress of the whole Church be convened to consider the same. The Dawn states that one result of Mr. Ford's paper is that "A day in the middle of the Conference week has been set apart for the discussion of religious and social questions."
IN the spring of the past year, a friend printed the lessons on the Eye, which a teacher of the Academy schools had prepared for her pupils. A notice of these lessons will be found in the Life for May, 1892, page 74. To these lessons on the Eye are now added lessons on the Ear and the Nose, by the same teacher. The plan remains the same. The following are the contents:
The Ear: The External Ear, the Middle Ear, the Internal Ear, Divine Teachings concerning the Ear, Ear-rings, on Sound and how it comes to the Ear, the Ears of Animals.
The Nose: Divine Teachings concerning the Nose, Ornaments for the Nose, Noses of Animals.
New Church Monthly for December contains a long and interesting editorial on the doings of the "Extraordinary General Meeting" of the English Conference in which it shows that by its acts the Conference has made it possible for members to reject any work or doctrine which is not in accord with their self-derived intelligence, also that it has constituted itself a Court of Appeal to decide whether a doctrine be true or false.
The Articles on Religious Instruction are continued after a lapse of five months.
The Monthly also contains an article on the psalms in the Liturgy of the "General Church," commenting on the omission of the titles to the psalms, and giving a new translation of the titles for insertion in the Liturgy. But as the statement is made that The Summary Exposition of the Prophets and Psalms can be used by reckoning the title as the first verse of any psalm, it is well to point out this cannot always be done, as for instance in the following psalms, where the title is not a distinct verse, but forms cart of the first verse: Psalms cxlv, lxxxvii, ciii, cxxxii, lxxii, cxxv, cxxvi, cxxvii, xxiii, xxxii, xxxvii, lxxiii, xc, cxxxix, and l.
There appears no reason why the same Hebrew word should be translated "Conqueror" in one place and "Strong One," "Leader," "Sustainer," and "Perfecter" in other places.
The promise of an illustration of the interior of the new school building is still open for fulfillment in the future.
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
A TALE.
(Copyrighted.)
X.
A PARTING AND A MEETING.
As we passed out, more dark, ugly birds flew up with harsh cries from the stunted tree; and I started back, apprehensively, clutching my companion's arm, as a long; curving figure, which could only have been that of an enormous snake, slid heavily across our path.
12
"These things which appear to us are representatives corresponding to the state of the men we have just seen," said the angel, reassuringly. "In regions where dwell those whose minds are clouded with falsity and grovel in the insanities of self-derived intelligence hideous birds and frightful reptiles appear. But where the mind is clear and truly rational, from a knowledge and "love of genuine truth, there beautiful birds and other agreeable animals are seen. This is because all animals correspond to either good or evil affections. Birds in general correspond to the faculties of the mind or to things intellectual. This was known among the ancients on the earth, and that is why the early Greeks gave wings to the horse Pegasus, under which emblem they figured the human intellect and the power with which it is endowed of rising upward or elevating itself above earthly things to the contemplation of heavenly things."
"And was not a lingering perception of this forgotten truth," I asked, eagerly," the origin of the expression soaring when applied to a flight of the imagination or intellect?"
"Undoubtedly All metaphor has its root in this knowledge of correspondences among the ancients."
The lights and the dim outline of the college were now directly before us. We drew near and halted at the rock whereon Alaric and I had rested early in the evening. Seating himself, the angel invited me to do likewise, and resumed his instruction.
Finally I made bold to speak to him of my desire to enter upon the duties of a permanent calling, and confessed that I aspired to a final entrance into a life of heavenly usefulness similar to his own. I mentioned this after much hesitation and circumlocution, trembling with dread of what his attitude might be toward my presumption. But instead of rebuking me for cherishing- A vain ambition, he caught my hand in a warm grasp, and said solemnly, but joyfully: "May the LORD be with you and help you forward, my brother!"
I could not speak, so profound was my happiness. Tears of rapture filled my eyes as I reverently kissed the angel's hand.
He talked to me a long time and earnestly, assuring me that what I looked forward to would be mine if I truly desired it- As soon as I made myself ready. I should pass through many temptations, and I must strive to conquer my evils- To rid myself of them; and in the meantime learn gladly to do whatever the Divine Providence sent in my way.
"What shall I do to conquer my evil inclinations?" I asked, eagerly.
"For one thing, let your prayer be ever that your eyes may be kept open to see and recognize evil, especially in yourself. Pray that you may ever be led to think rightly from truth and to act wisely in the light thereof."
"It is too true that my eyes are often not open," I said. "There are times when I cannot see that there is evil in me at all."
"At such times let me urge you to examine yourself," was the quick response, "not carelessly but deliberately and with earnest determination. Explore the very intents of your thought and the purposes of your heart. Ask yourself what are those things which you love all above all others. Suppose that every restraint were removed, that no disastrous consequences would follow the commission of any sin, examine and see if in that case you would still desire always to act with perfect decorum, honor; and justice. With your heart laid bare before your own eyes, ask yourself these questions:
"'Do I love truth for its own sake, or because I wish to be thought wise and good? Do I love what is good because it is of heaven, and hate evil because it is of hell?
"'Is my desire to perform a use the result of a love of serving the LORD and of being useful to the neighbor or from an ambition to make for myself a name and a place among men?
"'Do I wish the neighbor well equally with myself? Am I inclined to do him justice even as I would have justice done to myself, or do I take pleasure in being unjust to him in ever so small a degree? Am I inclined to find pleasure in ever so slight an exaggeration of the facts' which appear to accuse him? Let me think well before I answer.
"'Do I love my friends for the good that is in them, or for mere beauty and grace alone, or because through subtle flattery or other arts, they make themselves agreeable?
"'Do I take pleasure in excusing evil acts in the name of charity? Do I excuse certain faults in myself and condemn them in others? Do I palliate my offenses when they rise up in my memory and accuse me, or do I acknowledge them in all their enormity and humbly repent of them?
"'Do my thoughts incline toward a faithful and abiding affection for one woman, or do I contemplate with pleasure the love of several?
"'When I recognize that I have done a good action, do I at once ascribe its authorship to the LORD, or do I take merit to myself?
"'Do I regard the Divine Providence in all the affairs of life, and reverently lift my soul toward the LORD GOD as the Source of all life, truth, and good, and do I acknowledge myself verily to be, but for influx from above, wholly evil?'"
Listening to these searching questions, the deep happiness of the past hour faded away, and humiliation and sorrow overcame me.
The certainty of my conviction was seen as in a blaze of light.
"God help me!" I said, in anguish. "I am guilty. I cannot truthfully answer these questions as they should be answered. There is no hope for me."
"Ah, but there is hope," was the gentle assurance. "Were there none, you would not now be listening patiently to instruction. You began the struggle against evil while in the world, and all who thus make a real beginning, may finish the work here. Only keep on. Keep in mind these and similar questions, and strive to put yourself in the way toward meeting the requirements indicated, and you will advance. It is after all not so difficult, if one will but try with constancy and determination."
Shortly after pronouncing these words, the angel rose abruptly, saying: "I am recalled and must now leave you."
"How are you 'recalled'?" I asked, loath to see him go. "No messenger has come to summon you."
"Nevertheless, I am recalled," he said, and, in the soft light enveloping his face, I saw a smile upon his lips."' I have received a sign," he added.
I wondered what the sign was, but would not ask him. "I shall pray the LORD that I may see you again," I said.
"If you do, and truly have need of me, you will see me again without fail was the confident assurance.
He pressed my hand warmly in farewell and turning walked from my view in the dark night. Left alone, I stood still many minutes, going over in mind what the angel had said to me, and reviewing the events of the evening.
13
"It must be long past midnight," was my thought at last, as I roused myself and looked about me.
What should I do? There was now scarcely a light shining from the windows of either the college itself or the students' quarters, and there was therefore no chance of a lodging, even could I make up my mind to accept it. What then?- Tramp back to Newcomers? It would be morning ere I arrived, and beside I wanted to speak with Alaric before leaving the neighborhood. As I hesitated, wondering how I should feel if I passed the remainder of the night stretched on the sand, a figure was suddenly outlined in the neighboring gloom, and a voice cried softly:
"Is that you, Burton?"
It was Alaric. I caught his hand gladly, we took a few steps backward, and presently sat down together on the flat rock which was now a familiar friend. After a short discussion of the events of the evening, I said, urgently: "Come, my friend, let us leave this neighborhood at once."
"Where to go?"
"Anywhere almost-if only we leave this place. Back to Newcomers first, and then on to some other city, perhaps, and finally to a heavenly city, if good fortune, or rather the Divine Providence, shall lead us so far."
"It would be more agreeable than taking the journey alone," rejoined Alaric, thoughtfully. "But how can we know? It may not be intended that any two should take that journey side by side, but that each one should meet and conquer in his own individual temptations."
"Doubtless you are right, but still we might continue for some time in company," I said; "and certainly the common peril which threatens us here---"
"A peril it is," interrupted Alaric, in an absent way; "and for my part I should wish to be gone this hour but for those two dear old friends of mine. I-really I can't turn my back on them yet. . . . Couldn't you wait for me, Burton, until I reason with them a little more?" The question was asked almost beseechingly.
"No," I answered with decision, although shaken by his tone; "it would be wrong. . . How can you," I answered, "still have hope after those speeches? That ought to have opened your eyes. I speak candidly."
"They don't really believe in it- That is what I think," he answered, with a sadness, which in a measure belied his words. "They are carried away by an infatuation for cleverness and learning of that sort."
"We ought to love our friends for the good that is in them, and for nothing else," was my rejoinder, remembering the words of the angel Ariel.
"It does not seem to me that I love them for anything else--" with a sigh. "They are such kind- Hearted fellows-indeed they are much better than you imagine."
"That is only the outside," I said. "Amiability is a mask easily worn. If that were the test, who could not pose as an angel of light?"
"I may be no better than they," sighed Marie.
"If you give up your principles or their sakes," I answered, without pity, "you will become worse than they. Who are you to play providence for them? If they can be saved, the LORD will save them."
"The LORD may use me as an instrument," was the solemn answer, and I felt rebuked.
I believed, however, that I was right. I saw that he was set in his determination, and, though the mere thought gave me pain, it was clear to me that I should leave him.
"We must part, then," I said, in a shaken voice. "I cannot remain here and play with fire."
"Yes; it will be better," he answered, scarcely above his breath.
As we rose, he caught my hand in a lingering clasp. I could not see his face, but I knew that he was struggling to control himself.
"Good-bye, dear friend," I said. "I trust we shall meet again ere long."
"Good-bye," he repeated. He threw his left arm across my shoulder- Almost around my neck- As he spoke. "We might have been dear brothers," he said
Then we turned hurriedly from each other and walked away in opposite directions.
"The love of a warm heart like his is worth striving for," was my after thought. "Still, I was right and he was wrong."
Presently, as I walked on, the light began to break, and I had gone no great distance when the sun rose. I turned and looked back toward the college of the " wise," but it was now lost to view beyond the sandy plain. In fancy I pictured the wise ones rising and preparing for the day-preparing to again impart their wisdom to their blind disciples; pictured them, as they one by one were let into the state of their interiors, dropping the mask, passing out from the college's proud walls and halting in the intermediate house of preparation which the angel had shown me, then wandering downward into the depths which I knew not of and whence they would return no more.
And Alaric-it was pain to think of him.
After some hours of rest at the inn, late in the morning, I went for a walk in a crowded street of the city of Newcomers. Poor Alaric's strong attachment for his two erring friends was still uppermost in my thoughts, and, as I walked, I asked myself the question: "Is there any one who could so influence me among those whom I have called friend? Do I bear such a friendship of love to any creature? Not I. . . . Stop a moment; there is that dear, dear friend, my Cousin Paul."
"Ah yes, my Cousin Paul! Why have I not thought him before?-of him who was my dearest friend on earth and who, as I well know, can perhaps be found, for his entry into the spiritual world was but five' mouths in advance of mine. Have I, for some good reason, been withheld from thinking of him till now? . . . But suppose I do love him and would allow myself to be influenced by him? The case has no parallel with that Alaric and his two friends; the influence of so noble a man as my Cousin Paul is not a thing to be afraid of and shun. It is rather to be courted. Ah, yes; the friend I love could help me- Could do great things for me. Where is he then? Could I but find him!"
As my thoughts thus ran on, as it were in a tumultuous stream of enthusiasm, I looked up and saw only a few feet away a young man-whose eyes were intently fixed on me- A young man of medium height, of a pleasing face, a dignified carriage, and a serious expression which seemed to reach beyond his thirty years. He smiled at me as our eyes met, and, with sensations of genuine delight, I recognized my Cousin Paul.
(To be continued.)
male and female 1893
The male and female are the form of the marriage of good and truth in their inmosts, and hence in what follows from these, as the interior of their mind are opened.- C. L. 101.
14
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
DR. BLYDEN'S ADDRESS AT THE MEETING OF THE SWEDENBORG SOCIETY 1893
[Continued.]
THE lesson, then, which Islam emphasized and is emphasizing for the African, is the absolute supremacy of the Creator, and being freed from the fear either of men or devils, he has attained to self-reliance, that self-respect and that manliness which he everywhere exhibits. The lesson which the European needed was of a different kind. He is differently endowed. Physically and mentally strong, his temptation is to sacrifice others for his own purposes. Therefore to him was emphasized the lesson symbolized by the Cross, that suffering for others was the highest virtue in man. This was the lesson entrusted to Paul, the great apostle of the Gentiles, to deliver to Europe. Prepared and equipped for the special work, he was forbidden by the Spirit to go into Asia, but was specially called to Europe by the Macedonian vision. Filled with the lesson which he was to impart, among his first announcements which he made in his new field of labor was, "I am determined to know nothing among men, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified." The preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness, but to them who believe it is the power of God unto salvation. And this is the keynote of all his teachings. This was a lesson needed by Europe, and three centuries after the Apostle's mission it was impressed anew upon the mind of the first Christian King of Europe by that remarkable vision which, it is said, led to his conversion. He saw in the sky a Cross, and under it the words written-"By this conquer." That was Europe's lesson which she has not yet fully understood. She took the Cross, multiplied crucifixes, and scattered them broadcast to be worn by priest and people, as the symbol of the new religion. But to show that she did not understand the idea intended to be conveyed by the symbol, she put it before as guide and inspiration, when she entered upon those bootless crusades which inflicted so much misery upon humanity-Jew and Gentile. She betook herself to America and the islands of the sea, and there with the Cross as symbol, sacrificed weaker races to satisfy an insatiable greed for land and gold and power. But the idea intended in the preachings of Paul and in the vision of Constantine was that the highest form of conquest was in suffering for others- To give and not to take, to win by love- A lesson which the great conqueror Napoleon seemed to have learned only when, having ended a sanguinary career, he pined in his last island home. He then said-"Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself founded empires, but upon what foundation did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ alone founded His empire upon love, and at this hour millions of men could die for Him. What an abyss between my deep misery and the eternal Kingdom of Christ, which is proclaimed and loved and adored, and which is extended over the whole earth!"
Now, finally, Swedenborg long ago recognized important facts in the African character and some of the elements in his religious life; and under the inspiration of his teachings, his immediate followers conceived the idea of working with and for the African in his own home, and did, as we have seen, influence, the movements of the last hundred years for the regeneration of Africa. Let me then entreat you, their successors, to think more of Africa than you have lately done, and endeavor to resume work on the line which they indicated, of assisting to establish and encourage peaceful industrial settlements for the technical as well as religious instruction of the people. Translate some of your books into Arabic, and scatter them among its sixty millions. The methods in general favor in Europe are wrong for Africa. Military enterprizes and huge corporations with unlimited power will not succeed. Disaster will follow disaster, until the truth taught by Wadstrom and Henry Gandy is acted upon.
In announcing the premature death of Captain Stairs, The Times of June 15th opened a most interesting article on the deceased with the pathetic words, "Africa is fruitful of tragedy. The sacrifices she demands are almost enough to make us abandon her to her native savagery;" and closes with the melancholy refrain, We can only deplore that the opening up of Africa demands such sacrifices." In to-day's Times (June 21st) a similar sentiment is quoted from a German paper, apropos of the recent defeat of a German expedition to exterminate the Moshi tribe. "Prince Bismarek once said that Bulgaria was not worth the life of a single grenadier, and he believed that this saying would be much more appropriately applied to the greater number of our African colonies." More and more will Europe come to these sad experiences until she learns the truth for Africa's regeneration, namely, that her own sons must civilize her; and they are now in bitter exile, waiting for the hand that will help them to return to the land of their fathers, and achieve the destiny that awaits them.
I cannot do better perhaps than close this paper in the words of an eminent American member of the New Church, Dr. Holcombe:
The darker races of the earth are in states not of undeveloped but of suppressed civilization. They contain deeply hidden within them the tendencies and capabilities of their most remote ancestors. There is a vast spiritual life and power concealed in the bosoms of these people, like water in the rock until it was struck by the rod of Moses. The rock of human life is even now being struck by a greater than Moses, and the living waters of truth are gushing forth for the healing of the nations. The seals of the great Book have been opened. That which was concealed will be brought to light; that which was deeply hidden will now be unfolded. This is the day of judgment and revelation the dissolution of old things and the manifestation of the new. The celestial genius of the African, the spiritual genius of the Asiatic, the political and scientific genius of the European and his American offshoots will be evolved and perfected, and will march together to the music of a common humanity.
CHURCH GOVERNMENT BY PLEBISCITE WILLIAM GRAHAM 1893
To THE EDITOR OF NEW CHURCH LIFE:
Dear Sir:-In the simplicity and innocency of his heart it did not occur to the writer of the pamphlet on the above subject, which you criticise in your issue No. 145, that possibly he would be reminded that he adduced no evidence proving that the people "have set him for their watchman." For such thoughtless presumption you will perhaps permit him to apologize. The fact is that when writing the pamphlet referred to be was not thinking about himself, but about the mental, moral and spiritual condition of those vast populations who have never yet heard of the truths of the New Dispensation, and for whose spiritual edification he deems the organized efforts of the New Church in England to be altogether inadequate. To do good the initiative must in innumerable instances be assumed unasked by those who are prompted thereto.
15
To save the natural life of a fellow- Creature from imminent peril when possible, or "to help the ass of him that hateth you when lying under his burden" (Ex. xxiii, 5), without, in either case, waiting for permission or instruction from some external authority is surely the duty of every one. Equally so it is the duty of those who are in possession of genuine spiritual truth to seek to devise the most effectual means of conveying it to others. Our Divine Authority is: "Freely ye have received, freely give" (Matt. x, 8). Such authority is abundantly stated in the Word and it is stated in such a form as proves it to be a duty incumbent upon all men whatever their rank or station in life may be. We assume that no one will venture to argue in this enlightened age that all men may do natural good, but ought not, unless specially appointed by some finite authority, to attempt to do spiritual and celestial good, even though the opportunity be providentially presented. Every one must admit that apathy and inhumanity are indefensible.
The priesthood, or an educated, duly appointed, and recognized ministry, were not intentionally ignored in the pamphlet. All honor to them when they are sincere, earnest, and faithful in the discharge of their duty. The intention of the pamphlet was not to deal with the "lighted candle" but with the "candlestick." Its purport was to point out to the New Church Ministry of Britain how the External Organization through which they are necessarily operating, might he improved both in material resources and in efficiency, by the simple expedient of giving the individual members a more direct interest in the federal duties of the Church, and by giving them more abundant opportunities of encouraging and stimulating each other's sympathy in that work.
The mutual sympathy and common consent of the regenerating men and women of the Church in matters relating to the eternal welfare of the race ought not to be compared to "the love of supremacy that rules in hell.
In respect to the "Sphere of Trades Unionism" by which you think the writer has suffered himself to be "carried away," it should be borne in mind that there exists amongst them a good as well as an evil sphere; hence, in Old England Trades Unions possess legal recognition and sanction. I send you by this post, under another cover, a marked article in the Manchester Guardian of November 14th, 1892, on the conduct of the' thousands of cotton operatives now "locked out" in this country. I trust you will do the writer the favor of reading it. It presents a sphere of Trades Unionism which, so far as it is true, no nation need be ashamed of In respect to efficiency of organization the Church has yet much to learn from the world. It is still true that: "The children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light" (Luke xvi, 8).
I thank you most sincerely for the kindly expressions contained in your comment. I am, dear sir,
Most respectfully yours,
WILLIAM GRAHAM.
BOLTON, Lancashire, Eng., November 15th, 1892.
REPLY.
THE apology of our correspondent is cheerfully accepted. He acknowledges the lack of proper credentials as watchman, and gives up the position. The quotation in his pamphlet was, therefore, a mistake, as he desired simply to express views which might help the luckless Conference on its feet again. We wish that he may succeed, but for the reasons given in November, and for others that are well known, we can have little or no hope that success will attend such efforts.
The fault that is found with the essay on A New Ecclesiastical Republic; or, Church Government by Plebiscite is that it ignores government as the function of the Priesthood, and that it vests Church government in a mess of people.
The mutual sympathy and common consent of regenerating men are one thing. Majority rule of Church or State is another. Regenerating men govern themselves individually, and by their sympathy and loyalty they help and strengthen the general government. But the latter is of the LORD, with the duly constituted authorities, who, in the Church, are the priests (A. C. 10,789-10,799; H. D. 311-319).
The mutual sympathy and assistance of members of trades unions, which are described in the issue of the Manchester Guardian, referred to by Mr. Graham, are legitimate, pleasing, and beneficent features of such associations, but the principles of government of these unions, as described in his essay, are none the less disorderly.-EDITOR.
male and female were created 1893
The male and female were created, that they might be the form itself of the marriage of good and truth.- C. L. 100.
STRANGE OCCURRENCE B. N 1893
IT is the custom in the State Church in Sweden, especially in the country, once a year to have meetings which all the members of the Church in a certain district are expected to attend, so that the pastor may satisfy himself that all are well versed in the essential means of salvation, namely, faith in the suffering and death of God the Son, JESUS CHRIST, for the salvation of all mankind. The pastor at R--- district was well satisfied with the standing and attitude of his flock. They all firmly believed that God the Father was appeased by the death of His Son, and was willing to save all who so believed.
But the last time that such a meeting was held something happened to disturb the mutual satisfaction and unity of his members. There were a few persons present who had read the Writings of the New Church, and had become receptive of the Heavenly Doctrines. As the pastor, with an air of great learning and self-glory, explained the deep mystery of the three persons in the God- Head, and of salvation by faith in the suffering of the Son for the sake of man, these could not receive this doctrine. They stated, therefore, with great civility, but to the great amazement and dissatisfaction of the pastor, that they doubted the truth of the doctrines he had explained, since the Word teaches that God is one, and not three persons, and that the LORD JESUS CHRIST is the only true God and Life Eternal, and also that salvation is by faith in Him, and, at the same time, by a life according to His commandments. This led to a discussion, which soon changed into a violent dispute. The pastor met the opponents with such anger, and became so enraged at what he had heard that he died shortly after he arrived home. B. N.
Tableaux 1893
A VERY successful attempt at representing, by means of tableaux, memorable descriptions in the Writings, was made in the Philadelphia schools on November- 25th. For particulars the reader is referred to No. 26 of The Bulletin published by the students.
16
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
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PHILADELPHIA, JANUARY, 1893=123.
CONTENTS.
Editorial, p. 1.-Benjamin, the Medium of Victory in Temptation (a Sermon), p. 2.- The conjunction of Truth from the Divine with the Truths of the Church (Genesis xlii:23-28) p. 5.-General Influx (Genesis xliii, 1-8, p. 6.-Language, its Esse, p. 7.-Notes on Ecclesiastical History, vii, The Most Ancient Church (continued), p. 8-School in Parkdale, p. 9.-Berlin, Canada: the New School- House, etc. (see illustration) p. 10.- A New Christmas Service, p. 10.
Notes and Reviews, p. 11.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale), x, p. 11.
Communicated.-Dr. Blyden. Address at the Meeting of the Swedenborg Society (concluded). p. 14.- Church government by Plebiscite, p. 14.- A Strange Occurrence, p. 15.
News Gleanings, p. 16.-Births, Marriage, Deaths, p. 16.
AT HOME.
Pennsylvania.-ON December 29th there was a large gathering of Church and School folks, the occasion being the early departure of the Rev. Homer Synnestvedt, but lately Assistant to the Head-Master of the Boys' School, who intended to leave on the following day for Pittsburgh, he having accepted a call to minister to the Society. A noticeable feature of the festivities was a minuette danced by married couples only in a double set. It was an adaptation made by Mr. Synnestvedt, who had taught it to the married pairs. Several toasts were drank. The Rev. L. G. Jordan acted as toast-master, introducing each toast and speech with a few appropriate remarks. The first response was by the Vice- Chancellor, the Rev. W. F. Pendleton, who said that love was conjunction, and that where there was conjunction there could be no separation. Mr. Synnestvedt was indeed leaving us to perform uses elsewhere, but this was only as to space, not as to use, thus there was no actual separation. In speaking of. Mr. Synnestvedt's gifts he said that they were from the LORD, and remembering this he felt in perfect freedom to speak about them.
After another toast the Head Master of the Boys' School was asked to express the feelings of the boys toward their late teacher: He said that he thought that they could he expressed in the few words, "We love you." Afterward he went on to speak in high terms of Mr. Synnestvedt's usefulness, saying that he could not have desired a better assistant, and that he had always received from him loyal and intelligent support.
In this connection it should be stated that on Christmas Eve Mr. Synnestvedt was presented with a gift of books by his associates in the work of the School, and by students and pupils whom he has been instructing.
THE Rev. Ellis I. Kirk removed from Allport to Renovo, where he holds services regularly every Sunday, except when he is absent on evangelistic work.
Illinois.- THE members of the Immanuel Church expect in the near future to move to the suburbs of Chicago and occupy homes around the School and Church building. A plot of some forty acres has been secured seventeen and a half miles out, on the main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, a locality eighty or ninety feet above the level of Lake Michigan, considered the healthfulest in the vicinity of the city. It takes three-quarters of an hour to ride omit on the train from the Union Depot. The grounds set apart for the Church and School comprise nearly ten acres. This is to be surrounded by a road on which face the lots of the members. The selling price of the lots allows for a surplus over the original purchase-money large enough to pay for the maintenance of the roads, grounds, and Church buildings. Thus far more lots have been sold than necessary to pay for the entire tract.
THE Rev. L. P. Mercer assisted by the Rev. N. D. Hillis, a Presbyterian Minister, conducted the dedicatory exercises at the opening of the Kenilworth Union Chapel. Mr. Rollin A. Keyes, a member of the General Council of the Convention, and Mr. W. H. H. Sears, also a Newchurch man, were connected with its erection. Mr. Keyes in ordaining the reason for its existence said: "If there were not enough residents of any sect to establish a sectarian Church, so we organized a union of all the different sects, and this building is the result. Prominent pastors of the many denominations in Chicago will conduct the services each Sunday." Thus do members of Convention return to the Old Church.
Missouri. - THE Sunday-School in Kansas City has had to be abandoned by the New Church Circle here.
Georgia.- THE Rev. F. M. Billings, Pastor of the Park New Church, has been excluded by vote from the meetings of the "Evangelical Alliance," on the ground II that he did not possess "Evangelism" according to the rules and regulations of the "Evangelical Alliance." After his exclusion Mr. Billings preached a sermon in which he showed the weakness of the Alliance. A rather strange proceeding for a New Church minister, to seek admission into an Old Church body, and after being refused, to discover its false doctrines!
Oregon.- THE Society at Portland has engaged the services of the Rev. F. L. Higgins, at present doing missionary work in Texas. The Society consists of forty- Two members, and has a Sunday-school with twenty scholars.
Ohio.- THE Urbana Society is at present ministered to by the Rev. L. H. Tafel, formerly of Philadelphia. The minister has for the first time been invited to meet with the "Evangelical" ministers and he also joined them in addressing the Ladies' Bazaar. Thus do professing New Church ministers turn to the Old Church.
Maine.- THE young people at Portland, to the number of twenty- Two, met on October 20th, at the request of the Rev. Mr. Spiers, to form a Young People's Society, under the name of the "Utility Club."
California.- TEN new members were received into the Los Angeles Society on one Sunday, a reception being held at the house of one of the members afterward at which forty-one persons were present.
SERVICES are held every Sunday morning in Alameda, conducted by gentlemen of the Society.
New York.- THE Sabbath-School Conference of the New York Association held its annual meeting in the house of worship of the Brooklyn German Society, on December 10th. Papers were read by Mrs. L. L. Ropes, of Orange, on "The best form of general exercises in the Sunday-school," and by Mrs. C. H. Mann, of Orange, on "Love in the Sunday-school."
Arkansas.-MR. J. W. McSlarrow has been doing missionary work in the great coal regions of Western Arkansas.
Canada.- THE Parkdale Society at a meeting held on the 5th of October, abolished its old Constitution and accepted in its place the Writings, regarding them as the form of the Word in which the LORD has effected His New Advent.
THE receivers of the Doctrines, at Strathroy have presented the work on The Athanasian Creed to the High-school teachers.
THE Rev. G. L Allbutt paid a visit to the Society in Hamilton, Ont., and administered the Holy Supper to fourteen communicants.
General.- THERE are twenty-seven Young People's Societies of the New Church in America with a total number of 1,130.
AN item in the Star in the East for December, 1892, states that the Rev. Abel Armstrong, who studied during last session at the New Church Theological School, Cambridge, Mass., has undertaken another Presbyterian charge in the State of Dakota.
ABROAD.
Great Britain.-ON November 6th, 1892 the house of Mr. A. Godfrey was dedicates by the Rev. E. C. Bostock, TH. B, A. M., the Pastor of the Church in this town. About a dozen friends were invited. As the pastor entered the room, fully clad in the robes of his priestly office, all rose and remained standing while the WORD was opened, then followed an earnest address, appropriate to the occasion, prayer, reading from the Word, and singing. The sacred Volumes were then placed in the repository, and with prayer and benediction a most impressive and useful service was brought to a close.
THE annual meeting of the New Church Orphanage was held in London on October 31st. The number of wards now supported is thirty-eight, making sixty-nine since the Orphanage was founded eleven years ago.
THE Society at Wigan propose holding a Bazaar in March, 1893, in order to provide funds toward the erection of a place of worship.
South Africa.- THE Society in Durban, Natal, has appealed to the English Conference to send out a minister to them on a missionary visit.
Title Unspecified 1893
Vol. XIII, No. 2. PHILADELPHIA, FEBRUARY
As the Lord is the Word, Heaven also is the Word, since Heaven is Heaven from the Lord, and the Lord by the Word is the all in all of Heaven.- T. C. R. 272.
SOME of the facts adduced in the bibliology of the Summary Exposition of the Internal Sense of the Prophetical Books of the Old Testament and of the Psalms, published in the present issue, are almost starting by reason of their direct testimony to the intimate relation which the Writings bear to the Word in Heaven.
Of the summaries of the first chapter in Ezekiel, which are likewise found in the Doctrine Concerning the Sacred Scripture, n. 97, Swedenborg says, "These summaries have also been collated with the Word in Heaven, and conform with it." From the statement about these summaries it may safely be concluded that all the other summaries, as given in the Summary Exposition, are equally in conformity with the Word in Heaven. And this gives a peculiar meaning to the statements concerning the summaries of the Internal Sense of another prophet in The Apocalypse Revealed, that they were "uncovered" to Swedenborg, and that they were "given to him through Heaven by the LORD."
As "the LORD, through Heaven" "uncovers," in the Writings, to men on earth, the Internal Sense "conforming with the Word in Heaven," are not the Writings the Word as it is in Heaven?
"The Internal Sense is the Word of the LORD in the Heavens." Swedenborg emphasizes this statement by the use of italics. (See A. C. 1887.) The Internal here referred to as being the Word is published Sense he world in the Writings. The facts above adduced clearly demonstrate this, and it is further confirmed in numberless other instances. The Internal Sense is Doctrine, and this Doctrine of the Internal Sense is the essence of the Writings. The many illustrations, confirmations, and reasonings which are inwoven with the presentation of the Internal Sense or of the Doctrine are the setting of the brilliant jewel of the Internal Sense; they are the "cloud" in which the glorious "Son of Man" comes; they are the "rod of iron" with which He feeds all nations. The rod of iron signifies "the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word, and at the same time rationals from natural light." "In these two consists the power of truth" (A. R. 148). And as these are the "rod of iron," the Doctrine of the Church is itself the "Male Son" (A. R. 543).
The distinction between the Internal Sense or the Doctrine on the one hand, and confirmations, illustrations, and reasonings on the other hand, is not always borne in mind, and hence the saying that "the Writings are the Word as it is in Heaven" gives offense, because of the natural things in the Writings, and because of the limited and natural view taken of them. The saying becomes clear when by the term "the Writings" is primarily understood that which is their soul and essence the Doctrine of the New Church- The Internal Sense
Word. The confirmations and illustrations from the literal sense of the Word and from natural light do not appear to the angels: but by them the spiritual truth which the angels have, and which is brought down into the natural world- That is to say, to the natural mind-in the Writings, has power over the evils of the man of the Church which are to be conquered and rooted out.
The Writings must not be thought of merely from the form in which they are presented to the sense of man, any more than the Word ought to be thought of merely from the form in which it was manifested to the Jew and the primitive Christian. The Word is the Divine Truth proceeding from the one God, THE LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST, the Centre and Soul of the Universe, and this Divine Truth is clothed in ultimate form in the sense of the letter of the Old and the New Testament, and in the reasonings from natural light presented in the Writings. But in the Internal Sense, or in the Doctrine revealed in the Writings, it is in its spiritual-natural form (A. E. 1061), the form that conforms with the Word in Heaven.
"But," it is urged, "the Word in Heaven contains such things as cannot fall into the mind of man, and the Word in the higher Heaven is not understood in a lower Heaven, how, then, can the Writings be the Word as it is in Heaven?"
Such a question, which expresses virtually unbelief in the reiterated claim of the Writings, does not take into account the fact that much of the Internal Sense revealed in them is actually not understood in the natural world.
"I know," says Swedenborg in n. 3086 of the Arcana Coelestia, after giving and explaining the Internal Sense of a portion of Genesis, "that these things are more arcane than that they should fall into the comprehension, and this because they are unknown. But because the Internal Sense describes them, and this as to all the circumstances, it cannot be otherwise, howsoever they will appear above the comprehension, but that they be expounded. At least it can be seen from this, what great arcana are in the Internal Sense of the Word, and that there are such arcana as hardly appear in the light of the world, in which man is while he lives in the body, but that they are always more manifest and clear, as, from the light of the world, he comes into the light of Heaven, into which he comes after death, thus in which are the happy and blessed souls- That is, the angels."
This statement- And there are many like them-disposes of the objection.
The Internal Sense cannot be understood by the merely natural mind, but it can by him who suffers his understanding to be raised by the LORD into the light of Heaven. Undoubtedly much of the Internal Sense cannot be expressed in the words of natural language. But this only means that there is more in Heaven than men, while on earth, can learn. It does not exclude from the angelic Word that which has been revealed to men on earth in the Writings of the New Jerusalem.
Communication with Heaven 1893
By much experience it has been given me to know that by the Word man has communication with Heaven.- S. S. 113.
18
MEDIUM BETWEEN THE SPIRITUAL AND THE NATURAL PENDLETON 1893
"And Joseph acknowledged his brothers, and they did not acknowledge him."-Genesis xlii, 8.
"THE Internal of man and his External are most distinct from each other, for his Internal is in the light of heaven, and his External in the light of the world; and since they are most distinct they cannot be conjoined except by a medium, which draws from both" (A. C. 5586).
It is a universal of Heaven, a universal of the Church, a universal of nature, a universal of the whole creation, spiritual and natural, that certain things which are distinct or discrete in their nature cannot be together, but, that they may be accommodated to each other and even be conjoined, when there is a suitable medium by which they may be brought together and conjunction effected.
This is the law of the relation of the LORD with man, and of man with the LORD; there must be a Medium or a Mediator by which they. may draw near to each other and be conjoined, or by which the LORD may draw near to man and conjoin man to himself; this Mediation is the Divine Human, called in the Word the Son of God and the Son of Man.
The state of Heaven is so distinct from the state of man in the world that Heaven cannot draw near to man except by a medium, which is the world of spirits.
The celestial kingdom is so distinct from the spiritual kingdom that the two cannot draw near together and be conjoined, except by a medium or by certain intermediate angelic societies which partake of both kingdoms, and by means of which the kingdoms are conjoined.
The LORD operates by the mediation of Heaven and the world of spirits, or by the mediation of angels and spirits, to establish a Church on the earth, and without such a mediation no Church could ever be established. But even this cannot be done except by a still further mediation, that which is effected by the Priesthood it is only by the meditation of an orderly priesthood that there is and can be a Church. In the great future, history will show that the establishment of the Church began with the ordering of a genuine Priesthood to act as a medium of truth to men.
This brings into view that Divine Medium which is the Word, without which the LORD could not draw near to man, instruct him in the things of salvation, lead him to Heaven, gift him with eternal life. And as the Word is not understood without doctrine, a still further mediation of the Word is necessary in order that the Word may accommodate itself to the understanding of man, and through the understanding enter his life; this further medium is doctrine.
Any number of instances might be drawn in illustration of this law from the relations of men with each other in ecclesiastical, moral, social, or civil life, to show that states which are distinct and even antagonistic, may be brought together and conjoined, or, at any rate, the appearance of conjunction produced, when there is a common medium established by which there may be intercourse and living and working together.
We see the operations of this law everywhere in nature. The sun, being pure fire, cannot draw near and conjoin itself with the earth except by the medium of the atmospheres, which modify and accommodate its heat and light to the condition of the earth and earthly matters.
We need bring forward only one further illustration of this law of nature, which is in what is called chemical union. Two substances or earthly matters, distinct in their nature, are made to unite and form a new substance by the medium of water, Or, to present the case more rationally and truthfully, the atmospheres, especially the ether, enter into a union with the matters of the earth, and form new matters which are salt by the medium of water. Without water as a medium such unions and such new substances could not be produced.
It is, therefore, clearly evident that since this is a universal law, the union or conjunction of the spiritual and the natural in man, or the internal and the external (being wholly distinct) is no exception, that the spiritual man cannot approach and be conjoined with the natural, nor can the natural draw near and be conjoined to the spiritual, in the process of regeneration, except a medium be formed by which such conjunction takes place.
It is well to note here the law of the formation of the medium, or the process by which the medium is formed. In general a medium is formed by the influx of the inmost into the ultimate, and reaction from that ultimate. This is the universal law of all mediation in all natural creation, and in all spiritual creation. The LORD glorified His Human according to this law, namely, by assuming a Human in ultimates. Heaven, which acts as a medium between the LORD and man, is formed by the operation of the LORD on the human race on the earth. The sun forms the atmospheres by means of the earth, and then operates by them to produce mineral forms and vegetable and animal life; and so in all other cases.
The spiritual, then, must flow into the natural in order to form by it an intermediate or medium by which it can be conjoined with the natural, and give man new life. And the natural must react or co-operate, or act as of itself, in order to contribute its part to the formation of the medium; for a medium exists by the common consent and co-operation of two- The one acting and the other reacting- And in the action and reaction they become one by the medium so formed.
The medium between the spiritual and the natural is represented by Benjamin, the natural by the ten sons of Jacob, and the spiritual by Joseph. And in general by Joseph not being willing to receive his brothers until they brought Benjamin is signified that there is no conjunction whatever between things which are distinct and discrete in their nature, such as the spiritual and natural minds, until a medium is found which partakes of the nature of both, and which can thus intervene and so conjoin.
What this medium is in man by which the spiritual is conjoined with the natural, or Heaven with the world, or the LORD with man, it is important to know, and hence much instruction is given us concerning it. This medium is in general, as it were, a middle space, interstice or region, or mind between the spiritual man and the natural man, partaking of the nature of both, into which the spiritual descends and accommodates its life to the natural, and into which the natural ascends to receive the life so accommodated. It may be called by various names, but whether it be spoken of as a state of truth from good, or faith from charity, or spiritual intelligence, or whether it be called illustration, or the new understanding from the new will, or the rational, or whether it be named perception or conscience, or thought from perception and conscience, it amounts to the same, for all these are media by which the spiritual descends into the natural, and accommodates itself to the natural, or, considered under one view, are the medium represented by Benjamin, who is called the son of the right hand, because by this medium the spiritual exercises its power over the natural, and in the natural, to regenerate it and bring it into order and under obedience, and thus into correspondence.
19
As was said, the natural must react or co-operate, in order that the medium may be formed. The spiritual cannot form the medium alone, or without a plane of reaction in the natural; for, as was stated, the law of formation is that the inmost flow in and act upon and by the ultimate, in order to establish the intermediate, or ? form the medium. Without reception, reaction, and co-operation on the part of the ultimate, which is here the natural, no medium is formed, nothing is done. The spiritual, or what is the same thing, the LORD, is ever ready to inflow and form. He knows the natural of man that it is nothing but evil, and from His love and mercy is ever ready to enter and confer the blessing of eternal life, according to the laws of His own immutable order But man in his state of non-reaction does not know Him; the natural does not know the spiritual, even though the spiritual knows the natural. "Joseph acknowledged his brothers and they did not acknowledge him."
Those who are in spiritual light know, understand, perceive the quality of those who are in natural light; but those who are in natural light do not know, understand or perceive the quality of those who are in spiritual light, for unless a medium be given, spiritual light is thick darkness to them. The angels in heaven can see what is done in the world of spirits, or in the lower earth or in the hells; but those who are in these lower regions cannot see what is done in the heavens. The angels in a higher heaven can see what is done in a lower heaven, but those who are in a lower heaven cannot see what is done in a higher, unless there be a medium, by which the light of the higher is accommodated to the lower this is effected by intermediate societies. So it is with the individual man, the internal or spiritual can see all the things that are in the natural, and that are done by the natural; for it is thus that every regenerating man is led by the LORD to see his evils, which takes place when he is elevated into spiritual light, or the light of his internal, which is the light of heaven. But the natural or external cannot see what is in the spiritual or internal- That is, when there is no medium. When there is a medium the light of the spiritual flows by the medium even into the light of the world that is in the natural, and illuminates it, so that the natural can then see what is in the spiritual, and man in the world can see what is in heaven. Without the medium he sees nothing, acknowledges nothing, believes nothing that is spiritual or of the spiritual. "And Joseph acknowledged his brothers, and they did not acknowledge him."
Even the truths of the Church, which the natural has or may have, and which are spiritual in themselves, or in their origin, are seen only in natural light. For the natural not illustrated by heavenly light, by the medium, sees all things spiritual from a natural idea, and not from a spiritual idea. It thus sees truth in its form and not in its essence, sees the body without the soul and life. As for instance, it thinks of the glory of heaven as of the glory of the world; it thinks of angelic power as of the power of kings and potentates in the world; it thinks of spiritual liberty as of the liberty of the natural man, which wills and loves to be lawless and act without restraint thinks of rest in heaven as of rest from natural labors in the world, or the rest of idleness; thinks of marriage in heaven from the flesh and not from the spirit; thinks of the eternal worship of the angels, as of a perpetual Sunday worship; thinks of heaven and of the things of heaven, of the LORD and all that proceeds from Him, from space and time, hence it sees neither heaven nor the LORD, for they are seen only by a spiritual idea, through a medium actually formed by regeneration in man; hence it sees nothing in the Revelations now given by the LORD in His Second Coming; for every man who approaches those Revelations, without a medium actually formed will see nothing Divine or spiritual in them, and if he draws near at all, it is because he sees himself and the world in them- That is, he sees profit and gain, but does not see the LORD in them. "Joseph acknowledged his brothers, and they did not acknowledge him."
Hence the necessity of a medium by which spiritual light may descend into the natural and illuminate it, and man may thereby be able to see spiritual truth in its own light. But in order that the medium may be formed by which the light of heaven may be brought down and illumine the light of the world in man, and by which man may ascend or elevate his thought into the light of heaven, there are some things necessary for man to do; or, as has been said, it is necessary for him to react upon and co-operate with the spiritual, or with the truth of Revelation. This reaction and co-operation consists in man's compelling himself; hence if we wish to know how the medium is formed in man by which the spiritual can enter the natural to regenerate and save, it is all expressed in the term self- Compulsion. When man is compelled by others he loses his liberty and his interiors are closed, no medium can be formed, but when he compels himself he is in the highest exercise of liberty, and the interiors are opened, and the opening of the interiors is the formation of a medium. When man compels himself to shun the evils, which he learns even in childhood from the Commandments to be sins against God, and which oppose and obstruct the influx of life and light from Heaven, when man begins to compel himself to desist from these evils, knowing them to be sins, simultaneously with this the medium begins to be formed, Heaven is opened in him, and light shines forth illuminating the natural, and exposing to view that which was hitherto dark and concealed, revealing the enormity of his state received by inheritance and acquired by actual life. Temptation then arises, which is the anxiety attending the conflict which now takes place between the falsity of evil and the truth of good; and it is therefore clear to be seen that this temptation and conflict is a most necessary condition in the formation of a medium, which is represented by the trials and anxieties of the ten sons of Jacob in the process by which Joseph brought them into complete submission to himself, as the lord of the land, in his compelling them to produce his brother Benjamin before he would receive them and pardon them for their diabolical crime.
By self- Compulsion, by temptation- Combat, the medium is formed; and the beginning, the first of the medium in man, is the simple affirmation that God is, that the spiritual is, that the Word is a revelation from God, that doctrine drawn out of the Word is the Divine Truth, and that man is nothing but evil. This affirmation, or affirmative state, is the interior thought of man, the thought of which be is conscious when he is alone, established and made firm by compelling himself to shun evils as sins, by the temptation- Combats resulting therefrom- This affirmative acts as the medium that opens the internal, that opens heaven in man, and by which the light in which the angels are flows forth and illumines the natural, and gradually brings it into correspondence with the spiritual, in a humble submission to it.
20
This affirmation is the beginning of conscience, which is a dictate flowing in from the angelic societies, from the LORD Himself, that the truth is true and the false is false, that the good is good, and the evil is evil, thus discriminating between the one and the other; and the faculty of discrimination formed in man becomes the rational in him, which is a new understanding from a new will, and Benjamin takes his place by the side of Joseph, and the brothers submit themselves to the lord of the land.
"In the congregations bless ye God, the LORD from the fountain of Israel. There little Benjamin is over them; the princes of Judah, the assembly of them; the princes of Zebulon, the princes of Naphtali. Thy God hath commanded thy strength; put on strength, O God; this Thou hast done for us. Out of Thy temple at Jerusalem, to Thee kings will bring presents. Rebuke the wild beast of the reed, the congregation of the strong ones, among the calves of the people; trampling the fragments of silver, he disperseth the peoples, they desire wars. Fat ones shall come out of Egypt; Kusch shall hasten her hands unto God. Ye kingdoms of the earth, sing ye unto God, sing a psalm unto the LORD. Selah. To Him that rideth upon the heavens of the heavens of antiquity; behold, He doth give in His voice the voice of strength. Give strength unto God; over Israel is His exaltation, and His strength is over the clouds. Formidable art Thou, O God, out of Thy sanctuaries, O God of Israel, He that giveth strength and force to the people. Blessed be God."
"A celebration of the LORD because he hath snatched from the power of the hells those who are of His Church, and because He hath tamed the natural man. A celebration of the Divine Power of the LORD which is by union."
Title Unspecified 1893
S. S. 113; T. C. R. 272 While I read the Word through from the first chapter of Isaiah even to the last of Malachi, and the Psalms of David, it was given me clearly to perceive that each verse communicated with some society of Heaven, and thus the whole Word with the universal Heaven.- S. S. 113; T. C. R. 272.
GENERAL INFLUX 1893
GENESIS XLII, 9-34.
(9.) THE medium would, in the meanwhile, be conjoined for the good of the Church. Thus it should not be torn away so far as was in the power of that good; for unless it should altogether be restored to the Church, the Church would have no good forever. The good of the Church cannot be given without a medium between the internal and the external; for both the good and the truth of the Church inflow from the Internal by a Medium into the External; consequently, so far as it is of interest that the Church have good, so far it is of interest that there be a medium; therefore, the good of the Church is surety for the medium, and not the truth of the Church.
(10.) If it had not been for delay in a state of doubt, there would have been spiritual life both exterior and interior.
(11.) Spiritual good perceived that if it could not be done otherwise, it should so be done, by presenting the more excellent things of the Church in the truths of faith, for the sake of obtaining grace from the Celestial of the spiritual; these more excellent things were the truths of good of the exterior natural and their delights; the truths of good of the interior natural, and the goods of life corresponding to those truths.
(12.) Truths received in abilities, namely, the truth which had been given gratis, was again to be given, and they were to submit themselves by the truth given gratis in the exterior natural, so far as possible, lest the Celestial of the Spiritual should be adverse. Truth received in abilities means in the faculties of receiving, thus according to faculties: but the faculties or potencies of receiving are altogether according to good, for the LORD adjoins them to good; for when the LORD inflows with good He also inflows with faculty; hence truth received in abilities is according to goods.
(13.) In such case they would have the good of faith- That is, faith in will-for when the truth of faith passes into the will it becomes the good of faith, for it then passes into the life of man, and when it is there it is looked at not as something to be known but something to be done, from which it changes its essence and becomes actual, whence it is no longer called truth but good, and is life from spiritual truth.
(14.) From this comes consolation after hard things. The men, or things, or truths, of the Church are graciously received by spiritual truth, that it might give the good of faith, and that it might give interior good. But before these things are done the Church is deprived of its truths- That is, such truths as are in the mouth only, but not in the heart.
(15.) The truths had with them whereby they might obtain grace, also the truth received in ability, and also the medium. Thus equipped they were elevated to procure for themselves life from the interiors of scientifics, and came into the presence of the Celestial of the spiritual therein. The interiors of scientifics are those things which are spiritual in the natural; spiritual things are in the natural, when scientifics therein are illustrated by the light of heaven, and they are illustrated by the light of heaven when man has faith in the doctrinals which are from the Word, and he has faith when he is in the good of charity, for then truths and thence scientifics are by the good of charity illustrated as if by aflame, and have thence their spiritual light.
(16.) The Celestial of the spiritual now apperceived that there was a spiritual medium with those truths, and communicated to that which was of the external Church, that the truths in the natural should be introduced thither, that is-into the Church-for by the goods of the exterior natural they should be conjoined with the Celestial of the spiritual, when with a medium.
(17.) This was effected and the truths of the Church in the natural were first introduced into the good which is from the Celestial of the spiritual.
(18.) But there was a withdrawing of the truths of the natural from being adjoined and subjected to the internal- That is, to Truth from the Divine, or the Celestial of the spiritual-because truth in the exterior natural appeared given gratis, and on that account they would be reduced under absolute power, insomuch that whatever was in each natural would be of no account.
(19.) The truths of the natural looked to the doctrinals of the Internal Church, and consulted from them concerning the introduction.
(20.) They testified that they had the mind to procure rood for truths, (21,) and that when they introspected into the exterior natural it was clearly seen that truths were, as it were, given gratis.
21
It is said that the truths were, as it were, given gratis, because they were in a state of doubt as to whether they wished to be conjoined to the internal, and become as nothing, and when one is in a doubting state, he also thinks doubtfully concerning the truths which confirm. These truths were according to the state of each- That is, according to the good they were capable of receiving- These things which were given gratis, were submitted so far as possible.
(22.) They had the mind to procure good by truth elsewhere, for they were in non-belief from ignorance of the source of truth in the exterior natural.
(23.) The doctrinals of the internal Church taught them that it was well, and that they should not despair, for a state had now arisen in which they should no longer from their own power acquire for themselves truths and by truths goods, but that they should be gifted with them by the LORD, because they thought that they would thus lose their proprium, thus their liberty, consequently all delight of life; they had been in desperation. But they were taught that the LORD, by His Divine Human, without any prudence of theirs, had gifted them with good and truth while they were ignorant of it, although it seemed as if truth were procured by them. In this state the will of doing the truth was adjoined to the truths of the Church in the natural.
(24) The truths of the Church in the natural were now initiated for conjunction with the internal by a general influx of truth froth the internal, which is the illumination which gives the faculty of apperceiving and of understanding truths; this illumination is from the light of heaven which is from the LORD, which is nothing else than Divine Truth; from this influx there is a purification of the natural, and instruction concerning the good of scientific truths. The good of scientifics is the delight from scientific truths; scientific truths are the most general truths which appear in natural light, which is from the light of the world, but that they may appear- That is, that they be truths- There must be a general influx from the internal; this is illustration from the light of heaven.
(25) The truths of the Church in the natural were insinuated (ingratiated) until the internal should be present with light, since it was apperceived that good would be conjoined to truths.
(26) When the internal was present they were insinuated as much as possible, and at the same time humiliated.
(27.) The internal or Celestial of the spiritual perceived that it was well with the truths of the Church pertaining to the natural, and that it was also well with spiritual good, as it now had life.
(28.) Thence, now the natural apperceived that it was well with the good from which are the goods and truths in the natural. It is said the natural apperceived thence, namely, from the internal, because a the perception of the natural comes from the spiritual, and since it is from the spiritual, it comes from the internal- That is, by the internal from the LORD. What the natural now as pperceived was that it had life, wherefore, also, it humiliated itself both exteriorly and interiorly. (29.) The internal now reflected and apperceived the medium, the internal from the natural as from a mother, and the internal perceived that the medium was born after all the others. The Divine is also with this medium; which is the spiritual of the celestial, since it proceeds from the Celestial of the Spiritual, which is Truth from the Divine. The medium with man is born after all the rest, for when the man is born spiritually- That is, when he is re-born- His rational, which is the internal human, is first regenerated by the LORD, and afterward his natural. The medium, therefore, since it derives from each-namely, from the spiritual rational or newly made rational, and also from the natural, and because the medium cannot draw anything from the natural, except this also have been made new, therefore it cannot be born till afterward, and, indeed, according to the degree in which the natural is regenerated. Since in the Supreme Sense the Internal Human of the LORD was the Celestial of the Spiritual, and this was truth from the Divine or the proximate clothing of the Divine Itself in the LORD, and since the spiritual of the celestial, which was the medium proceeded from that, it follows that the Divine was also with this medium. What proceeds from anything this derives its essence from that from which it proceeds, but it is clothed with such things as subserve for communication, thus for use in an inferior sphere, those things with which it is clothed derive from such things as are in the inferior sphere, for the sake of the end that the internal, from which it proceeds, may act in the inferior sphere by such things as are therein. That which gives the essence is as a father, for the essence is the soul, and that which gives the clothing is as a mother, for the clothing is the body of that soul; hence, a medium, in order that it may be a medium, must take from each, its own from the internal as from a father, and its own from the external as from a mother.
(30.) In this state there breaks forth from the inmost mercy from love toward the internal from that inmost, though the effect of mercy from love is not apparent.
(31.) It was so arranged that the mercy from love did not appear, by removal, and concealment, for it was perceived that there would be conjunction by the medium with truths in the natural. Mercy from love is toward the medium, because by that those things are regenerated which are below, but the love and mercy of the LORD do not appear until after conjunction has been made by the medium. It is also arranged that it may not appear, for if it should appear regeneration could not be effected. The arrangement is made by removal and concealment; not that the LORD ever removes or hides mercy, but when he who is regenerating is let into his evils, then the LORD appears to him to be removed or hidden. Evils are what interpose themselves and do this, comparatively like dense clouds which present themselves before the sun and cause its absence and conceal it. This hiding and removal is what is meant.
(32.) There was an external appearance that the internal was separated from the external, and there was a separation of scientifics which were in inverted order, for they can never be conjoined with the truth and good of the Church, for they are in what is opposite. Scientifics are said to be in inverse order when they abuse heaven by order to do evil, for the order of heaven is that good shall be done to all; hence it comes to pass that, when they thus invert heavenly order, they finally deny Divine things, the things which are of heaven, consequently which are of charity and faith.
(33.) The truths of the natural were disposed by the presence of the internal, according to the order of truth under good, which caused a change of state of each in relation to the others in the natural.
(34.) The internal applied goods to every truth of the natural from mercy, and good to the medium above the goods of truth in the natural by many states of truth from good; the truths of the natural applied truths under good abundantly.
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De Verbo, p. 21 1893
That all things of the Word correspond to all things of Heaven, it was given me to perceive from this, that the single chapters in the Prophetical Word correspond to the single societies of Heaven, for while I ran through the propheticals of the Word, from Isaiah to Malachi, it was given to see that the societies of Heaven were excited in their order, and perceived the spiritual sense corresponding to them.-De Verbo, p. 21.
LANGUAGE 1893
THE ESSE OF LANGUAGE.
Etymology.
THE word essence is the French form of the Latin word essentia, which again is a derivation from the word esse "to be." Essentia might be translated being, but this would not answer our purpose so well as the Franco-English form of the word, namely, essence. This word is sometimes used in the Writings, where degrees are not specifically treated of, with nearly the same meaning as esse; but wherever degrees make any part of the consideration, essence has a very different signification from esse. When used in the category of esse, essence, and existence, "essence" signifies the very substance and form of a thing. It is the formative or forming quality or property of a thing; it is the means by which a thing exists; it is the how of a thing.
The Essence of Language.
If we are to think rationally or spiritually of a thing, we must think from essence and not from the external form. Essence is substance and form, but the form meant is not the external form or configuration of a thing. Form considered from essence is the orderly arrangement of the members, parts, and particles that make a whole.
There is an only essence and an only substance, and an only form from which are all essences, substances, and forms, which have been created, namely, the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom, from which are all things which refer themselves to love and wisdom with man. That which proceeds is of one and the same essence with him from whom it proceeds, like as soul, body, and proceeding, which together make one essence-with man, a merely human one, but with the LORD a Divine, and at the same time a human one, which two, after the LORD'S glorification were united, as the prior with its posterior, and as the essence with its form. Truth from the Divine, is the very most essential from which are all the essences and forms of things in both worlds, the spiritual and the natural; for all external things derive their essence from internals, and these from the inmost (D. P. 157; T. C. R. 139; A. C. 8200; S. S. 46).
There are three things which fully constitute and form every universal essential, namely, the good of love, truth from that good, and thence the good of life. The good of life is their effect; for unless there be a third which is produced, the other two are not given- That is, unless there be the good of life, the good of love and truth from that good are not given. These three things are like the final cause, the efficient cause, and the effect (A. E. 435).
Love is the all of wisdom, consequently the essence of the heavens is love, and their existence is wisdom, or, what is the same, the heavens are from the Divine Love, and they exist from the Divine Love by the Divine Wisdom; wherefore the one is of the other. But the Divine Love in its descent becomes Divine Good, and good is the essence itself of the life of the angels, and thence the essence of heaven itself- That is, the soul of heaven-for all that is called soul which is essence. Whatever has no essence in itself does not exist, because it is not an entity or being, for there is no esse from which it is. It is so in nature; its essence, from which it exists, is the spiritual, for this has Divine Esse in itself, and also the Divine force, acting, creating, and forming (A. R. 857; A. E. 797).
It is known in the learned world that essence without form, and form without essence is not anything; for essence has no real quale except from form, nor is form any subsisting entity (or being) except from essence, wherefore nothing can be predicated of either when separated from the other. Good is essence or esse, and truth is that by which essence is formed and esse exists.
There is a sun in the spiritual world, which is pure love from JEHOVAH GOD, Who is in the midst of it. The Divine Itself which immediately encompasses the LORD, makes this sun; it is the circle most closely surrounding Him, emanating from His Love, and at the same time from His Wisdom. This sun is the substance which has gone forth from the LORD, the essence of which is love. By means of this substance emitted from Himself; from which exists His proximate sphere, and which makes the sun of the spiritual world, the LORD made His Infinity finite; these finited substances proceed from the sun of the spiritual world in the form of heat, which in its essence is love, and light which in its essence is wisdom. By means of this proceeding heat and light of the spiritual world, was created the sun of the natural world, which consists of all created substances, the activity of which is pure fire. From the pure fire of the natural sun go forth heat and light, which are the two essentials and universals by means of which were created all the earths in the Universe, and by which all things on the earths exist and subsist.
The heat and light of the natural sun are dead; but nevertheless they are vehicles for carrying the LORD'S Infinite Love down through the natural degrees to the most ultimate, fixed, and unyielding substances of nature, even to the very rocks of the earth. But Infinite Love cannot remain and subsist in what is dead and fixed, but moves on in eternal gyres and circles; so that when from the Divine Love by the Divine Wisdom, the sun, the earths, even down to the foundations of the mountains, have been created, there begins an ascent toward things proximately living, thus toward the LORD from Whom. In this ascent are formed next, after all things of the mineral kingdom, which has been suggested in the mention of rocks, all things of the vegetable kingdom; but these do not live, they only grow; they do not love, they do not feel, they cannot reciprocate. The ascent therefore continues, and all the teeming forms of animal life are produced; but all these do not fulfill the purpose of creation. These, though they live, have only animal life, the soul of which is the use they perform in this world. When their use is done their life returns to its source. But the Divine Love must find a resting place outside of Itself, with one whom It can make happy from Itself. The crown then of all this work is yet to be formed. "And JEHOVAH GOD formed man, dust of the ground, and He breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives, and man was made into a living soul." Man alone of all created things was gifted with a will and understanding, or receptacles for will and understanding, which were also receptacles for love and wisdom from the LORD, wherein the LORD might reside as in His own.
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All things in the created Universe, at the head of which stands man as the crowning work and king, if they being order, refer themselves to good and truth; there is nothing in heaven, and nothing in the world which does not refer itself to those two things; for both, as well good as truth, proceed from the Divine from Whom are all things. (H. D. 11).
Not only does each created things in the Universe refer itself to good and truth, but it also represents those two things, and corresponds to them, not only in general but also in particular. The things of the Universe are each and all of them, ultimate, external expressions of the Divine Love and Wisdom of the LORD, or what is the same, of Good and Truth. They are words, and to the understanding mind they communicate messages of good and truth- They are communication, language, speech.
The Universe was called by the Ancients the Macrocosm, the great heaven, or great world, and man was called the Microcosm, the little heaven, or little world; for into him were collated all things of the Macrocosm; for man is created into the order of the Spiritual World as to his rational mind, and into the order of the whole natural world as to his body. Further, all visible, audible, and tangible things, are collated into man by means of his senses; for every impression made upon the sensory of man is indelible, and remains to eternity, and the thing which made the impression is really and substantially, though not materially, in the man in his memory.
The Divine Love and Wisdom flows down through the sphere of human internals, through the celestial, spiritual and natural heavens, and the World of Spirits, into the interior of man, and there meets the representative forms of Itself, infills them, and causes man to perceive their significance. This perception is again the LORD communicating with man-speaking with him- and also man speaking with the LORD. Man further speaks with the LORD by willing, understanding, and obeying the precepts of good and truth which the LORD speaks to him.
When man thinks from affection of the things of the Universe which have entered into him through his senses, and understands their significance, then he is speaking mentally, or internally-is using mental language. When in any way he conveys what he thinks to another, he speaks outwardly, and is using the language of expressions, The expressions again are representative of the objects of the natural world which were first received through the senses into the mind of man, and there infilled with good and truth by influx from the Divine Love by Divine Wisdom. The essence, therefore, of what man speaks is good and truth from the LORD, or is the expression of good by truth; but this is from the Divine Love proceeding by the Divine Wisdom from the LORD. The essence of language, therefore, is good and truth from the Divine proceeding from the LORD.
Recapitulation.
The Divine proceeding from the LORD in creating, impressed. Its own character on all created things, so that all became representative of Itself and correspondent to It; so that they reflect and express the good and truth from which they originated. All created things are language, and what they speak is good and truth from the LORD. The same Divine proceeding from the LORD created man a receptable of impressions from without, and of influx from within, in whose internals, influx might terminate in the ideas derived from objects outside of him. It also gifted man with the power of projecting from himself those infilled impressions to others outside of him. By means of this projecting power man communicates with his fellows, and this communication is human language.
Summary.
The Esse of Language is that the LORD maybe united with others outside of Himself, and that He may make them happy from Himself; and the Essence of Language is good and truth from the Divine proceeding from the LORD.
Title Unspecified There is a correspondence ofwhole Heaven 1893
There is a correspondence of the whole Heaven with the Word in series.-De Verbo, p. 21.
NOTES ON ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 1893
VIII.
THE MOST ANCIENT CHURCH.
Its Evening and Vastation.
11. This BEGINNING OF FAITH ALONE is described in the Word by Cain killing his brother Habel. Cain is Faith, Habel is Charity. In the Most Ancient Church itself these two had been one and indivisible. But now, seduced by the sensual appearances of the proprium, men divided this one into two, making Cain, or Faith, the first-born, because truth and consequently Faith a pears to come man first as to time, while the works of Charity appear to be the fruits of Faith. As this fallacious appearance became more and more confirmed, the fallen Posterity of the Church gradually came to consider Faith, not only as the first, but also as the only Essential of Religion, while Charity, being merely an appendage, did not seem absolutely necessary to salvation. Habel was thus killed by his brother. Charity was thus rejected by the posterity of the Most Ancient Church. And as their doctrinals of Faith were falsified by being used to defend their evils of life, in time even Faith was lost as to its true nature and uses. Cain was cursed and was driven out of the land.
12. But lest the Divine Revelation, which in the Golden Age had been written upon the hearts of men, should become entirely obliterated, and all means of salvation destroyed for those few of the last posterity who were able and willing to learn, the LORD put a sign upon Cain, that no one should slay him. Before mankind had become utterly devastated even as to the memory of the Divine truths perceived in the Golden Age, certain ones, who had a scientific interest in the doctrinals of Faith, were led by the Divine Providence to collect into the written form of a Book the traditions handed down from earlier generations. Those who first undertook this work were called CAIN (A. C. 609, 736, 920) a name connected perhaps with the Hebrew verb [Hebrew] "to mold," "prepare," "form," possibly from their love of formulating and fixing in writing the internal perceptions of the most ancients. The heresies which sprung from the Faith thus separated from Charity, and by which the posterity of the Most Ancient Church was vastated of all truth of Faith, are described in the fourth chapter of Genesis by the descendants of Cain even until Lamech, when nothing more of Faith remained. -
13. THE GRADUAL DECLINE and vastation of the Most Ancient Church, even until its Consummation is especially described in Genesis v by the eight generations descended from Adam. Of these, the two first, named Sheth and Enosh, are still to be included within the Most Ancient Church itself.
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14. SHETH, the third son of Adam, was a church; "almost like the Most Ancient Church," "begotten in its image, according to its likeness," yet with this difference that Love was not now the principal thing, for this had been replaced (hence, [Hebrew] from [Hebrew] to "put," "place"), by Faith, though still conjoined with Love (A. C. 484). In the time of Sheth it is said that Adam died, by which is signified that the genuine perception of the Most Ancient Church perished (A. C. 494).
15. ENOSH ([Hebrew]) the son of Sheth "was a third church, yet one of the Most Ancient churches, but less celestial and consequently less perceptive than the church Sheth" (A. C. 505). The name Enosh means, in Hebrew, "man," but a spiritual man instead of the celestial Adam (A. C. 439). Concerning the beautiful Heavens of these two churches, the degree of their Conjugal Love, and their expectation of the LORD who was to come, read Arcana Coelestia, n. 1116, 1117, and 1123.
16. CAINAN ([Hebrew]) the third posterity, "is not to be counted among the three more perfect ones, inasmuch as the perception, which in the former churches had been distinct, then began to become more general" and obscure (A. C. 507).
17. MAHALALEEL ([Hebrew]), the fourth posterity, was still further vastated by the perception and life of love. "They preferred the delight arising from truth to the joy arising from uses" (A. C. 511) The name signifies "praising God." "God" has reference to Truth while "JEHOVAH" has especial reference to Good.
18. JARED ([Hebrew]) was the fifth posterity; in this even natural good began to be dissipated (A. C. 283). This generation was, therefore, named from the verb [Hebrew] to "go down," "descend."
19. CHANOCE or ENOCH ([Hebrew]), the sixth posterity, is distinguished by the important uses performed by it in continuing and completing the work begun by the church Cain in collecting and writing down the celestial traditions from the Most Ancient Church. Hence, this posterity was named Chanoch, which means "instruction" (A. C. 401). From their scientific delight in collecting and possessing the Truths of Faith, it is said of them that "Chanoch walked with God." But in this church perception had become still more general and obscure, "without anything distinct, for the mind then determined the intuition outside of itself into doctrinals" (A. C. 522). They had no thought of reforming their lives according to the truths of Faith (A. C. 464). The Books of Doctrine which they had compiled were of no practical value to them, and the succeeding generations of antediluvians would, in their fury, have destroyed these sacred writings, had not these, in the Divine Providence, been especially protected, removed, and put away (reposita) for the use of a future race (A. C. 609). This is signified by the words "and Chanoch was no more, for God took him." (Concerning the Church Chanoch or Enoch, see further A. C. 519, 521; S. S. 21; A. E. 670, 728, and S. D. 5999.)
20. METHUSHELACH ([Hebrew]), was the seventh posterity. Of this nothing more is known than that then "integrity decreased, and with it intelligence and wisdom." This name signifies "something about to die" (A. C. 627), and is derived, probably, from [Hebrew], "to die," and [Hebrew], "to send."
21. THE LAST POSTERITY of the Most Ancient Church was called LAMECH ([Hebrew]) with whom "the perception of truth and good was so obscure as to be almost none; it was thus a vastated church" (A. C. 527). "Both those churches which are called Methushelach and Lamech expired immediately before the Flood" (A. C. 533).
Title Unspecified 1893
L. 37 It has been given me to run through all the Prophets, and David's Psalms, and to examine the single verses and to see what is there treated of, and it was seen that no other things are treated of but the Church of the Lord that was established and is to be established, the Lord's Advent, Combat, Glorification, Redemption, and Salvation, and Heaven from Him, and at the same time the opposites.-L. 37.
FESTIVAL OF THE INCARNATION, AT BERLIN, CANADA 1893
THE Berlin School of the Academy celebrated the Festival of the Incarnation on Christmas Eve with worship and social entertainments, to which also parents of children of the school and friends in sympathy with the Academy work were invited.
The large room on the first floor had been tastefully decorated the previous evening with flowers, festoons of evergreen, and beautiful ferns, and also with well-executed inscriptions in Hebrew and Greek of parts of the Word foretelling and describing the birth of the LORD. The inscriptions were prepared by the older pupils of the school. At the left side of the chancel was seen the representation of a manger filled with hay, and on the chancel itself, on either side of the altar, fourteen candles burned in the two seven armed candelabra resented to the school a year ago. Thus decorated, and filled with children and visitors, the room of worship presented a solemn and festive appearance.
It was a matter well understood that the chief feature of the festival would be the bringing of offerings to the LORD'S Altar. The Head-Master addressed the audience on this subject, briefly alluding to the ancient custom of bringing offerings, as also evidenced by the gifts brought by the wise men from the East at the LORD'S birth.
The offerings were then brought forward. First the small children, not yet attending school, accompanied by their parents, presented their gifts. The assisting priest read an appropriate passage from the New Testament, after which the Pastor received the offerings in the name of the LORD. Then the children of the primary department; subsequently the girls; then the boys, and lastly the adult members of the Church, severally brought their respective offerings to the Priest, who, as before, declared that he received them in the name of the LORD.
Another feature of the celebration was the distribution of fruit. The Head-Master briefly addressed the children and called their attention to the mercy of the LORD in always providing for them.
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Man receives from the LORD the good of love when he worships Him from his whole heart and mind. And as their offerings, just presented by them to the LORD, represent such true worship, therefore they would now receive a representative of that good of Love. They were therefore requested again to come forward to the altar, and in the same order as they had brought their offerings they now received some fruit.
After the services a pleasant surprise awaited the three teachers of the school. They were severally presented with valuable and suitable presents as tokens of the estimation in which their services were held by the members of the church connected with the Academy work here. After these ceremonies the social entertainment of the evening commenced and lasted for about an hour, during which time the children especially had a very pleasant time and which was spent by the adults in looking at the offerings and enjoying the pleasure of the children. The singing of "Home, Sweet Home" ended this happy Christmas celebration. R.
spiritual angels 1893
The spiritual angels are in the spiritual sense of the Word, and the celestial angels in its celestial sense.- S. S. 64.
DEDICATION OF THE PITTSBURGH BUILDING H. B. C 1893
THE new building erected by the Church of the Advent, in Pittsburgh, was dedicated on Sunday, January 15th, to the two-fold use of the instruction of children in the Church by the Academy of the New Church, and of public worship. The services were conducted by Chancellor Benade, assisted by Pastor A. Czerny, Head-Master of the Pittsburgh school, and Minister Homer Synnestvedt, who assists the Bishop of the General Church in the work of the society.
The services opened with the singing of the new Introit, "I come into Thy house," while the priests entered and ascended the chancel, carrying a copy of the Word in the original, and three volumes of the Writings. After reading from Psalms xlviii, the Chancellor drew aside the curtains of the alcove, opened the repository and placed the Word therein. The cxxxii Psalm was then read responsively by the Bishop and the two other priests, and Apocalypse vi, by the Chancellor alone, which was followed by his address.
When the Doxology on page 377 of the Liturgy had been sung the assisting priests handed the Writings to the Bishop, and he placed them in the repository. Copies of the Word were then laid on the repositories in all of the school rooms. The dedicatory services were followed by the sacrament of the Holy Supper.
The building, a low, frame structure standing back seventy feet from the street, is about thirty feet square, and divided almost equally into four rooms. The entrance is of necessity from the north, a small, square porch being before the door. The two rooms comprising the southern half of the building are thrown into one by sliding doors, and used for worship. In the eastern end of this room is the recess for the repository, veiled with heavy blue curtains, and in front of it is the chancel, on a platform which can be moved in case the room be needed for meetings. Of the two remaining rooms, one is a class-room, and is used also as a vestry, and the other is the vestibule. The rooms throughout, including walls and ceilings, are very prettily finished in southern pine. To the right of the door on entering the building is the stairway descending from the vestibule into the basement, which is well-lighted and, in case of emergency, may be used as a class-room. All the rooms are splendidly lighted with incandescent electric lights and supplied with furnace heat.
This building represents to the Church in Pittsburgh a new beginning- The ultimation of a new state, more orderly, and, as we hope, more peaceful than heretofore. And bearing this in mind we enter the Church with hearts happy and thankful that the LORD in His mercy has given us here a new spiritual home on earth.
H. B. C.
PARKDALE SCHOOL 1893
THE School at Parkdale, Canada, was opened on the 16th day of January with eleven scholars-eight boys, aged from seven to thirteen years, and three girls, aged from nine to fourteen years. A special sermon concerning the cooperation required from parents was delivered on the previous day, and a short address to children themselves at the opening. The opening exercises commencing with the singing of [Hebrew].
The school is held in a small one-story brick building, about 33 by 22 feet in size, not far distant from the church building. It is partitioned into three rooms; the largest, measuring about 30 by 12 feet, being used for the boys' school-room. A smaller one, measuring about 20 by 8 feet, is appropriated to the girls, while the smallest, measuring about 10 by 8 feet, serves for a vestibule and cloak-room. There is also a basement under the whole. It will be seen that it is about as suitable for the purpose as we could expect to find ready to rent. It has been taken for six months, with some hope that a building of our own may be put up at the end of that time. This makes the sixth school belonging to the Academy of the New Church. The address of the school is 77 Elm Grove.
Notes and Reviews 1893
ANOTHER work from the pen of Dr. J. J. Garth Wilkinson is now before the public, entitled, Epidemic Man and his Visitations. The edition is limited to 250 copies.
THE January number of The New Jerusalem Magazine gives a print of the Rev. John Hargrove, Pastor of the Baltimore Society of the New Jerusalem Church from 1799 to 1830, together with a Biography written by his son-in-law.
AFTER an interval of four months The New Jerusalem again makes its appearance. The issue of January 15th contains a note on the removal of the editor to Renovo, Pa. It is expected that the issue will be more regular in the future.
New Church Tidings for December contains a sermon in which it is shown that the Word teaches nothing but love to the LORD and charity toward the neighbor. The editorial deals with the subject of Charity. With this issue is also given the engraving of the new building of the Berlin School of the Academy, which was published simultaneously in the last issue of New Church Life, together with a full description of it.
THE Calendar for the daily reading of the Writings; published by the New Church Home Reading Union (England), has been divided into weekly instead of monthly portions as heretofore. The course includes Vols. 1 and 2 of the Arcana Coelestia, The Doctrine Concerning the Sacred Scripture, and The Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom (from The Apocalypse Explained).
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THERE are some who look upon the proceeding of the late Extraordinary General Meeting of the English Conference as another downward step in its history, but a writer in The Dawn for December 22d thinks otherwise. He says that a period of awakening has come which he believes will be fruitful of new developments. The Dawn has been raised in price with the January number.
Morning Light for December 17th contains a long extract from the Daily News (London), on the newly discovered fragments of the alleged "Gospel" according to Peter and the "Revelations" of Peter. A translation of part of the Gospel" is given. It begins after the account, only given in Matthew, of Pilate washing his hands. The "Apocalypse" of Peter is a shorter document giving a description of Heaven and Hell. To the Newchurchmen they are frauds on the face of them.
THE New Church Board of Publication will no longer act as Sales Agent for the publications of the American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society. The two Societies will continue to occupy the same premises as heretofore, but the latter Society will sell its own publications direct. This arrangement has been wade for the purpose of putting the affairs of the Swedenborg Society on a more business-like footing.
PART 59 of the Concordance concludes entries under J, and completes the 3d Volume. The entries extend from "Judge" (continued from the previous number) to "Juvenile." With this number is also published the necessary key to the abbreviations of the titles, which, although printed on the cover of every separate part as issued, was, by some oversight omitted from the completed Volumes I and II.
More is told us about the inhabitants of the planet Jupiter than those of any other planet, and the many quotations concerning them, in this Part of the Concordance will especially attract attention.
When I read the Word in the sense of its letter, communication was made with the heavens, now with this society of them, now with that.- S. S. 64.
BIBLIOLOGY OF THE SUMMARY EXPOSITION OF THE INTERNAL SENSE OF THE PROPHETICAL BOOKS AND OF THE PSALMS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT 1893
THIS most important little work is, as the title indicates, a summary explanation of the internal sense of the Prophets and the Psalms, in a form wonderfully concentrated and compact. At the end of the work there are appended some very interesting general observations on "the Historicals of the Word," as an introduction to what seems to have been an intended summary exposition of the internal sense of the Historical books of the Word. This exposition is, however, continued only to time sixteenth chapter of Genesis, where it ceases with the words "but of these things more in the Arcana Coelestia."
The Summary Exposition has met with even less recognition and reception in the professed New Church than the rest of Swedenborg's posthumous works. Nor is this to be wondered at in consideration of the general lack of piety and home-worship among the men of the Church, and their strange indifference and opposition to the introduction of the Internal Sense in the public worship. There are, however, delightful signs of a change in this respect among some, and there can be no doubts as to the future universal use of this Divine work.
The Summary Exposition, though not expressly named, is referred to in a number of places in the Writings, as in the Doctrine Concerning the LORD, n. 37, where we find the following interesting statement of its origin and general character:
"It has been given me go through all the Prophets and the Psalms of David, and to examine each verse, and see what is there treated of. And it has been seen that no other subjects are there treated of than the Church which was established by the LORD, and which is to be established, the Coming of the LORD, His Combats, Glorification, Redemption, and Salvation, and Heaven from Him, and at the same time their opposites. As all these are the LORD'S works, it has been manifest that the entire Sacred Scripture is concerning the LORD, and hence that the LORD is the Word."
As to the Divine Authority of this special work, we find statements such as these: "This Explication of the Chapter has been given me by the LORD from Heaven" (A. R. 43. See also n. 239, 707, 859, where there are summary explanations, in great part word for word the same as in the Summary Exposition). In the Doctrine of the Sacred Scripture, n. 97, where the summary explanation of the Internal Sense of Ezekiel i, is the same in sense as in the work under notice. It is said, further, "These summaries have also been compared with the Word in Heaven, and are in conformity with it."
The time when Swedenborg wrote this work has not been ascertained, but in view of the references given in the Doctrine Concerning the LORD and the Doctrine Concerning the Sacred Scripture, both of which were published in the year 1763, it was probably written before that year.
THE ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT
of the Summary Exposition has happily been preserved for the Church, and is in the keeping of the Royal Academy of Science in Stockholm. It lacks a title, but was bound by Augustus Nordenskold, and is marked on the back "Codex 1, Sensus Prophetieus." In the original catalogue of Swedenborg's manuscripts, which was compiled by his heirs in the year 1772, it is thus described:
"Theological, No. 6. Some sheets in royal folio, bound in Turkish paper, and paged from p. 332 to p. 370, inclusive, which contain a short exposition of all the Prophets and the Psalms of David" (Doc. II, p. 835).
A copy of this manuscript was taken in 1782, under the superintendence of Aug. Nordenskold, and conveyed to England the following year by his brother, C. F. Nordenskold, where it was published in the year 1784 as a quarto volume, by Robert Hindmarsh, who supplied it with the following title: Summaria Expositio Sensus Interni Librorum Propheticorum Verbi Veteria Testamenti, neenon et Psalmorum Davidis."
In the year 1859 the original volume was borrowed from the Academy of Science by Dr. Immanuel Tafel, for the purpose of printing a new edition from the original MS. This edition appeared at Tübingen, in the year 1870 as an octavo volume with the new title: Summaria Expositio Sensus Interni Librorum Propheticorum ac Psalmorum Vetens Testamenti; quibius adjecta sunt aliqua de Historicis Verbi."
After the death of Dr. Tafel, in the year 1863, the original MS. was conveyed to England, by the agents of the Swedenborg Society, which had made itself responsible for its return to Stockholm. It remained there, however, many years, and finally disappeared, until, in the year 1874, it was fortunately discovered by Dr. R. L. Tafel in one of the book- Cases of the Swedenborg Society, and was at once returned to the Academy of Sciences, where it has since remained undisturbed (Doc. II, p. 836).
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THE LATIN EDITIONS.
(1784.) The first Latin edition of Summaria Expositio Sensus Interni, was, as was stated above, published by Robert Hindmarsh, in London, 1784, and was printed at his own expense. Being edited from a copy of the manuscript, it is not, indeed, quite as accurate as Dr. Im. Tafel's edition of 1860, but it is rather more attractive in appearance, and possesses some interesting features of its own. Among these is a (Latin) preface by the editor, which deserves to be translated in toto:
"To the Benevolent Reader. In some of Swedenborg's Letters we have found this memorable and noteworthy statement concerning the following work:
"'Once when I read this book, there were present with me Celestial angels who with full heart rejoiced over my intention of publishing it, for the common good of the New Church of Our LORD JESUS CHRIST.'
"Lest, therefore, the joy of the Celestial angels should pass away in vain, we have judged it most necessary to publish this very useful little book. Be pleased to accept this new treasure with a grateful mind, use it with a pious and sincere heart and live unto eternity."
It is to be greatly regretted that the editor did not give further information as to the letter of Swedenborg, from which the above interesting statement is quoted. It does not appear in Swedenborg's published correspondence.
On the first page of the original MS.- After a list of works "which are to be published" (quae edenda), and which with one exception are the same as those announced in the Preface to the Doctrine Concerning the LORD- There are found under the short headings "sequentia" seventeen articles, headings or summaries of the Summary of the Internal Sense contained in the work itself. These ought more properly to be called "Universals of the Internal Sense." They are numbered and referred to in the margin of the entire work (with the exception of n. 14, "the State of the Unition with His Divine," which is crossed out, and incorporated with n, 10).
These seventeen "Universals are printed by Hindmarsh at the end of his Latin edition. The marginal references to these, which occur in the original MS., are here brought together into two different "Subject-Indexes," which are of great assistance in selecting Scripture Texts or Chapters for Reading in connection with any given Doctrine. In some of the copies of this edition Mr. Hindmarsh also inserted a sheet containing "An Explanation of the Index, for the use of the English Reader," consisting of a translation of the seventeen "Universals," together with directions how to insert marginal references to these into the English Bibles, "by which means the reader will always have an immediate view of the general spiritual sense of all the Prophets and Psalms, without any further trouble." An excellent suggestion for this generation also.
(1860.) The second Latin edition was published at Tübingen, in the year 1860, as was mentioned above. The editor, Dr. Im. Tafel, having access to the original manuscript, has made over two hundred corrections of the text of the first Latin edition.
The seventeen "Universals" are here restored to their proper place in the beginning of the book, and the marginal references to these that occur throughout the work are left unmolested.
In view of the great importance of these marginal references in the study of the Internal Sense, the Faculty of the Philadelphia Schools of the Academy have lately, through their Secretary, made inquiries as to the correctness of Dr. Tafel's edition. The Librarian of the Royal Academy, Mr. J. A. Ahlstrand, has in consequence kindly compared this edition with the manuscript, and testifies to the accuracy of the references.
SUBSEQUENT EDITIONS AND TRANSLATIONS.
(1799.) The first English translation was the work of Mr. C. W. Leadbeater, a printer, and for some time a preacher of the New Church. It was published in the ancient town of Chester, in the year 1799. A scathing review of this translation, which "has unaccountably failed in many places in which nothing was required but a tolerable degree of grammatical knowledge," appeared in the Aurora for the year 1800 (p. 30, 103).
(1800.) Such was the general dissatisfaction with the Chester edition that a second English translation appeared the next year. It was the work of the Rev. Robert Hindmarsh, and was printed in London, by Mr. Plummer, at the expense of Mr. John Aug. Tulk. The great superiority of this translation over the former is shown by a comparison in parallel columns in the Aurora.
(1807.) A third English edition, probably a reprint of Mr. Hindmarsh's translation, was published by Mr. E. Hodson, at London, in the year 1807, and
(1815.) A fourth edition, at the same place, in the year 1815, at the expense of the Swedenborg Society. This last edition was printed in connection with the last volume of the Apocalypse Explained. It was also published separately. A list of "the titles to the various Psalms, reckoned as verses" was added to this edition.
(1833.) The First American edition, "revised and corrected," was published in Boston, in the year 1833, and was sold at the bookstore of John Allen and Otis Clapp, at the price of "thirty-seven and a half cents." (This edition is not mentioned in the account of "American Editions of New Church Books," published in The Newchurchman, for 1842, vol. I, p. 538.)
(1840.) A fifth English edition of this work was published by the Swedenborg Society at London, in the year 1840. No attempt at revision was made.
(1845.) A French Translation was prepared in the year 1845 by M. Le Boys des Guays, and was published at St. Amand by a now defunct" Societe de disciples des Doctrines de la Nouvelle Eglise." This translation is excellent, but contains no editorial corrections of the faults occurring in the Latin edition of 1784, on which it was based.
(1848.) The Second American Edition was published by Otis Clapp, at Boston, in the year 1848. It is a reprint of the Boston edition of 1833, even as to the imprint "First American Edition,-revised and corrected."
(1852.) A German translation, the work of Dr. Im. Tafel, was published at Tübingen, in the year 1852, with the title "Gedrangte Erklarung des Innern Sinnes der prophetischen Bucher des Alten Testamentes und der Psolmen Davids."
(1856.) A third American edition was published by Otis Clapp at Boston, in the year 1856.
(1862.) The sixth English edition was published by the Swedenborg Society, at London, in the year 1862. This edition was revised by the Rev. W. MacPherson and Mr. Henry Butter, so as to make it conform with Dr. Tafel's new Latin edition. It is, undoubtedly, the most reliable and complete English version of the Summary Exposition, that has as yet been produced, though the translation still leaves much to be desired.
(1887.) No further edition of this work was published until the year 1887, when the Swedenborg Society produced a "new "revision" or, rather, translation, the work of Dr. R. L. Tafel.
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Convenient in form and attractive in appearance as is this last or seventh English edition, the rendering from the Latin is by no means an improvement on the English edition of 1862. The marginal references to the seventeen "Universals" are here for some unknown reason entirely eliminated; the "Subject-Indexes," compiled by Mr. Hindmarsh, which are found in most of the other editions in English, are also absent.
The latest translation of the Summary Exposition is the Swedish rendering by the Rev. C. J. N. Manby, which has appeared in monthly installments in the "Skandinavisk Nykyrktidning," for the years 1887-1892. It is expected that this translation will in time appear as a separate publication. In common with Mr. Manby's other work, it is very faithfully executed.
Considering the more or less unsatisfactory character of all existing English translations, and especially of the latest; considering the importance of the marginal references, which have never been printed in their proper places in any English edition; considering, further, the increasing use that is being made of this work by the members of the Academy and the General Church of the Advent of the LORD; considering, finally, the intrinsic importance of the work itself, it may be seen that a new literal and complete translation of the Summary Exposition of the Internal Sense is one of the most pressing needs of the Church, and of all the works of Swedenborg left in manuscript this ought to be the first one to be republished by photography.
ADDENDUM 1893
THE attention of the reader is called to the quotation from The Doctrine concerning the LORD given in the early part of the preceding bibliology, and to the similarity of the list of subjects there given to the list which stands at the beginning of the Summary Exposition, which is as follows
"1. The LORD'S Advent. 2. The successive Vastastion of the Church. 3. The Church totally devastated and its Rejection. 4. The Rejection of the LORD by the Church. 5. The Temptations of the LORD in general. 6. Temptations even to despair. 7. Combats of the LORD with the Hells. 8. Victory over them, or Subjugation of them. 9. The Passion of the Cross. 10. The Glorification of the Human of the LORD, or Unition with the Divine. 11. The New Church in place of the former. 12. The New Church, and at the same time the New Heaven. 13. The State of Humiliation before the Father. 15. The Last Judgment by Him. Celebration and Worship of the LORD. 17. Redemption and Salvation by the LORD."
It is not at all unlikely, that when, as in the number of The Doctrine concerning the LORD, referred to (see also S. S. 113; T. C. R. 272; de Verbo, p. 21), Swedenborg speaks of his experience in "running through the Psalms," and examining the single verses, he refers to a study, the immediate results of which are the summaries given in the invaluable posthumous Work under consideration. Collating what he says about this study (see S. S. 64, 97, 113; T. C. R. 272; de Verbo, p. 21; A. R. 43 239, 707, 859; H. H. 310 et al.), the joy of the celestial angels over his proposed publication of the little work may very readily be imagined, although of the intensity of it we can form no adequate conception. If they rejoiced at the proposed publication, would they not grieve at heart if they knew of the apathy with which this Work is regarded in the professed New Church?
On the same age, in the original manuscript, on which is the list of subjects quoted above, but in the adjoining column, are references to the Sacred Scripture, which have not been published in any of the translations, and which were inserted among the "Critical Notes" at the end of the second Latin edition, but which, for every reason, ought to be restored to their place. They are:
"Concerning the state of the humiliation of the LORD, that He prayed unto the FATHER. That He prayed unto the FATHER, Matthew xiv, to 23. John xvii, 9,15,
20. Luke v, 15; Luke xxii, 37 to 47. Mark i, 35; vi, 46; Mark xiv, 32 to 39. And upon the cross, that He be not deserted; and elsewhere. That He was then conjoined to His Divine, as when He was baptized; that Heaven was opened, Luke iii, 21, when He was transformed, He also prayed. Luke ix, 28, 29, and when He prayed concerning the glorification, that it was said that He was glorified, and that He will be glorified again, John xii, 42, 43.
"If they asked in the name of the LORD, that He would do, John xiv, 13, 14.
"From David, that they gave Him gall, that they divided His garments, that they held Him in hatred without cause. The Stone which the builders rejected, Psalm cxviii, 21-22."
Title Unspecified 1893
S. S. 97
These summaries have also been collated with the Word in Heaven and conform with it.- S. S. 97.
RUDOLPH L. TAFEL 1893
THE Rev. Rudolph Leonard Tafel, A. M., Ph. D., who departed this life on January 9th, was born at Ulin, in Wurtemburg, Germany, in the year 1831. He received his education and a knowledge of the classical and most of the European languages from his father, who was a master in the Royal College of Ulm. When he was fifteen years old he came to America. At the age of eighteen he became a private teacher in Cincinnati, and afterward removed to Philadelphia. In the year 1854 he was appointed librarian to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland. The following year, when only twenty- Three years of age, he was appointed to the professorship of Modern Languages in St. John's College, Maryland, and received from this college the honorary degree of M. A.
In the year 1860, in conjunction with his father, he produced a work on Latin Pronunciation and the Latin Alphabet. He also contributed, jointly with his father, articles to the Bibliotheca Sacra on comparative grammar and philology, especially Semitic comparative philology. Two years later he accepted the Chair of Modern Languages and Comparative Philology in the Washington University of St. Louis. The same year the University of Tübingen conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Philosophy for a paper contained in the Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society on the elementary sounds of language in general, and of the English language in particular. About this time he was also made a member of the American Oriental Society, of the Academy of Sciences of St. Louis, and of the Society of Speculative Philosophy.
On April 12th, 1868, he was ordained into the ministry of the New Church by the Rev. James P. Stuart.
Whilst he was in Cincinnati he translated into German Le Boys des Guays's Lettres a un Homme du Monde. In 1867 he compiled the volume Emanuel Swedenborg as a Philosopher and Man of Science.
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In 1869 he assisted in the establishment of the Missouri New Church Association, and was appointed one of its representatives the same year to the American General Convention. He was requested to undertake a mission to Sweden, in order to report on the condition of the Swedenborg Manuscripts, and to investigate in what manner copies could be obtained. On his way to Sweden he attended the English General Conference, then being held in Manchester, which had joined the Convention in the proposed work. The results of his labors in Sweden were ten folio volumes of photolithographed manuscripts, theological and scientific, among the former so important a Work as The Apocalypse Explained, and among the latter the work on The Brain. Also a quarto volume of Schmidius's Bible with Swedenborg's manuscript annotations. This was up to that time the most extensive publication of any one author's manuscripts in such a form.
Dr. Tafel's most important mission opened to him opportunities for collecting Documents Concerning the Life and Character of Emanuel Swedenborg. The results of his researches was the publication, in the years 1875 to 1877, of three large volumes under the above title, a work of lasting value to the church.
In July, 1870, he became the Pastor of the New Church Society, which afterward removed to Camden Road, London, and held this post up to the day of his death.
During the years 1872 to 1874, he and the late Mr. J. G. Mittnacht together issued a German paper, published weekly at Stuttgart, and entitled, Wochenschrift fur die Neue Kirche.
Together with his brother, the Rev. Louis H. Tafel, he assisted his father in the translation of the Bible into German, and in the publication of an English Interlinear Translation of parts of the Bible.
During the years 1872 to 1880 he was Theological Professor at the New Church College in London.
He was one of the original members of the Academy of the New Church, which was formed on the 19th day of June, 1876, and he contributed several articles to its Serial, Words for the New Church. Not understanding the principles of the Academy, and working at cross purposes with it, he organized the New Church Educational Institute in London, of which he was elected President and Theological Tutor in the year 1883.
His publications, since his settlement in Europe, number over eighty, many of them being controversial pamphlets. The most important books, beside those mentioned, are Authority in the New Church, published in the year 1877; Swedenborg and the Doctrine of the New Church (1889); and, translations of the Divine Love and Wisdom (in association with Dr. Wilkinson), of the Summary Exposition of the Internal Sense of the Prophets and Psalms, of a portion of the Arcana Coelestia, and of The Brain.
Unfortunately he undertook more than he could accomplish in connection with his other work, when he began the translation and supplementing of the work on The Brain. Of the four or five volumes promised, two have appeared in the years 1882 and 1887 respectively. It may be years before the work is completed, and it is very doubtful whether it will be completed in the form originally planned by the translator.
Title Unspecified 1893
A. R. 43 This explanation of that chapter [Zechariah iv] has been given to me through Heaven by the Lord.- A. R. 43.
TALE 1893
(copyrighted.)
XI.
THE MAN AND HIS WIFE.
THIS cousin of mine was not less than five years my senior, but even before my arrival at adult age he treated me as though I were his equal, not merely in years, but in every other respect. Unwise this may have been, but it did not fail to win my lasting affection. My Cousin Paul appeared to me to be the kindest and most agreeable of men. Well do I remember how patiently he would put by his own studies when we were at school and consume half an hour helping me to construe a few lines in Horace or Homer. He seemed never to tire of doing kind acts, and was always an unusually popular young man. Many a time I wondered how he could so willingly sacrifice the time which he could have valuably employed in his own pursuits. My sister was never as fond of him personally as I, but we agreed that his was a singularly unselfish nature.
I sometimes found it difficult to reconcile my cousin's character with his religious principles, for these were avowedly founded on the mystical doctrine of faith alone. If merely to believe certain things, independently of the love and living of truth and good for their own sakes, was sufficient for his salvation, why should he take pains to practice the virtues? Could it be that he did so merely to be well thought of by men, merely to awaken gratitude and thus secure the friendship of those around him as a means to certain ends which he had in view? Indignantly I rejected this suggestion even before it was fu fly uncovered in my mind, but none the less did I feel conscious of a certain inconsistency whenever I thought of my cousin's religion. He did not belong, however, to the aggressive, camp-meeting type of religious-men; he merely lived a blameless life in the external, quietly insisting on the tenets of his faith, and certainly no one among all those I knew seemed to me more worthy of heaven.
At the age of twenty-seven my cousin married Miss Mary Gordon, a lovely young girl who inherited a large fortune. There was something about this marriage, which I never quite understood-something damaging to my cousin in the view of certain critical observers-but I was always sure he had done nothing really wrong. At the time that he began paying Miss Gordon marked attention it was known that she was about to become engaged (if not already so) to one Edward Ray, an architect, of more worth than means. How it happened nobody quite knew, but after meeting Paul's advances with great coldness, it presently developed that her attitude had changed and that young Ray had been rejected. I was profoundly surprised at the time, but did not fail to acquit my cousin of dishonor, although it was broadly hinted that through clever scheming he had contrived to exhibit Ray in an unworthy light before the woman he loved. It was said by some that Miss Gordon accepted Paul because of his business abilities, but it was believed in our family that she-was in love with him.
About two years after the day of the wedding my newly-made cousin, of whom I had become very fond in a brotherly way, fell ill and died, and less than three months later- Her husband was thrown from his carriage and instantly killed. During the few months which elapsed before I, too, was seized by my last illness I often thought of them, picturing their reunion in the spiritual world.
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For unquestionably they must each desire to be reunited with the other, since, according to my view, no woman could be so happy as the wife of my Cousin Paul, and no man could be so blessed as the husband of my Cousin Mary.
My delight when I recognized this beloved relative and friend in a street of the city of Newcomers may be imagined. "He has not yet been raised up to heaven, then," was my instant thought; "he soon will be, I am sure."
In my eagerness I think I actually leaped toward him, calling his name. A few moments later we were walking down the street, arm in arm, asking each of the other unnumbered questions.
"Is Cousin Mary with you?" was one of my first.
"Yes." Was it possible that I missed a certain glad ring which I expected in that "yes"? At once I chide myself for this reflection; what right had I to require of a man that he should declare his love for his wife in the very tone of his voice? I was too exacting- Too imaginative.
"Yes," said my cousin, "and you must come and dine with us. She will be glad to see you. We are expecting some friends, after dinner, whom you might like to meet, too."
Later, he insisted on my going home with him to luncheon forthwith, and I readily consented. The house was in one of the handsome streets, and in general appearance was not unlike their former home in the natural world. I could have desired no warmer welcome than Cousin Mary gave me. She was the same lovely woman, in most respects, but I soon noticed that she was quieter, and that there seemed a faint tinge of melancholy about her reserve. There was a change in Paul, too, although I was some little time in recognizing just what it was. Perhaps the best way to indicate it would be to say that his ace seemed to have become a little less refined in expression, and that in conversation he was less inclined to look at the serious side of events and draw a moral.
"How very comfortable you are," I said to the husband and wife, as they led me through the luxurious rooms.
"Yes- Ah! yes; but the trouble is," said Cousin Paul, with a half sigh, looking at me shrewdly-"the trouble is that my title to it is not unlimited. Nobody knows when it may be necessary to vacate."
"Yes, of course," I said; "this is only a city of sojourn. We are not to stop here longer than may be useful."
"Well, for my part, I'd be willing to stop here permanently," said my cousin, looking about him covetously. "This is heaven enough for me."
"You astonish me," I said, feeling a sense of disappointment. Turning to Cousin Mary, "Would you be content to remain here always?" I asked.
We might all be a great deal happier than we now are, she answered, evasively, hardly looking at me.
From that moment it was clear to me that she was an unhappy woman, although, as was equally clear, she struggled bravely day after day to avoid a disclosure. But in the spiritual world it is not possible to conceal with the same success as in the natural, even in the first state; and in the second state one's character may be read as from a book.
There was a pathetic wistfulness in Cousin Mary's beautiful brown eyes as they wandered about the room, avoiding my direct, inquiring look. Unhappy she certainly was-but wherefore? Could it be that, after all, she did not love her husband? How strange-if true. What more could she desire than this man who combined high character with intellectual cleverness and marked personal attractions? I had heard the claim made that woman could love any good man, and had any good a ways refused to subscribe to any such sentiment, as failing to square with my ideas of true love; yet it was difficult to believe that Cousin Mary could not love such a man as her husband.
"You two are so much happier than I," I said at dinner, not with absolute sincerity, perhaps. "You have each other, while I am a lonely wanderer."
"It will not always be so, I hope, Cousin Oswald," rejoined Paul's wife, with ready sympathy, seeming to pass her own doubtful case by and think only of me.
"It is best, no doubt, for the present," I said, resignedly. "Were I in your place, I fear I should be too much occupied with present happiness to think much of the future."
"And why should you think so much of the future?" Cousin Paul asked, lightly.
"Because the things of the present here are even more transient and worthless relatively than in the world. We are only sojourners, preparing through our experiences hers for either heaven or hell as the case way be."
"Yea, that is the unfortunate part of it," rejoined my cousin, in a changed voice.
"How 'unfortunate'?"
"I mean that I should be quite willing to stay here. This is good enough for me. A bird in the hand, you know."
"What a strange way to feel," I said. "It is as if a boy of thirteen were to declare his desire to remain a boy all his life. For my part, I look forward eagerly to the fuller, riper state which awaits us in heaven, toward which I earnestly hope all of us are surely bound."
"I hope so, indeed," said Cousin Paul. His wife, however, made no rejoinder, staring into her plate like one who knows not what to say, and therefore says nothing.
"And even though we may be bound in that direction," I continued, "we all have evils which must yet be overcome, and their subjection ought to be our daily concern. That is what I meant just now by thinking of the future."
"I heard a good deal of that kind of talk when I first came to this city," said my cousin, complacently, "but-begging your pardon, Oswald-I didn't think it worth my while to pay much attention to it. Of course, it is well enough for us to act honorably, but after all our real concern is whether we have faith or not. Now, ever since I was converted I have been confident that I had faith, and I have never seen why I should trouble myself further as long as I was not an actual lawbreaker."
I had heard my cousin speak in this strain when we were both in the natural world, but I was then so ignorant and thoughtless that it made little impression on me; now, however, the theory appeared atrocious. I therefore spoke up warmly to controvert it, and we argued through the remainder of the dinner. Cousin Paul's idea seemed to be that introduction into heaven was due to nothing more than an act of pure mercy, the mere opening of a gate to a certain number, whose articles of faith constituted their tickets of admission; true regeneration had really nothing to do with it, and, therefore, the most despicable of men, if only on his death-bed he would say, "I believe," might enter heaven and become an angel of light.
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Against this baleful falsity I spoke with all the force that I could bring to bear, striving to make my cousin see clearly, as I saw clearly after all the instruction which I had received, that it was as impossible for a man to enter heaven without first being purified from the evils into which he had been born and which he acquired as for a fish to live out of water without first being provided with lungs corresponding to those of other animals which breathe the air; that only those who by long and persistent effort have built up heaven within them, or moulded their own souls in conformity with heaven's laws, can either see, enter or endure the life of heaven.
My cousin obstinately stood by his absurd theory, refusing to surrender the easy "scheme of salvation" which he had elected to believe in, and his state of mind filled me with great sadness. During our argument, which was interrupted, finally, by the arrival of the guests of the evening, I noticed that Cousin Mary listened intently, and seemed to give adherence to my statements rather than to my opponent's, which served to confirm me the more in my belief that she did not love her husband.
The guests who came in to spend the evening were some dozen or fifteen in number, and, for the most part, I looked and behaved exactly as well-bred people are wont to do in company. They spoke, in general, of small matters, that which had happened recently in a social way, that which was soon to happen, and otherwise showed that their minds were thoroughly taken up with the trifling affairs of the moment. Except in one instance, there was nothing to indicate that any of them was cognizant of the fact that the present situation might fittingly be described as a dissolving view of a grand kaleidoscope, which would shortly be resolved into the fixed and unalterable in heaven or in hell.
Only two among the visitors need particular mention here. One of these was Miss Isabella Grubb, a lady; no longer young, who had always appeared to be a voted friend of my cousin's, and whose death had preceded his some two or three months. The other was Edward Ray, the young man whom my Cousin Mary had rejected, and who, as I now learned, had entered the spiritual world shortly after I did.
Conversation with Ray was at first a little labored owing to a certain reserve which had distinguished our intercourse since the date of a youthful quarrel. But as I had been chiefly to blame, had long ago repented, and was now more than ever in the mood to make amends, all obstructing restraint was presently cleared from between us; for Ray was a thoroughly good fellow, as was evident in more ways than one. His attitude toward my cousin's wife was such as to excite admiration. No one could have suspected that be was a former lover, he being neither distant in manner toward her nor showing an exaggerated respect, but uniformly simple, frank, gentlemanly. In the course of our conversation I was pleased to find that he was not without a rational conception of his position as a novitiate spirit, and was concerned about much beside the events of the hour.
I had not known Miss Isabella Grubb very well in the world, but had heard a good deal about her through my friends. She was fairly good-looking and had the air of an amiable, well-bred woman. Had she been ten years younger and the possessor of a fortune, according to certain gossiping ladies, my Cousin Paul would never have married Miss Gordon. My sister avowedly disliked her, and once told me that were Miss Grubb not so extremely shrewd she would long since have gained the reputation of a malicious gossip. Experience had taught me that the best of women were apt, on occasion, to speak more damagingly of one of their sex than the circumstances warranted; I therefore listened without concluding that Miss Grubb was necessarily the opposite of a well-disposed woman, and as I now met her at my cousin' s house my mind was certainly open and unprejudiced.
Fifteen minutes of conversation, however, were sufficient to furnish me with no good opinion of her. She began by pronouncing a flowery congratulation in view of my elevation to the "higher life" of the spiritual world, and never afterward, even by remote inference, referred to that life or its duties. Immediately descending to personalities, she commented right and left with great freedom, and gave me a few vivid glimpses into the history of nearly every person in the room- All this without encouragement from me, indeed, in the face of efforts to speak of other things.
She spent much time discussing Ray, who, it was hinted, was little less than a consummate hypocrite, despite his gentlemanly manner, being in love with and having deliberate designs on Paul's wife. This information was imparted less by bold assertion than by sly insinuation and covert innuendo, accompanied with suggestive shrugs and glances. She gravely informed me at the outset that she felt drawn to speak more freely on this subject to me than to any one else, because of my strong friendship for Paul. I had made up my mind that she would next level her battery at Cousin Mary, when, much to my relief, our conversation was interrupted.
Later, while in the company of another of the guests, between whom and myself a silence of a few moments had fallen, I happened to overhear Miss Grubb mention my name to Ray, with whom she had now elected to converse. My ears gave quick attention ere I realized that I was listening, and I distinctly heard these words, uttered in her low, insinuating voice:
"The conceited prig always had a fancy for his cousin a wife, and now he has come-who knows?"
What was this woman's purpose?-deliberately to inflame two men with anger against each other for the sake of amusement? When she first had imputed bad motives to Ray I felt a little uneasy, but not so now; nothing which such a woman might say was worthy of a serious thought.
Cousin Mary now went to the piano and sung for the company. She had always a beautiful voice, and it now seemed purer and richer than ever before, delighting the ear.
"It is wonderful how your voice has strengthened," I said, after the first song.
"I have been thinking," spoke up Ray, the conversation being now general, "that our sense of hearing must be keener here than in the world."
"Undoubtedly, and the pleasure we derive from beautiful sounds is, therefore, more intense," I rejoined. "If we are conscious of this here, imagine what our delight in music will be in heaven; it will stir our very souls."
"I have sometimes wondered if I should have a piano there," mused Cousin Mary, after a pause, during which she struck a few chords.
"You will have something much better than a piano," said Ray, with a smile and a flash of the eye.
"Do you mean a violin or a harp?" asked one of the guests, half seriously.
"Oh I no-some soul- Thrilling, heavenly instrument not known to us."
(To be continued.)
32
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
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PHILADELPHIA, FEBRUARY, 1893=123.
CONTENTS.
Editorial, p. 17.- The Medium between the Spiritual and the Natural (a Sermon). p. 18.-General Influx (Genesis xliii, 9-34) p. 20.- The Essence of Language, p. 22.-Notes on Ecclesiastical History. VIII. The Moat Ancient Church (continued) p. 23.- The Festival of the Incarnation at Berlin, Canada, p. 24.-Dedication of the Pittsburgh Building, p. 25.- The Parkdele School, p. 25.
Notes and Reviews, p. 25.-Bibilology of The Summary Exposition of the Internal Sense of the Prophetical Books of the Psalms of the Old Testament, p. 26.- Rudolph L. Tafel. p. 28.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale). xl, p. 29.
News Gleanings, p. 32.-Marriage, p. 32.- Academy Book-Room, p. 32.
AT HOME.
Canada.- THE Annual Meeting of the Elm Street Society, Toronto, was held on January 3d. The membership was stated to be ninety-five.
Texas.- THE Rev. F. L. Higgins paid a visit to the New Church people of Seguin, and delivered three lectures to audiences numbering from twenty-five to thirty people.
California.- THE church building of the First San Francisco Society, of which the Rev. John Doughty is the pastor, has suffered much damage from a fire which occurred on the 8th inst. It is thought that the repairs will cost $5,000. In the meantime the Society have been offered the use of their hall by the Second Society.
Pennsylvania.- THE Annual Meeting of the Philadelphia First Society was held on Monday, January 9th. Twenty-five new members were elected. Of these seventeen had formerly been connected with the Allentown Society.
THE Allentown members of the Pennsylvania Association will probably lose the use of Bohlen's Hall in which they met for worship for many years.
Massachusetts.- THE Boston Society celebrated the twenty-fifth anniversary of the installation of the Rev. James Reed as their pastor on January 5th. The Rev. Charles G. Aines, of the Church of the Disciples, who was present, "paid a high tribute to the value of Swedenborg's Writings to him, and rejoiced that the fences which separated the different Churches were so low.
Maine.-MRS. Sophia Walker Hayden, wife of the Rev. W. B. Hayden, entered the Spiritual World on November 8th, 1892, at the age of seventy-four. She was the daughter of the Rev. Dr. Leonard Woods and a younger sister of Leonard Woods, President of Bowdoin College. On her marriage she removed to New York until Mr. Hayden was called to the Society in Portland. For forty- Two years she remained a member of this Society. Five months before her death Mr. and Mrs. Hayden had celebrated their golden wedding. By her will she gives certain legacies and bequests to the General Convention and to Societies of the Church receivable after the death of liar husband, who has a life interest in her property.
Washington, D. C.-OWING to the illness of the Rev. Chauncey Giles, the proposed ordination of the Rev. Peter C. Louis (colored minister), and several others was postponed until a later date. The item concerning this movement in the January issue of the Life, instead of being written in the past tense, should have been in the prospective tense.
California.- THE O'Farrell Street Society received fifteen persons into membership on November 7th.
New Jersey.- THE Society at Vineland has been increased by eight new members who have been interested in its work for some time past.
Ohio.- A YOUNG Men's Class has been formed in connection with the Society in Cincinnati for the study of the Writings. The Rev. J. Goddard is present to open the meetings and explain difficulties, but one of the young men is appointed to take charge of the meeting each evening.
THE beginning of a New Church organization is being made in Columbus, where there are over a dozen friends of the New Church, and as many children.
Michigan.- A CIRCLE of six or eight at Ann Arbor, have been meeting on Sundays for the study of the Doctrines for three or four years.
Missouri.- THE Rev. J. B. Parmelee is delivering a course of lectures in St. Louis.
ABROAD.
Great Britain.- THE Church Choir of the Wigan Society gave a concert in aid of the debt on the Iron Church belonging to the Primitive Methodists.
THE Rev. J. Martin gave a lecture to the Bath Society, on his trip to America.
A POSTAL order or half a crown, made payable to the order of Swedenborg himself; was sent to 36 Bloomsbury Street, London, (the offices of the Swedenborg Society.) The sender had noticed an advertisement of The True Christian Religion in The Christian World and desired to purchase a copy.
THE West of England Missionary Association held their annual meeting at Bath on December 7th, Mr. Isaac Pitman, the President, in the chair. The Secretary reported that the New Church Magazine had been sent to many free public libraries in the district. The Treasurer reported a balance in hand of L3, 5s. 6d.
THERE is a movement on foot to spread a knowledge of the Doctrines of the New Church by means of "Doctrinal Posters," to be exhibited at railway stations.
IT is announced that the next annual meeting of the English Conference will be held at Birmingham, commencing on June 19th.
THE Rev. John Presland, the Rev. Thomas Child and Mr. E. J. Broadfield, it is expected, will attend and speak at the World's Congress of the New Church at Chicago in September.
THE Blackpool Society held a reception on December 14th to welcome the Rev. E. A. Beilby as their Pastor. Among the speakers who welcomed him was a Unitarian and a Methodist minister. A New Church minister in referring to the Chairman of the meeting (a layman), said that he had filled all the offices of his Church in Manchester, except going into the pulpit, and he was hoping that he would even do that.
AT the quarterly meeting of the Failsworth District Sunday- School Meeting, held at Kearsley on October 22d, a paper was read on some of the Difficulties of Sunday- School Teaching."
Austria- Hungary.-IT appears that Dr. J. B. Nahrhaft has proved himself unworthy of the confidence reposed in him. He has left Buda-Pesth, and his whereabouts is unknown, it is rumored that he has come to America.
New Zealand.- THE New Church people here have inserted as an advertisement in the Press of Christ Church, New Zealand, the sermon preached by the Rev. Thomas A. King before the last Convention.
Italy.- SIGNOR Scocia has received an invitation from twenty New Church people to become their minister. Eighteen of them live a great distance from Florence, in which city he has begun regular Sunday worship. He is looking forward to the visit of an ordaining minister from America or England with a view to his ordination.
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM 1893
SINCE our catalogue was issued a number of valuable books have been published, of which the following is a partial list:
The WORD. Oxford Edition. According to the New Church Canon. Neatly bound in red cloth, gilt edge, $2.50, including postage.
CONJUGIAL LOVE. New English Edition (see review in Life for November, 1891, p. 209). Cloth, $1.00. Full cochineal morocco, gilt edge, $4.60; postage, 15 cents.
CANONS OF THE NEW CHURCH. New translation, by Glendower C. Ottley; English Foolscap Edition. Cloth, 35 cents; postage, 3 cents.
JOYS OF HEAVEN AND NUPTIALS THERE, in Latin, extracted from De Amore Conjugiale (used as text-book in Latin in the Academy Schools). Paper, 10 cents; cloth, 30 cents.
SCRIPTURA SACRA, seu Verbum Domini, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Minor Prophets. Compilation in Latin, by Le Boys des Gunys, and Harle. Paper, $1.30; half morocco, $2.15.
THE SWEDENBORG CONCORDANCE. Volume III. (G.-J.) Half morocco, $4.65. Subscribers wishing to have their copies bound can have this done through us at a moderate price.
LESSONS IN ANATOMY FOR CHILDREN OF THE NEW CHURCH.
Part I. THE EYE. (See review in Life for May, 1892)
Part II. THE EAR AND NOSE.
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JOURNAL OF TEACHERS' MEETINGS, a general contents of which will be found in Life for October, 1892. p. 155. 50 cents.
CALENDAR for 1893. Plan for reading the Word in the Sacred Scripture and in the Writings of the New Church. 5 cents.
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM,
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33
Title Unspecified 1893
Vol. XIII, No. 3. PHILADELPHIA, MARCH, 1893=123. Whole No. 149.
IF parents realized what trouble and anxiety they are storing up for their children in after life by humoring them in their infancy, childhood, and youth, their storge would impel them to exercise greater firmness in the control of their charges. Children are the most precious gifts that can possibly be entrusted to men on earth, and they are wealthy indeed who possess them. But wealth is a curse if not rightly administered, and the blessing of children becomes a curse when parents do not instruct and lead them by truth to good. Every father is priest and king in his own house, and as priest and king, it is his duty to become skilled in the laws that are revealed for the government of his sons and daughters and to administer them wisely and in the fear of the LORD.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE universal law, recognized in a general way by every Newchurchman, that children are born of Heaven, will fail to be established unless the laws into which it enters are also received in the understanding with affection and with the will to do them.
And one of the principal of these laws is that preparation for Heaven requires the co-operation of parents from the very beginning of the child's life in the world. If it Is true that the states of a man's life return in the other world after death, it is equally true that the states of a child's life from the time that he is laid on the mother's breast to the time when he is of his own right and judgment, return during his after-life on earth. And as the great object in life is to secure the absolute subjugation and control of the natural man under the dominion of the spiritual man, so the corresponding object of child-life should be to have the appetites, cupidities, and desires of the child under the full control of the judgment and decision of the parents. As true as is the trite saying that he who would command must first learn to obey, so true is it that he in whom, of his own free choice and determination, the LORD'S dominion is to be established through the spiritual man within him, must first learn to subject himself completely to the judgment of those who stand to him in place of the LORD.
Title Unspecified 1893
There can be no postponing of this work of subjugation. The infant's cupidity, no matter how early it manifests itself, must be controlled with a firm hand. And the earlier that the child learns that it must obey absolutely, the richer, are the remains stored up, and the more easily will the parent control the child ever afterward. The blind affection, the selfish affection; which parents feel for their children, often keeps them from administering the law of implicit obedience at the very time that is most critical in the child's life. In his fallen estate man has to bring a cool and clear judgment to bear on every act of his life- A judgment formed by the Divine Revelation. Affections cannot be trusted until they have been examined critically. Success in the world attends those who do not suffer themselves to be led into ventures by their loves and by appearances, but who carefully and cautiously examine their ground before they tread it. So a corresponding success on the spiritual plane attends those who carefully guide their children's affections by a judgment formed by the all-illuminating and all-directing Divine Truth.
Title Unspecified 1893
AT first the child must obey implicitly, without question. This state lasts for some years. Later, it is taught reasons for the doing of those things which it is told to do; yet, the reason may not always precede the act. This comes at a still later stage when the child becomes a youth. Having become thoroughly habituated to do immediately and cheerfully what he is told, whether it be distasteful to him or not, the beginning reason can gradually co-operate with the judgment of the parent, and prepare to take the place of the latter, which it does entirely by the time that the youth enters upon adult life. The habit of obedience now stands in trusty stead to the understanding, and the work of regeneration can proceed more easily than in the case of one who has always been left to his own desires or to his necessarily unformed judgment. It is injurious to anticipate the time when one comes into the right of deciding all his actions for himself, and of judging of all things for himself, and it Is equally injurious to protract it.
Title Unspecified 1893
SINCE the childhood of man is intended to be the season of preparation for regeneration, those things which enter into the process of reformation and regeneration, such as vastations, temptations, despair, combats with evils, victories, self-examination, and humiliation, all have their forerunners during childhood and youth in a manner adapted to the youthful life; the important difference to be borne in mind being that in regeneration the spiritual man and the natural man, which strive for the mastery, are in one and the same person, while during childhood the spiritual man is in the parent, and the natural man is in the child.
Title Unspecified 1893
NEXT to obedience, self-examination and confession of evils to the parent are the most important habits to be cultivated in childhood and youth. Perfect frankness toward parents is the necessary forerunner of self-examination and confession before the LORD in mature life, without which regeneration is an empty word.
Habits such as these are more important than habits of courtesy and decorum, of order and cleanliness, essential as are the latter. They are essential simply as ultimate basis for the more important habits of order and cleanliness of the mind.
When men, like Froebel, touched with a sense of the destiny of mankind exclaim: "Come let us live for our children," they express a sentiment in which none can enter more heartily than Newchurchmen, for to none is there granted such an insight into the marvels of the child a mind and the objects of its existence, as to the Newchurchman. To live for the children is to live for
Heaven!
Title Unspecified 1893
ALL the subordinations that exist in the world, in the many relations of man to man, in the State, in the community, in business, and in the home, have respect to the subordination of everything to the LORD.
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Heavenly happiness arises from order. Men need to learn to be, subordinate to one another so that they may eventually be subordinate to the LORD. It is by the spontaneous operation of this law that men who are more intelligent and judicious in any human activity become leaders and are set over those who are less capable. The natural man is prone to resent being subordinate. His tendency is to rule over others from the love of dominion, without regard to fitness or use, and where external restraint is no longer powerful enough such insubordinate lust breaks out into violent denunciation of established order, or even into open defiance and rebellion. Yet subordination is of the merciful providence of the LORD to help man unto the state where he may be a loving and faithful servant of the LORD. Man should therefore love to serve instead of fearing it.
SERVING TWO MASTERS Rev. T. F. ROBINSON 1893
"No one can serve &o masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or eke he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."-Matthew vi, 24.
A MAN comes into existence gifted by the LORD with mental faculties, every one of which, however, is undeveloped, and exists only in potency. His powers are slowly unfolded by the contact of his indwelling life, with the outward world through his bodily senses. The faculty of memory is thus brought into exercise, and a world of objects stored up within the natural mind. The memory in this way becomes the foundation for all future mental capacities and activities. From the comparisons which man at an early age begins to make between the different objects in the memory, the power of drawing conclusions is developed, by which the natural reasoning faculty is called into exercise for the formation of the natural rational mind.
The natural reasoning faculty of man can be developed to a very high degree of perfection in its own domain by means of all kinds o now edges and sciences; but however extensive one's acquisitions may be in this respect, the most learned, and so- Called educated, man may remain in the thickest darkness of ignorance in regard to spiritual truths, which alone reveal the real object of our existence. Knowledges of natural truth and science do not of themselves elevate man above a merely natural life, because they do not make known and enable him to oppose his self-love and his love of the world, but rather confirm him in his worldly and selfish pursuits. The more of them he possesses, the better is he able to act from mere policy, for the sole purpose of gaining his selfish ends.
This is the outward, the worldly side of man's rational mind, which has nothing but natural and temporal ends in view as the very end and object of life, and which as a lord and master seeks to establish dominion over us; a dominion in which is inmostly concealed slavery, destruction, and death; and which, if we yield to it, will destroy in us everything truly living, all sense of duty to GOD and man, and render us utterly blind to our real and eternal interests.
The rational faculty of man has, however, an interior side, by means of which he is enabled to listen to and comprehend spiritual and Divine truths. These truths not only describe the lovely quality of a genuine spiritual and heavenly life, and its peace and felicity in opposition to the mere natural life with its delusive and treacherous promises, but they also constitute the channels through which the heavenly life of love from the LORD can move our affections for everything good and true.
By this means man becomes a responsible being; he can either subject himself to the rule and guidance of heavenly and spiritual truths, or he can reject them, and allow his impure natural life to reign. This interior rational faculty, illuminated by the light of Divine truths, points out to man the real quality of his natural life, with all its selfish wishes, desires, plans, and reasonings. And if he is honestly inclined, he can then, in the daylight of truth, see the fallacies of his worldly reasonings and the impurity of his selfish life. If, in these states of illumination, man does not love darkness rather than light, if he does not prefer the bondage of evil and falsity to the liberty of a life of good and truth, after life and death have thus been brought within his view, he will confirm within himself the truths of the kingdom of God. These truths, accepted and confirmed within himself, and the acknowledgment of the superior life portrayed by them, effect the formation of a true conscience in him, the introduction and acknowledgment of an inward teacher, master, and guide, or the beginning of an internal and spiritual life.
Two powers that are diametrically opposed to each other are now active in the man. One is endeavoring to elevate him, the other strives to degrade him under false promises. One leads to eternal freedom, the other would betray him into everlasting captivity. These two masters, called in the text, GOD and mammon, are as opposite as light and darkness, good and evil, heaven and hell. There can be no compromise between the service required by the one and that demanded by the other; for what we are required to love in the one we are called upon to hate in the other.
When a man arrives at the age of maturity he is at first alternately under the government of one or the other of these two powers. At one time he is carried away by selfish and worldly principles which induce him to transgress the commandments of his heavenly FATHER, and at another time he is pained at the thought of having acted contrary to the LORD'S revealed will. He is then under the influence of the remains of his childhood, and angels are with him endeavoring to induce him to allow spiritual and heavenly principles to have supreme ascendancy over him. And if the man desires to be regenerated, to have the LORD'S Kingdom established within him there must be nothing half- Hearted about his decision to allow the Divine Truth to rule. The whole man must be humbled before the LORD as He at this day manifests Himself to His New Church in His DIVINE HUMAN. It must be a total and complete submission carried down to the very acts of the body. For, "the LORD, in order that He may render any one blessed and happy wills a total submission- That is, that he should not be partly his own and partly the LORD'S, for in such case there are two lords whom man cannot serve at the same time. . . . Because love to the LORD does not come from man, but from the LORD HIMSELF, therefore, the whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, which are recipients, must be the LORD'S, and consequently submission must be total" (A. C. 6137).
When the selfish and natural principles yield their supremacy to the descending spiritual principles, there is imparted to the mind an affirmative disposition in favor of everything that comes from the LORD, and at the same time a distrust of everything that comes from man, a distrust of everything that favors the delights of the lower natural man, a distrust of all our own notions and ideas on spiritual matters.
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Having chosen to adopt the government of a genuine spiritual and heavenly life, man judges everything by the laws of Divine Truth as they are revealed in the Heavenly Doctrines which the LORD Himself has drawn out of the Letter of the Divine Word. Not rejecting the use of his natural reason, but rather sacrificing it, purifying it of all man-made theories and doctrines, and using it as the willing and obedient servant of the spiritual man, he compels himself to think and act in accordance with the law of the LORD, and although the natural and selfish passions resist this decision with the inflexibility of a most deadly foe, yet amid the din of the conflict he hears the LORD'S words exhorting him to "be strong and of a good courage;" and he knows that "the law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are upright, making glad the heart: The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes." And so, one by one, the unlawful possessors of the promised land are driven out. The LORD'S kingdom is established; first, in the interiors of the soul and then in the outward, bodily nature. And as the lower natural man is purified from the evils and falsities which have accumulated there during childhood and youth and early manhood, the LORD richly rewards us for our singleness of life by permitting us to enter upon the enjoyments and delights which flow from the good and truth proceeding from Him.
Very different is it with one who does not place himself unreservedly on the side of the LORD and His kingdom, but stands halting between two opinions, hesitating between allegiance to GOD and allegiance to mammon and attempts to serve both. These two no man can serve at the same time. "It is not possible for any one to stand with his head over turning between the LORD and the devil and at the same time to pray to both; for such are they concerning whom the LORD says 'I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot; I wish thou wert cold or hot; but whereas thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee; out of my mouth' (Rev. iii, 15, 16). Who can skirmish with his troops between two armies and favor both? Who can be in evil against his neighbor and at the same time in good toward him? Does not evil in such case conceal itself in good? Although the evil which conceals itself does not appear in acts, still it manifests itself in many things if rightly reflected on; for the LORD says 'No servant can serve two masters; ye cannot serve GOD and mammon.' Luke xvi, 13" (T. C. R., 437).
There can indeed be no compromise. We may make the attempt, but it will most assuredly fail. There can be no true knowledge of the service which each requires when there is any idea or attempt to combine them; and if any one who has been instructed in the true Doctrines of the Divine Word does not, after arriving at years of freedom and rationality, yield supreme allegiance to the. LORD as He manifests Himself to us in the Internal, sense of the Divine Word, then he decides in favor of the dominion of his self-love and self-intelligence. He does not find his standard of what is good and true in the Law of the LORD, but in the conclusions of his own others' self-intelligence. The master that holds supreme sway over him is the love of his own superiority and his own wisdom; and although he may deceive himself and others, and imagine that the LORD and His kingdom are the objects of his adoration, yet it is manifest that with any one who worships own wisdom, the affirmative quality of his mind is gone; and while he may pose as an honest doubter and a searcher after truth, it is easy to see that he is in a negative and not in an affirmative state toward the truths of Divine revelation. Thus he will gradually lose the power of distinguishing between good and evil, truth and falsity; for he has removed the tree of life from the centre of his being to the circumference. He does good from policy and not in obedience to the Divine Law. The knowledges of good and truth which he had acquired in his youth are now only regarded as servants to the love of self and the world- These latter are now the master, while the good and truth proceeding from the LORD are the servants.
Thus the love of God and the love of the world are in him opposite and discordant. They are, indeed, two masters that cannot dwell together. The fear of man must give way to the fear of the LORD, if the LORD'S kingdom is to prosper in the soul. If the fear of man is uppermost, then the light of truth is gradually extinguished, and the man becomes like unto him that putteth his light under a bushel, or like one who having put his hand to the plough and looking back, becomes unfit for the kingdom of GOD.
It is true that, as we have noticed, there is a transition state before a man appears to have made his choice between GOD and mammon, and when he seems to be at the mercy of two contending forces, one endeavoring to raise him toward heaven and the other bearing him downward toward hell. In this state, however, no one can remain for any great length of time; for some ruling love will ere long assert itself, and will gradually bring everything in the mind into subjection to itself; it will reduce into agreement with itself all mental states, and matters of knowledge in the memory, and will thus become the ruler in the soul, govern the interior life, and determine the character of all our words and actions. The form of every one's ruling love differs, yet its quality must be either good or evil; so that, sooner or later, some good or evil love will predominate and become our king and governor, and reduce into subjection to itself the whole of our spiritual being, and will thus form within us that character which will follow us into the other life, and determine the nature and quality of our life there to all eternity.
How important, then, that we should know the character of that ruling love which is the master of our being! How shall we find it out? By self-examination; by studying the nature of our pleasures and delights; by carefully noticing what things we take supreme delight in.
If our delight is in the law of the LORD; if we are willing to accept that as the supreme rule of our affections, thoughts, and actions, we may know that we have suffered ourselves to be guided by the Divine Mercy into the narrow way which leadeth unto Life.
But if any one ends that the spiritual truths of the Divine Word are distasteful to him; that he has a fondness for arguments by which men try to show that the Divine Word, in its letter, or in its spirit, is of human origin; if he takes pleasure in opposing the outward institution of the LORD'S Church on earth; or if he takes paramount interest in the things of this world, so that the precepts of Divine Truth are forgotten or perverted; that hatred is not checked in its rising; that wrong judgment is exercised in fits of excitement; that, in a word, there is no fixed, final law which is made a means of discipline, and to which we humbly bow as being of Divine authority; that our only bounds are the variable rules suggested by self-love, which can be altered to suit circumstances; then we may know that we are nearing the broad road that leadeth to destruction.
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Let us then not attempt to unite in ourselves two things of so opposite a nature as the love of GOD and the love of mammon, or the consequence must be the destruction of all true life in ourselves. Let us turn from faith in ourselves to faith in the LORD, study His Word, and constantly look to Him to be with us and strengthen us by His presence. If we do this, then will all those evil spirits be driven away whose delight it is to bring man into a state of ignominious bondage by trying to persuade him that it is possible to serve God and mammon.
And as we draw near to the LORD in His DIVINE HUMAN and place ourselves in an affirmative attitude toward that Revelation in which He has accommodated His Infinite glory to our feeble, finite nature; and perseveringly struggle against the opposing influences of the loves of self and the world, our minds will gradually be illuminated with the light of heaven. And by submitting our life to the precepts of the Divine Law, we shall reject our own tormenting and never satisfied life and lose it entirely, down to the last insane illusions of our own wisdom and goodness.
May we then be warned by the text to serve that God alone who deserves as well as requires our service, and He will introduce us into the enjoyment of that true and lasting happiness which is the unfailing reward of all who yield themselves up to an undivided service of, the LORD. AMEN.
MEDIATION BETWEEN THE INTERNAL CELESTIAL AND THE EXTERNAL NATURAL 1893
GENESIS XLIV.
In this Chapter the Medium between the Internal Celestial Man and the External Natural is treated of next, the temptation of the External Natural man, and this until he submitted himself spontaneously to the Internal; the conjunction of the External man with the Internal is not effected without temptation and spontaneous submission. In the representative historical sense, the posterity of Jacob Is here treated of, that they were rejected, but that they contumaciously insisted on being representative.
(1.) There was now influx from the Internal Celestial, by communication, into the natural with the good of truth, to a sufficiency, and especially with truth anew in the exterior natural.
Truth of good is of the celestial church, and good of truth is of the spiritual church;* with those who were of the celestial Church, good was implanted in the voluntary part, wherein is the proper seat of good; from that good- That is, by that good from the LORD- They had the perception of truth, whence they had the truth of good; but with those who are of the spiritual Church, good is implanted in the intellectual part by truth, for all truth is of the intellectual part, and by truth they are led to good, for doing truth is good with them, whence they have the good of truth; this (the good of truth) is properly predicated of those who are of the spiritual Church, but the truth of good, although not properly, is also predicated of them.
* Corrected. See NCL 1893 p. 53.
(2.) At the same time interior truth, which was the truth of faith from the good of charity; was given to the Medium, and also truth of good; all this was so done.
(3.) There was now a state of illustration, for the external natural man was now somewhat removed together with his truths and scientifics; (4.) but the amount of the removal was not great, and the Internal Celestial perceived and inflowed anew, for it saw that it ought now to adjoin itself with truths in the natural by mediate adjunction, but' there was aversion on the part of the truths of the natural.
(5.) With the truths of the natural, interior truth was received from the celestial, which knows hidden things from the Divine; wherefore it is against the Divine law to claim it for themselves. Truth which is given by the LORD is first received as if not given; for man before regeneration thinks that he acquires truth for himself, and so long as he thinks this he is in spiritual theft: to claim for one's self and to attribute to one's self good and truth for justice and merit is to take from the LORD what is His.
(6.) This mediate adjunction was by the influx of this thing, (7.) which the external natural apperceived and reflected why such a thing inflows, when it is not from the will of claiming truth for itself. A deed itself is natural, and the will from which it is is spiritual. Here although the external natural had received interior truth it had not willed it.
(8.) When truth is given gratis to the external natural there is a submission from the religiosum; for it is from the religiosum of the Church that one ought not to claim good and truth for one's self; how then shall the external natural claim for itself the truth and good which is from celestial Divine? (9.) for he will be damned who does such a thing, and the truths of the natural will be associated without liberty from the proprium forever.
(10.) Thus, indeed, would it be done from justice, but a milder sentence follows. He with whom interior truth is found will be perpetually without proper liberty- That is, he will be a servant of the LORD so far as he acknowledges that interior truth to be from the LORD. But he s a servant of the devil who claims it to himself. The rest are of their own right because they are not together in fault.
(11.) The external natural was impatient that those in the truths of the external natural might adduce those things which were in the natural even to the sensual- that Is, that they might altogether confirm that the thing is so, for then it is brought down even to a sensual test. They desired this that they thus might manifest the thing to themselves.
(12.) Wherefore an investigation was made, according to order, and interior truth from the celestial was found to be with the medium.
(13.) The men of the external natural now mourned the loss of truth from the proprium, which they could no longer claim for themselves, for from sensual things they were now brought back into scientifics- That is, they were reminded of the doctrinal statements of truth.
(14.) The good of the Church, together with its truths, was brought into communication with the Internal, for it was foreseen that there would be a conjunction of the truth of the natural with the celestial Divine and humiliation before It.
(15.) They now perceived that to claim to themselves what is not theirs is an enormous evil, and this cannot be hidden from Him Who sees future and hidden things
(16.)Perception was given to the good of the Church in the natural, that there was a fluctuation among the truths of the natural, because they were guilty, and confession that they had alienated themselves from truth and good, and thus separated themselves from the Internal, wherefore they ought to be deprived of proper liberty forever, likewise those associated, also he with whom interior truth was from the celestial spiritual.
The external man, which is the same as the natural man, ought to be altogether subjected to the Internal, which is the spiritual, consequently without freedom from the proprium. Freedom from the proprium is to indulge in all kinds of pleasures, contemn others in comparison with one's self, to subject them to one's self as servants; if however, this cannot be done, it is to persecute them, to hate them, to be delighted with evils which befall them, and especially with those which the evil person himself, by contrivance or deceit, brings upon them. Whence it is evident of what quality a man is when he is in freedom from the proprium-namely, that he is a devil in a human form. But when a man loses this freedom, then he receives from the LORD Celestial Freedom, which is a thing which they do not at all know who are in freedom from the proprium; they think that if this freedom be taken away from them, there would nothing of life remain, when yet it is then that life itself begins, and then real delight, blessedness, happiness with wisdom come, because this freedom is from the LORD.
(17.) They will by no means be deprived of their freedom, but he with whom Is interior truth received from the LORD should be subjected forever to the internal, and those associated, with whom that truth was not, should return to their former natural state.
(18.) The external man now communicated with the Internal by good, for communication is not given except by-good, but not by truth except when there be in the truth good; and the Internal perceived that the external supplicated for reception and audience that it should not avert itself, for it has dominion over the natural.
(19.) The Internal perceived their thought, and instructed that it is good from which and truth by which there is a conjunction of the truth of the Church in the natural; for it is from spiritual good that there are truths in the natural, and by the truth there is conjunction.
(20.) Wherefore the natural reciprocally perceived that they had spiritual good from which they might have truth which was new, but that they had not internal good which Is the celestial of the spiritual, but the new truth which was from spiritual good from the natural somewhat more interior was the only truth of the Church. This truth is what is from spiritual good, but is somewhat more interior when present with the Internal and is called new truth. This alone is what makes a man to be a Church, for in this truth or in those truths, there is life from good- That is, the man who is in truths of faith from good is a Church, but not the man who is in the truths of faith and not in the good of charity, for the truths with him are dead, although they may have been the same truths. That new truth has conjunction with spiritual good from the natural.
(21.) The truths of the Church in the natural were gifted with the perception that the truth which was new should be subjected to internal good, for coming to the internal in order to be conjoined is to be subjected to it; for everything that is inferior or exterior must be subordinated and subjected to what is superior or interior in order that a conjunction may exist. When this is done then there is an influx of truth from good. Internal good cannot communicate with the new truth from spiritual good from the natural, otherwise than by influx, for this truth is inferior.
(22.) The good of the Church in the natural perceived reciprocally that that truth could not be separated from spiritual good, and that if it should be separated the Church would perish; for this truth conjoined with spiritual good makes the Church, therefore if it should be separated from that good the Church would perish.
(23.) The truths of the Church in the natural were further gifted with perception concerning that thing- That is, that if that new truth should not be subjected to the internal, so there would be no mercy and conjunction with truths in the natural.
(24.) Now the truths in the natural were elevated to spiritual good and had a knowledge of that thing, namely, that that new truth ought to be subjected to Internal good.
(25.) Wherefore they apperceived from spiritual good that the good of truth ought to be appropriated. Turning truths into goods by willing and doing them- That is, by life-is what is meant by appropriating the good of truth to one's self.
(26.) But the truths of the Church in the natural objected unless there were at the same time a conjoining medium, for there would be no mercy and conjunction except by the medium.
(27.) But they perceived from spiritual good that if spiritual good which is of the Church, there must be internal good and truth. Spiritual good is the
good of truth- That is, truth in will and act- This truth or this good of truth makes with man that he is a Church, when truth is implanted in the will, which implanting is perceived from this, that man is affected with truth to the end that he may live according to it, then there is good and truth internal; when man is in this good and truth then the Kingdom of the LORD is in him, and consequently he is a Church, and together with his like makes the Church in general.
(28.) There had been, however, an apparent departure of Internal good, and it was apperceived that it had perished from evils and falses, and had vanished.
All these things are concerning the Glorification of the Human of the LORD in its own order, consequently in an inferior sense concerning the regeneration of man; for this is an image or type of the glorification of the LORD. In the regeneration of man, when he is introduced by truth into good, truth appears manifestly, because it is in the light of the world, not far removed from the sensuals of the body; but with good it is not so, for this is in the light of heaven, and far removed from the sensuals of the body, for it is within the spirit of man; hence it is that the truth which Is of faith appears manifestly but not good, although this is present continually and inflows, and effects that truths live; otherwise man could never be regenerated; but when this I state is finished then good manifests itself, and this, by love toward the neighbor, and by the affection of truth for the sake of life.
(29.) If this new truth should also depart by evils and falses, then spiritual good would perish, thus the internal of the Church. In regard to the internal of the Church perishing if that new truth perish, the case is this: good must have its truths, in order that it may be good, and truths must have their good in order that they may be truths; good without truths is not good, nor are truths without good truths, they form together a marriage, which is called celestial marriage; wherefore if one departs the other perishes, and one may depart from the other by being rent by evils and falses.
(30.) Notwithstanding the presence of the good of the Church, corresponding to the spiritual good which Is of the Internal Church, if the new truth be not with it, since the conjunction is close, (31.) the spiritual good will perish, and all will be over with the Church.
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(32.) The good of the external Church may have the new truth adjoined to itself, but unless it be conjoined with spiritual good there will be aversion, and thus no good of the Church. The good of the internal Church, or internal good, produces by influx the good of the external Church or external good; and because it is so, internal good elevates to itself external good, so that it may look to itself and by itself upwards toward the LORD; this takes place when there is conjunction: but if there be disjunction, external good averts itself and looks downward and thus perishes.
(33.) There ought to be submission of the natural or external man under the Internal, for when good therein submits itself, the truths themselves therein submit themselves, for truths are of good, in order that interior truth may be conjoined with spiritual good.
(34.) Spiritual good from the natural without interior truth apperceived that thus it would perish.
VISIT TO EMANUEL SWEDENBORG Rev. C. T. Odhner 1893
(Copyright, 1893, by Rev. C. T. Odhner.)
NOT long ago I received from Stockholm a box of old books and papers which for some generations had belonged to our family. On opening it I imagined that I found among other treasures dear to the heart of an antiquarian a bundle of papers, worm eaten and yellow with age, and containing an account of a visit which one of my grandsires once paid to Emanuel Swedenborg at his home in Stockholm. The facts related, I found, were not especially new, but as I have never seen a more complete description of the person and surroundings of Swedenborg as related by contemporaries, I have translated it from the Latin in which it was written, in order to read it to you, on this occasion. The manuscript begins thus:
* * *
DURING the whole year of 1769 the theological circles of Sweden were deeply excited over the trial which had begun in Gottenburg against the two learned disciples of Emanuel Swedenborg: Dr. Beyer and Dr. Rosen. At the University of Upsala, where I was then studying for the Priesthood, the interest in this case was especially stirred. Swedenborg, his visions, his reputed miracles, and his heterodox and new doctrines, were almost the only subjects of discussion among professors and students, a few timidly defending, but the great majority, in their rank "odium theologicum," ridiculing him as a madman or condemning him to the hottest hell of the heretics. Wishing to judge rationally, I borrowed from the University Library some of the theological works that had been presented to it by Swedenborg. I read and read, with curiosity, astonishment, and finally with the most intense joy and gratitude on account of the immeasurable new universe of light and life that had been opened to me. Then I became possessed of an uncontrollable desire to see with my own eyes this most wonderful of all mortals that had ever, trodden this earth, Emanuel Swedenborg, the servant of the LORD.
One day in May, 1770, I therefore took the stage from Upsala to Stockholm, where I arrived in the afternoon. The next day I inquired for Swedenborg's address, and, finding it without difficulty, I walked out to the South Side, and up the street, "Horasgatan," where Swedenborg lived. I finally found myself before his house, a rather old-fashioned, low and small, but neat and well-kept wooden building, humble enough for so great a man, but evidently sufficient for his modest wants. (Vol. I. 31, 32; II. 398, 400.) I knocked with some faint- Heartedness, which, however, was quickly dispelled at seeing the door opened by a friendly, honest-looking old woman- The wife of the gardener- As I afterward found. (II. 730.) Leading me into a rather plain, but neat and genteel drawing-room, she courteously inquired after my business. I stated the object of my visit and heard with great regret that the Herr Assessor was not just then at home. He was, however, soon expected to return. Would I wait, and in the meantime take a look at his home and garden? The master would not object, as he kept open house to his many visitors. I, of course, eagerly embraced this opportunity, and the kind- Hearted, talkative old servant proceeded to show me the rooms. His drawing-room was, as I said, plainly but neatly furnished with the richly- Carved rococo furniture, in the style of Louis XV. in the middle of the room stood a curious table, with a top of black marble, inlaid with mosaic in the form of a pack of cards carelessly spread out. (I, 33, 57.) On the walls I noticed an old painting, representing our heroic but mad King Charles XLI in the midst of the fury of battle. There was also, in a frame, the engrossed patent of nobility, which was kept by Swedenborg, he being the head of his family. A certain masculine bareness, noticeable in the decorations of the room, plainly suggested the absence of the tender, beautifying hands of a wife. The master did not think much of these things, the old servant informed me. He spent most of his time in his study, working day and night with almost superhuman strength. (I. 39; II. 450, 482.) Though now eighty- Two years of age, he was a perfect wonder for health, complaining only now and then of toothache, caused, she had heard it said, by infestation from some sort of evil spirits. But the most wonderful of all was that the master at this age had a new set of teeth growing in his mouth. The old servant was evidently much attached to her master, and quite proud of him. According to her there was no end to his learning and accomplishments; he was, unquestionably, the most learned man in Sweden, she said, and at the same time a man of means, courted and sought for by other learned men, by influential politicians, by the most reverend Bishops of the Church- To many of whom he was related-by noblemen of the highest degree; nay, he was even received on familiar terms by the crown prince and the royal family itself. At this point I began to be deeply impressed with my own insignificance, being but a young student of twenty-five, and I much regretted my audacity in intruding myself upon so grand a seigneur, but I regained my courage when the kind old soul informed me that her dear master, in spite of all this, was the most humble and simple- Hearted of men, accessible, courteous, and benevolent to high and low alike, though he could, occasionally, treat with great coldness impertinent people, who sometimes came to gape upon him, or to require his services as a wizard or fortune- Teller. (I. 7; II. 475, 560) She said that at one time she and her husband had been greatly troubled at his neglect in attending the worship of the Established Church, and at his total refusal to give alms to beggars, but the Herr Assessor had then with great kindness shown to them that it was not the temple alone that made the Church, but faith and charity conjoined, and that there was something wrong with both of these in the Lutheran Church. On the other hand, one of the officers of the Parish had informed them that Herr Swedenborg every year, and without ostentation, gave a considerable sum of money to be distributed to the deserving poor of the district. (I. 36, 42, 64.)
Chatting thus, the old servant now led me into the bed-room, which was furnished with truly philosophical simplicity.
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An old-fashioned chest with drawers, a wardrobe, a washstand, some chairs, a high bedstead in an alcove surrounded with curtains, and on the wall a portrait of himself, comprised the furniture. There was no fire-place in the room, the master always keeping himself warm with three or four blankets, according to the severity of the weather. He could not bear linen sheets on the bed, but always slept between English woolen blankets. (I. 33; II. 561.) A large water-pitcher in a bowl on the washstand surprised me somewhat, as there was a story afloat that Swedenborg never needed to wash himself, as no dirt ever clung to him. My guide told me that her master was a somewhat irregular sleeper, going to bed only when he felt sleepy, and arising at any time, according to his disposition. Sometimes he stayed in bed for days, when no one dared to disturb him. (I. 32, 40.) He was then in continual intercourse with the angels. I gazed with awe and reverence upon this bed, where, "in the visions of the night," the inhabitants of the World of Spirits, of Heaven and of Hell descended and ascended to the silent sleeper. It seemed I stood near the gate of the eternal world.
I now followed my kind companion into the study, where Swedenborg each morning would make his own fire in the open grate and prepare his breakfast, consisting mostly of bread soaked in warm milk. An old fashioned coffee-pot of brass stood softly singing on the embers. The Herr Assessor was a great coffee-drinker, his servant informed me, taking it at any time in the day, and using with it a great deal of sugar, of which he was very fond. She said he did not need much food, and seldom ate flesh, except at times a dish of boiled eels, for which he still was partial. Quite a classical taste, thought I, remembering the fondness for eels among the fastidious old Athenians. (I. 32; II. 527.)
Looking about in the study, which in this case was truly a "sanctum," a holy place, in which almost all the sacred Writings of the Yew Church had been written, I was astonished to find no book- Cases, and no books, except upon a table copies of the Bible in Hebrew and Greek, with the Latin version of Sebastian Schmidt, a set of his own Theological Writings, together with some MS. Indexes, prepared by himself. (I. 32; II. 545.) Upon his writing- Table there was an old inkstand, a goose quill, and an unfinished manuscript, which, of course, I did not venture to examine, although I must confess my curiosity was great.
Spell-bound I looked about in that simple study whence, as from a natural fountain in this world had spread that Heavenly Light which to all ages is to illumine the whole earth. For it will be received in time, though the universally prevailing and opposing darkness be as strong as death, and as black as hell. I looked up over the table through the open window. Outside, in the garden, I saw the signs of early spring, our lovely, chaste, inspiring, northern spring. The fruit- Trees were budding and blossoming; the snowdrops and narcissuses were swaying to and fro in the balmy wind which wafted their fragrance to me, together with the clear notes of a flock of migratory birds above, who were returning to their boreal homes. There was spring indeed in the north, and signs of spring in human hearts, set free from the cold and darkness of the fallen Church, and here lived the harbinger of that new era, which by a new Church is to restore to our old and worn-out race the beauty and youth of an eternal spring.
Out of these reveries I was finally awakened by my more prosaic guide, who now led me out, into the garden, a spacious area to the west of the house. Here we found the gardener, a friendly old man, who with pleasure undertook to show me about in his special domain. Among the trees I noticed various choice young fruit- Trees, some old and splendid lime- Trees, and box- Trees cut and dipped according to the fashion of the time into different animal figures. Before the house there was a large and ornamental flower-bed, containing rare Dutch tulips and other plants, in which Swedenborg took great pleasure, and upon which, as I was told, he had expended considerable sums, carefully noting down the dates when the flowers were planted, when they bloomed, the amount of seed produced, etc. (II. 33, 714.) At the side of the I house he had also a building that served for a conservatory, containing many rare and costly southern plants. These flowers and plants, the gardener said, the old master loved with tender care, for they were his only children. But he also loved, very dearly, all other well-behaved little children. "The little rogues always miss him much when he goes away upon his journeys," the old man continued. "They are his special friends. He often permits them to play in the garden, and they are always on the lookout when he is coming, as he generally has some cakes and goodies for them in his pockets." For their amusement especially he built a maze or labyrinth of boards which was so contrived that no one who had entered could find the exit without assistance. (II. 446, I. 32.) There were also three other buildings or summer- Houses in the garden; one was a large pavilion in the middle of the garden where the four paths met, the second was painted yellow and hung inside with pretty tapestry; it was connected by a passage with a wing in which he kept his whole library; the third, by an ingenious contrivance, could be changed from a square to an octagon. Among these things I must not forget to mention a blind door, which, when opened, showed another door with what seemed a window in it. Through this I beheld not only another charming garden, but also my own physiognomy. The "window" was only a large mirror.
The gardener laughingly told me that his old master derived much sport from this arrangement, especially when inquisitive and curious young ladies were investigating the nooks and corners of his garden. (I. 32; II. 725.) Once a pretty maiden asked "Uncle" Swedenborg to show her one of "his angels," and as she would not be put off, he led her to this door and smilingly opened it with the words, "Now, my dear, you shall see an angel."
Much interested in all this, but regretting that it was time for me to leave without having accomplished the object of my visit, I was about to say farewell when we were met by the gardener's wife who announced that the Herr Assessor had just returned and would be pleased to see me in his drawing-room. Delighted but somewhat timorous, I hastened thither, and was met at the door by Emanuel Swedenborg himself, who with a friendly smile and greeting took my hand and led me into the room.
I was surprised at seeing in this octogenarian an erect and lively gentleman, somewhat thin and pale, perhaps, but retaining many traces of manly beauty. (II. 423, 552.) I was profoundly impressed with the venerable dignity of his bearing and with his deeply thoughtful, yet refined, gentle, and innocent countenance, and a certain indeseribable, unusual, unfathomable expression. No one could see this man without being forcibly attracted. He was of middle stature, not so tall, perhaps, as his father, the late Bishop Swedberg, yet remarkably like his father's portrait, which I had seen. (II. 399, 403, 450.)
Beneath his old-fashioned wig I saw some of his own gray hair. His mouth was, perhaps, a trifle large, and expressive of great firmness, yet softened by a gentle smile.
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His nose was straight and of good proportions, expressing a fine perception and a nature over which sensual appetites had no control. His eyes, however, were the most remarkable and the most pleasing of his features. They were large and of a clear, deep blue color; they were mild yet penetrating, as if he could read beyond the veil of the corporeal, the naked features at my very soul. (II. 555.) He was dressed, when I met him, in his usual simple costume of black knee-breeches and a brown coat, both well-worn, as became a philosopher. (I. 33; II. 449.)
During this inspection we had seated ourselves. My host now courteously inquired the object of my visit, and what he could do for me. I briefly told him my name and intended profession, and that not mere curiosity had led me to a house, but a sincere desire to behold and benefit from conversation with the human instrument whom the LORD in His mercy had used to reveal to menthe Heavenly Truths, of which I had become a student and humble receiver. At these words the features of Swedenborg became wonderfully illumined. It was as if the very light of Heaven for an instant shone through his smiling eyes. He warmly pressed my hand, and said quickly, and with an expression of great joy, "Good, good!" (II. 402.) He then added, slowly and solemnly, "It is right. Give the praise to the LORD alone. He it is who from my early youth prepared me for my office, and who afterward revealed Himself to me in Person, and filled me with His Spirit, to teach the Doctrines of the New Church through the Word, from Him."
I sat silent, pondering for some moments over this remarkable statement, and then asked, "Is there not, then, anything in your Writings that is human, or written from the inductions of your own philosophy?" To this he answered, with great earnestness: "I can solemnly testify, in the name of verity, that from the first day of my call, I have not received anything whatever from myself, nor from any spirit or angel, respecting the Doctrines of the New Church, but from the LORD alone, when I read the Word. When I think of what I am about to write, and while I am in the act of writing, I possess a perfect inspiration, for otherwise it would be my own, but now I know for certain that what I write is the living truth of God." (II. 402.)
Encouraged by his great kindness and manifest pleasure in dwelling upon these subjects, I now asked him question after question respecting other doctrinals which were as yet obscure to me. To all of these he gave most clear and satisfactory answers, uttered slowly, and at times with a slight stuttering. I finally introduced the subject of the recent persecution in Gottenburg. He spoke of this with some indignation, and said that "this trial has been the most important and the most solemn that has been before any council during the last seventeen hundred years, since it concerns the New Church, which is predicted by the LORD in Daniel, and in the Apocalypse, and in Matthew." (II. 381.)
While we were conversing on these subjects, another visitor was announced, whom I recognized with delighted surprise as my former comrade, though a few years my senior at the University, Sir Carl Robsahm (now, treasurer at the National Bank in Stockholm, and my fellow-member in our New Church Society, called "Pro Fide et Charitate," an organization which at present is kept a secret, on account of the royal interdict forbidding the publication and reading of Swedenborg's works in Sweden).
Young Sir Robsahm, who, I found, was a great friend of Swedenborg, and a frequent visitor to his house, with great respect greeted our venerable host, and gave me a hearty and delighted recognition. He had come he said, to invite the Herr Assessor to his house to dinner; and he now extended the same invitation to me. Swedenborg, who much enjoyed a social gathering of friends, cheerfully accepted the invitation, and withdrew to his bed-room to prepare his toilet. When in a very short time he again entered, his simple philosopher's garb had been exchanged for the costume of the courtier, the fine "gentilhomme du monde." He was now dressed in a suit of black velvet, made after an old fashion, and with much fine lace at the neck and wrists; he wore, besides, knee-breeches, silk stockings, and low shoes with large, shining buckles. At his side he carried a small rapier, curiously hilted and inlaid with silver. In one hand he had his gold-Trimmed, three-Cornered hat, and in the other a gold-Headed cane. Altogether, he appeared as handsome and polished a gentleman of the "ancien regime" as could be found anywhere. (II. 435, 544, 714.) Just before we started, he produced a silver snuff-box; from which, with a little golden spoon, he ceremoniously lifted to his nose a few grains of the perfumed Spanish snuff then in fashion in aristocratic circles. (II. 459, 544.)
As we were walking along I was again astonished at the wonderful youthfulness of this very old gentleman. He was as quick on his feet as the youngest man, walking, in fact, more briskly than was my own custom. He noticed everything about him, and entertained us young men with his lively conversation, spiced now and then with innocent wit. (II. 450.)
Soon arriving at the noble mansion of Sir Robsahm, we found before us with our hostess a small company of other invited guests, who hailed with much delight the entrance of the noble and venerable Swedenborg. Among them I noticed Archbishop Troilius, a political friend but a theological adversary of Swedenborg. There were also present Count von Hopken, Swedenborg's most intimate friend and sympathizer in Stockholm, and a learned and pious Russian monk by the name of Oronoskow, who was chaplain to the Russian legation, and who, as I found, was a delighted reader of the Doctrines.
At the dinner table Swedenborg ate with much relish, but in great moderation. He joined heartily in the toast to their Royal Majesties, the King and the Queen, filling his wine-glass almost half with sugar, but could not be prevailed upon taking more than two or three glasses of wine, a degree of moderation which rather astonished the other gentlemen who were but of their own generation. (I. 32; II. 449.)
During the meal the conversation which at first was general, soon hushed as the Russian chaplain was heard to ask Swedenborg whether he had ever seen the late Empress Elizabeth of Russia in the other life. To this Swedenborg answered that he had often seen her, and that she was now in a very happy state, as she had never gone into her council without first praying to God and asking for His advice and assistance in order that she might govern well her country and her people. This answer so delighted the chaplain that he shed tears of joy. (I. 37.)
There was a wonderful sphere about Swedenborg's conversation. Whenever he spoke all other voices were hushed, and even those disposed to ridicule were shamed into silence, and as it were charmed and compelled to believe against their own reason, as this most venerable old man with his innocent blue eyes smiling upon the company with an expression as if truth itself was speaking from them; artlessly told these unheard-of, inexplicable, incredible, and yet so clear and rational things of a world so far and yet so near to us." (I. 34; II. 445, 446, 485.)
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After dinner was finished and the ladies had retired, the gentlemen indulged in a short game of cards, called I believe, l'hombre (everything had to be called by a French name in those days), and Swedenborg watched the game for awhile, stating that in his younger days he also had occasionally found a game of cards a great relaxation from hard work. Archbishop Troilius, who was a great gambler, and had lately oat one of his gambling friends, Erland Broman, thinking this a good opportunity to amuse himself at the old gentleman's expense, asked him, in a jocular tone: "By the way, Herr Assessor, how does my friend, Broman, spend his time in the spirit world?" To which Swedenborg instantly replied: "I saw him but a few hours ago shuffling his cards in company of the Evil One, and he was only waiting for your worship to make up a game of tresett." The would-be wit was silenced, but the other gentlemen laughed heartily at this turning of the tables. (II. 725.)
Followed by us younger men, Swedenborg soon after this sought the company of our charming young hostess and the other ladies, remarking to us that he considered the company of refined and intelligent women one of the purest sources of delight. This esteem I found was reciprocated on the part of the ladies present, for they received him with both reverence and pleasure, though I could not help noticing that some of the youngest ladies looked quite amused at the fact that the old gentleman, in a certain absent-mindedness, had put a buckle of gems on one of his shoes, but on the other a buckle of silver. But then he had no wife in this world to look after such little things. (I. 33.)
After some pleasant conversation on indifferent subjects, such as some pet cats and little dogs in the room, which caressingly jumped up on his knee to show their little tricks, he happened to see a harpsichord, and at once requested same one of the ladies to favor us with some music. During the performance of a difficult and celebrated sonata he beat the time with his foot, and on its conclusion he applauded the player with many "bravas." (II. 435-438.) This friend of flowers and children and the gentle sex could not but include music also in his love of all things innocent and beautiful.
The other gentlemen having finished their game, now entered, and the conversation became very animated under the stimulus of a cup of fragrant Mocha. Fashions, foreign politics, court news, the latest intrigues between the "Hats" and the "Caps" (which were the names of two political parties of Sweden at that time), such were the subjects brought up, and on all of these Swedenborg conversed freely, judiciously, and always showing a tendency to explain everything for the best. (II. 400.)
Promptly at seven Swedenborg arose to take his leave, explaining that he never stayed away from home after that hour. As gallant as a younger man he kissed the hand of his hostess, bowed gracefully to the remaining company, and retired. (II. 447, 449.)
I had requested and received permission to accompany, him to his home. Never will I forget that walk in the mysterious twilight of our northern spring. The most memorable day of my life was drawing to a close. I could no more hope to meet this citizen of two worlds, this man among men and angel among the angels, for he told me that he would soon leave Sweden for Amsterdam, there to publish his latest work, called The Universal Theology of the New Heaven and the New Church. He said of this work, that after its appearance, the LORD our Saviour would operate both mediately and immediately throughout the whole of Christendom for the establishment of a New Church based upon this Theology." (II. 383.)
On the whole, the impression of Swedenborg that I had received during my visit, served to dispel any previous idea of him as a sort of demi-god, but without lessening in a single thing my admiration, veneration, and love for him as a man. I felt, when he was explaining to me the mysteries of my new faith, that he himself was speaking from the Writings which he had been the instrument of publishing, and that these Writings did not speak from him. For this impression I can never be thankful enough. He was my brother, my elder brother, the first Newchurchman in this world, but the FATHER of us both was the LORD Himself in His Divine Human.
When at last our all- Too-short walk was at an end and I regretfully took my leave before his door, he affectionately pressed my hand and earnestly admonished me to persevere in my study of the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, and to let my life be formed according to them, with a single heart obeying their Divine directions.
I saw him no more. In July of the same year he left Sweden never to return. On the twenty-ninth day of March, in the year 1772, and in the city of London, he departed from this world, which so little had appreciated him, in order to make his final entrance into that angelic society of which he even here had been an accepted member, and where, as I have reason to believe, a partner worthy of him was waiting for him with loving arms. Never will this world see such another!
* * *
Here ends my great-grandfather's manuscript. Readers who might think this a fairy tale, may convince themselves of the truth of the facts related by referring to the following passages in the Documents Concerning Swedenborg, edited by the Rev. R. L. Tafel, A.M., ph.D.: [Incorporated into the text of the story.]
CELEBRATION OF SWEDENBORG'S BIRTHDAY, BY THE ACADEMY SCHOOLS 1893
PHILADELPHIA.
THE Anniversary of Swedenborg's birthday coming this year on Sunday the event was celebrated on the preceding Friday. Professor Odhner delivered the Lecture published herewith and entitled "A Visit to Emanuel Swedenborg," which was illustrated by views with the aid of a stereopticon. All the slides had been prepared by one of the students from prints and engravings in possession of the Academy.
BERLIN, CANADA.
THE celebration of Swedenborg's birthday in Berlin, Oat included, in addition to the usual morning services, which were especially appropriate to the occasion, a very enjoyable social gathering in the evening. Toasts, short speeches, dancing, refreshments, and a little play, representing "An Ideal Scene from Swedenborg's Childhood." The happy, home-like sphere, to which a number of visitors from other New Church centres added not a little all helped to make this celebration of the birth of the Servant of the LORD a most successful one
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On the Monday following the children of the school were given a holiday, and a school-dinner (the first one here in Berlin) was given, to which also the Councillors and wives were invited. A school dinner indeed it was, suggested, prepared, and admirably served exclusively by those connected with the schools. To the lady teacher who had entire charge of the whole dinner from beginning to end and to her willing servants (some of the older pupils of the schools) due honor and approbation were rendered. The whole celebration dinner, subsequent entertainments, the "Ideal Scene" (which was again given), etc., altogether proved itself, both for young and old, to be the most useful and successful Swedenborg celebration in Berlin.
PARKDALE, CANADA.
THE first social gathering in connection with the School here, was held on Friday, the 27th of January, in the school building. The supper table was bountifully provided and prettily adorned- The colors of the Academy being very prominent in the decorations. One side of the table, which was arranged in a T-shape, was occupied by the scholars, with a teacher at each end. The parents and younger children sat on the other side- The local members of the Academy being at the head. After the supper the Head-master gave a short address on the actual inauguration of Academy work here and the celebration of Swedenborg's birthday. The evening was then spent in games and dancing, in which both children and parents took part. As the school was but two weeks old, the children have not had time to be initiated into exercises calculated to bring them into a choir with Academy school-life; but a beginning was a made by their singing the Color Song.
The evening was thoroughly enjoyed by both old and young, the general impression being that it was the most family-like gathering that had come within the experience of the Church here. The number present was about forty-five, of whom twenty were children.
Notes and Reviews 1893
THE text of the discovered fragment of the alleged "Gospel" of Peter is given in full in Morning Light, for January 21st.
Neukirchenblatt announces that an anonymous translator is preparing a German translation of the "Dictionary of Correspondences."
THE New Church Book and Tract Depot (Manchester, England) has on sale a History of the Society of the New Church, Peter Street, Manchester, by F. Smith, which has just been published.
A WORK by the late Rev. Eli Whitehead (Secretary of the English Conference) has just been published, entitled, Memorials of a Quiet Ministry: A Pastor's Offering to His Flock After Twenty-four Years' Ministry. It contains a portrait and memoir of the author.
The Religious Instruction is continued in the February issue of The New Church Standard from the last number of the New Church Monthly. It has also an article on the Hebrew Language, and a sermon by the Rev. R. J. Tilson, Th. B., on "Spiritual Watching."
THE January number of the New Church Pacific begins the fourth volume in an altered form. The pages are one- Half the size of the previous numbers, but the reading matter is increased by reason that it has twelve pages instead of four as before. The subscription price is increased from fifty to seventy-five cents per year.
THE Journal of the First General Meeting of the General Church of the Advent of the Lord, held last June, is of historical importance. The neat dress in which it appears reflects credit on the Secretary. A unique feature is the use of bold-faced type in the account to indicate the subject of action or discussion.
THE Chicago Tribune, for February 5th, contains a brief sketch of the life of the Rev. Thomas A. King, of Baltimore, who has accepted the call to become coadjutor pastor of the Chicago Society. It also gives a picture of Mr. King, which is as good a likeness as the notorious newspaper likenesses are apt to be.
PART 60 of the Concordance commences the fourth Volume. The entries extend from "Kadesh" to "Know." The entries under this latter heading occupy forty columns and are unfinished. From the entries under "King" it would appear that the tendency at this day to form Republics and to crush Royalty is not altogether a step in advance.
THE New Church Independent, for January, has a portrait of the late Rev. B. F. Barrett. It also contains an article on the "Improvability of the Hells," in which the writer draws the conclusion that the hells must improve because of the LORD'S words: "Behold, I make all things new." He says, however, "Hell, though improved, will, no doubt, remain Hell in comparison to Heaven."
THE American New Church Tract and Publication Society has published another little work, entitled Repentance and Reformation and Regeneration from the True Christian Religion. It is uniform with this Society's other publications of pocket editions of New Church works. The value of this little work would have been greatly enhanced if the introductory paragraph to the treatise on Repentance had been inserted instead of the introduction.
WITH the October, November, and December numbers of The Indian New Church Messenger (which were received together, with the index to Volume I, forming their wrapper), comes a leaf from Bishop McGowan, asking for means to help carry out his project of building (1) a church, (2) schools, (3) dwelling houses, for the New Church clergy, with out-offices, etc. Application has already been made to the Government for a plot of land for these purposes.
THE Twentieth Annual Report of the Swedenborg Publishing Association shows a balance in the treasury, of $564.81. The Report contains letters from ministers of various denominations. One of them says: "If I should mention the name of Emanuel Swedenborg, some of my people would doubtless be offended, but as it is, I preach New Church [?] doctrine continually, and my people show their approval by their attendance." The majority of the other letters are in the same direction.
THE New Church Messenger, for February 8th, has a lengthy communication from the Rev. L. P. Mercer, on the World's Congress of Religions, the idea of which Congress emanated from a New Churchman. Every denomination will have an allotted time within which to make a presentation of their Faith, and any further meetings will have to be held in their own churches. Two hours and a half are allowed to the speakers on behalf of the New Church to make their presentation: This Congress is for the purpose of "Comparison, not Controversy."
Lessons in Correspondences is the title of No. 4 of the Doctrinal Series of the Manuals of Religious Instruction, prepared by a Committee of the American Sabbath- School Association, and published by the New Church Board of Publication. It is a thoughtful and pleasingly written book, full of references to the Doctrines and to the Sacred Scripture.
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The peculiar presentation of the correspondences reminds one frequently of the books entitled Correspondences of the Bible, but one cannot fail to detect certain improvements. The attempt to adapt the language of the Doctrines inevitably leads to the introduction of some particulars which serve to restrict the thought.
THE Western New- Church Union has issued a very attractive little tract, measuring 3 1/4 by 5 1/4 inches, bound in a white paper cover with red lettering, the title being taken from a recent work by Dr. Wilkinson: The African and the True Christian Religion. It is a review by the Rev. L.
P. Mercer of Dr. Wilkinson's book, to which are added extracts from Dr. Blyden's address to the Swedenborg Society.
In a prefatory note Mr. Mercer indicates that this little tract is being sent to the ministers of African churches in America. If anything can draw their attention to the New Church, it would seem that this will, and we hope that Mr.
Mercer's effort will be crowned with at least a small measure of success. Reason will not permit sanguine expectations.
A FRIEND has kindly called to the attention of the Secretary of the General Teachers' Meeting this statement in the Spiritual Diary n. 5618: "There were certain virgins who every day read in the Word. One of them was of a celestial genius; the other two were intermediate between the celestial and the spiritual. These three had the Word when two of them did not read it for ten days, then the book of the Word did not appear."
It would appear that this is the statement referred to by the Rev. John Whitehead, on p. 13 of the Journal of the first three General Teachers' Meetings, where he speaks of "the virgins who are educated in Heaven, who, each of them, have a copy of the Word, which disappears if for some time it has not been used by them." In view of this the Secretary begs the subscribers of the Journal to substitute n. 5618 for n. 5667, of the Spiritual Diary which was erroneously supplied in a footnote on p. 13 of the Journal.
THE members of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, having accepted the Revelation of the LORD, made at His Second Advent, as their Constitution, in place of their former Constitution, and having thus entered upon a new state, it is appropriate that New Church Monthly, which is the only periodical published in Great Britain that is identified with the movement should also enter upon a new state. This it has done with the January number. The name of this periodical now is The New Church Standard, in order that the name may more fittingly describe its use. The title is in agreement with the motto which the paper has always had, namely "JEHOVAH NISSI," "THE LORD MY STANDARD." The January number has a lengthy review of the late Dr. Tafel's work, entitled, The Clergy and Laity in the New Church. Also, the address by the Rev. E. C. Bostock to the members of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD on the occasion of the acceptance by them of the Writings of the Church, as their Constitution.
THE attempt to make Revelation agree with the science of the present day is evident in an article in The Press, of Philadelphia for January 22d. The writer gives an account of an interview with Professor Frank W. Very, a
Newchurchman, and assistant to Professor Keeler, of the Allegheny Observatory. After discussing the powers and possibilities of larger telescopes, the writer asked Professor Very whether, in view of the fact that the moon had an atmosphere, it had also inhabitants. The Professor replied that astronomically there were no indications that it had, but that Emanuel Swedenborg states in his works that he met in the Spiritual World those who said that they were from the Moon. He continued, "Nothing was said of their having been in life there in recent years; it might have been ages before when the Moon was a habitable sphere."
The Professor thus suffers himself to differ from the Arcana Coelestia (923), where it is said, "That there are inhabitants, even in the Moon, is known to spirits and angels, for they often discourse with them."
The General Church.
Address all communications for the department of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, to the Secretary, the Rev. Leonard G. Jordan, 2538 Continental Ave, Philadelphia, Pa.
AT THE DEDICATION OF THE PITTSBURGH BUILDING 1893
ADDRESS
(See page 25.)
THE house in which we are assembled was erected by members of the Church of the Advent in Pittsburgh for the two-fold use of the instruction of children and youth in the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Church, in all the sciences and knowledges of nature in the light of those Doctrines, and of the Worship of the LORD according to those Doctrines. Thus it is for the uses of Charity and Piety. Man is born animal, by instruction he becomes man. The LORD creates human beings with faculties receptive of intelligence and life from Him. Then He reveals truth from Himself. The faculties of man are first formed by the senses and sciences, and afterward they are opened to the Truth by the affections of learning, knowing, and understanding, and believing the Truth. When Truth is received in affection, it leads man to the good of life. By the good of life he is brought into conjunction with the LORD. And this is the end for which he has been created. Such is and has been the LORD'S way with man from the beginning. At this day He has crowned His way of instruction by opening the spirit and life of the Word of Truth. Truths now come to us continuous from Him and these are preserved and presented in Books written by Him through His chosen servant. In these Books the LORD is now present in our midst. For this reason we place them together, His Word in the letter, in the sacred Repository- That is, within the Tabernacle or holy place. Thus He is representatively present in the house, as He is to be actually present in the souls of the regenerate. And as JEHOVAH, the Infinite Divine, was present in the temple of His Holiness in the glorified Human- As the soul rules in man, so may the LORD rule in all the uses and works of this house and of the children and people who come hither to be taught and to worship.
CELEBRATION OF SWEDENBORG'S BIRTHDAY IN THE GENERAL CHURCH 1893
PITTSBURGH, PA.
THE Pittsburgh Church has not had a celebration for some time, and was not equipped for the celebration of Swedenborg's birthday. But where there is a will there is a way; and movable tables, dishes, glassware, stove, and all the necessary paraphernalia shortly appeared upon the scene. The abundance of the good things to eat and to drink, all provided under the able direction of one of the ladies, was but an earnest of the mutual enjoyment of goods and truths which was the principal characteristic of this feast of charity, the first of our new state. The tables well-nigh filled the room, and were arranged in the shape of a T with a broad base in the East.
After due attention to the wants of the natural man, the wine was passed and the Church pledged first in order to the song, "Vivat Nova Ecclesia." Then followed the subject of the evening, "Swedenborg the Servant of the LORD."
The minister, the Rev. Homer Synnestvedt, introduced the subject by calling attention to the LORD'S use of human instruments to do His work among men.
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Where there is a use He provides a man when the time comes, and as He foresees every need, so He provides that the man should be a fitting instrument properly prepared.
The Rev. Andrew Czerney responded to the toast to "Swedenborg's Preparation for the Uses of Life." He pointed out the preparation for his high use, even in infancy, especially in the home and surroundings by which the remains which are used in latter life are implanted. He also showed that Swedenborg's father, the truly venerable Bishop Swedberg, did not share the destructive falsities of the Old Church. Swedenborg's facilities for acquiring all the scientific and philosophical knowledge of his day was also adverted to.
Swedenborg's further preparation as a scientist and philosopher was brought out by a well-prepared speech by Mr. G. A. Macbeth. Mr. Macbeth's researches into the state of the times presented some very interesting food for reflection. His comparison of Swedenborg with Newton, and the manifest superiority of the former was also striking. There seemed to be no matter of scientific or practical value, especially such as would be of use to his country, which he ardently loved, of which he did not make himself master. When he first went to London a young man of twenty-one, he found that city entirely carried away by the frivolities of fashion and pleasure; but he seems to have withstood these allurements. The depth and breadth of his mind even at this early age, when- most young men are hardly entered upon the uses of life, was such as to soon attract universal attention.
Dr. William Cowley, who responded to the next toast, "Swedenborg, the Physiologist," showed how, in this line especially, Swedenborg was prepared for his future work. He read the passage in Intercourse, n. 20, teaching how Swedenborg as a fisherman, in the spiritual sense, was prepared to become a disci le of the LORD. He also rend some extracts showing how Swedenborg was led on in his search for the soul, and how he afterward saw the impossibility of finding it except by revelation from the spiritual world. His remarks were much enjoyed, as they presented natural facts in the light of their spiritual use.
After each of these speeches, the speaker was presented with a rose, as a token of affection for spiritual truth and the delight thereof. Several impromptu toasts were proposed, including one to the Bishop and one to the School, to which appropriate songs were sung.
After this the tables were cleared away, and several dances were enjoyed, all, old and young, taking part, which added very much to the enjoyment of each. This enjoyable recreation was brought to a happy conclusion at a seasonable hour by the singing of "Home, Sweet Home."
CHICAGO.
THE members of the Immanuel Church were invited to a feast on the two hundred and fifth anniversary of Swedenborg's birthday. There were fifty-one guests. Mr. H. L. Buruham acted as toast-master.
Mr. Paul Synnestvedt gave a brief account of Swedenborg's childhood, noting especially the early tendency of his mind to dwell upon spiritual subjects.
Mr. Alvin Nelson gave a sketch of Swedenborg's life as a student. Comparatively little is recorded of that period of his life, but he must have been a very diligent student, laying well the foundations of learning in scientifics and languages. He was left free by his father to pursue the studies to which he was most inclined, thus to develop the faculties with which the LORD saw fit to endow him.
Dr. King responded to the toast "Swedenborg the Scientist," saying that Swedenborg exhibits as thorough an acquaintance with every science he touches upon as is usually attained by those who have made the subject in question the study of a lifetime. Probably more than any other man he deserved the title of a universal scientist. His insatiable curiosity or love of knowing was early replaced by an equally strong love of use. In fact, his whole life was devoted to wedding the loftiest philosophical principles to practical use. Many of the ideas which in a general form engaged his mind are now accomplished facts. Such is the science of crystallography, heating-stoves of the present day, a submarine boat, the Gatling gun, etc. In later years he turned I his attention to loftier themes and his great work on the Animal Kingdom was produced. Swedenborg as a scientist will not be recognized by the spurious, arrogant, atheistical science of the present day.
The "Family of Swedenborg" was responded to by Mr. Leonard Gyllenhaal. His great-grandfather's grandfather is the first of Swedenborg's ancestors known - to us by name, Otto of (or from) Sundborn. The speaker gave an historical review of the formation of the Swedish nation, showing that the inhabitants of Dalecarlia probably descend from a tribe called Svea, known to Herodotus as Budim (worshipers of Odin), who had emigrated from what is now Eastern Russia. The people of Dalecarlia have always been known for their love of freedom and independence. This people has twice saved Sweden from usurping powers, once under the leadership of Gustav Vasa and once under Englebrecht, who as some claim is a forefather of Swedenborg. After this digression, intended to give an idea of the stock from which Swedenborg came, the speaker returned to Swedenborg's immediate ancestors, giving a short account of each.
Rev. W. H. Acton spoke to the toast "Swedenborg the citizen of Heaven." Concerning Swedenborg's life as a conscious citizen of the spiritual world, we know almost as much, and in some respects even more, than we do of his life in the world, owing, largely, to the Memorabilia. In the natural world he was the object of affection to some and of animosity to others. This love and this hatred existed also in the spiritual world. As a citizen of the natural he continued even to the end of his life to serve his country in her highest councils; and as a citizen of the spiritual world he per. formed to men and angels, yea, to the whole created universe, uses which shall endure forever. It is therefore not surprising that angels welcomed him gladly and gave him various tokens of their love and affection.
"Swedenborg, the servant of the LORD JESUS CHRIST," was responded to by our Pastor, the Rev. N. D. Pendleton, who read from the Writings and from some of Swedenborg's private letters on the subject of his call He was the means or instrument by which the LORD effected His Second Coming and the consequent redemption of men and angels, the final subjugation of the hells and the re-ordering of the heavens, or, what is the same the establishment of a new Heaven and a new hell and lastly of raising up a new Church upon the earth which is the New Jerusalem. All these things, inasmuch as they are comprehended in the word "Redemption," which is a work purely Divine, could there- fore be done by none other than the LORD HIMSELF. And this Divine work was done by means of a revelation of the internal sense of the Word, which sense is nothing but the LORD in His Divine Glorified Human.
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Swedenborg was a man, and only a man, and therefore he is our brother now in the Heavens, and there is between us and him a love of man for man in whom the LORD is, but when we think of him as the "Servant of the LORD JESUS CHRIST" the thought becomes elevated and the instrument fades from sight, and we see before us the LORD Alone revealed to sight in His Glorified Human. By honoring the instrument we are brought into the presence of the LORD HIMSELF, and are led to honor Him alone who is the All in All and without whom the instrument is nothing.
WEDDING GARMENT Louis B. Pendleton 1893
(Copyright, 1893, by Louis B. Pendleton.)
A TALE.
XIII.
SET FREE.
THE conversation was interrupted here by Paul, who desired his wife to play a certain composition which was favorite with him. Miss Grubb earnestly seconded his request, evidently desirous to have an end of general conversation and resume her tete- A- Tete with Ray.
When my cousin's wife had finally left the piano, and the opportunity offered, I said, "What do you think of Miss Isabella Grubb?"
"What do you think of her?" she rejoined, evasively, her eyes wavering.
"To put it bluntly," I said "I think she is a malicious slanderer- A liar."
My cousin's wife looked deep into my eyes for some moments ere she replied: "I am glad. I knew that you would read her character." Then, after a moment, "Oh! what have I not endured from that woman!"
"I pity her when she comes into the state of her interiors, and can no longer wear a mask," I said.
"I know some one whose case will be even more pitiable when the mask is torn away," said my companion, deliberately, a look of cold repugnance deepening in her eyes. "I know some one who is yet more a hypocrite and a liar, if that be possible!"
Looking searchingly into her face for a moment, I cried out, softly, "Oh! Cousin Mary I"
She said no more and I asked no questions; but I knew perfectly well that my Cousin Mary referred to her husband. I was thunderstruck. What could she mean? I did not question her sincerity; she was a good woman and would not lie. But what could explain the violence of her feelings toward a man so blameless as her husband uniformly appeared to be? I quickly made up my mind that the mischief-making Miss Grubb was responsible, and then, upon reflection, concluded not to make up my mind at all, and to await developments.
For days I scarcely did anything but visit the house and reflect upon the deplorable situation. All interest in my own affairs for the time was lost in my affection for Paul and concern for his welfare. I forgot that they were in the hands of the Divine Providence, and set before myself the delicate task of healing the breach between husband and wife. I conceived that the first thing to be done was to lay bare the probable exciting cause of this mischief, and, therefore, all the comings- out and goings-in of Miss Isabella Grubb were subjected to the most searching scrutiny. The woman became a curious and interesting study, and gradually I was able in the light of her present to read her past. It became clear to me that she had early developed into a designing flatterer, a cringing hanger-on. Alone in the world, out in the cold, she had allowed herself to feed upon envy, and had determined to win a corner in some warm nest by the easiest means. Being without influence or position of her own, she must contrive to bask in the sunshine radiating from the influence and position of others. Hypocrisy was her easiest means; where she might inwardly hate-she outwardly loved, and though her heart might be hot with rage, she yet made her smooth speeches and smiled her sweet smile. The sycophant of Greece and Rome is not extinct; the species may still be found seated in a reverential circle around all of the rich or otherwise powerful. "But smile on us," the attitude seems to say, " and we will burn incense to you before all men." Intoxicated by the smoking incense, my lord shuts his inner sight, smiles upon him who swings the censer, and calls him friend.
Miss Grubb had long burned incense to my cousin and did so still. She had thus wormed herself deeply into his affections, while she on her side appeared to love and reverence him above all men-in a proper and maidenly way. But whether she cherished any real affection for him was uncertain, for, from long, wilful habit she seemed now to be so completely a creature of hypocrisy and deceit that it was impossible, even in a general way, to judge her motives from her actions. Let this be as it might, I held to the idea that she was responsible for the trouble between husband and wife, and that, if I could but unmask her before them both, the breach might be healed.
I did not know that the breach was a chasm, a great, impassable gulf. Had I known, I should not have been taken so greatly by surprise when, in the end, the matter was lifted out of my puny hands and settled in a way which I could never have foreseen.
I happened one day to stop at my cousin's house early In the afternoon, and, being told by the servant that his master was out and that his mistress was lying down, I directed that the latter be not disturbed and said that I would wait. At one end of the drawing-room there was a small alcove or bay window partly concealed by heavy curtains. Here, while resting on a soft, low lounge, I fell asleep. Sometime later I was awakened by the sound of excited angry voices in the room.
"I never loved you," my Cousin Paul was saying, bitterly. "I married you for your money."
"I know it- Have long known it," was the reply, spoken in the voice of his wife.
I rose noisily to acquaint them of my presence, but they were too preoccupied to take note of any sound, however significant. Between the curtains I saw that they were facing each other on their feet in the middle of the room- The husband in a fury, his face expressive of the deepest hatred; the wife, who was on the defensive, the picture of indignation, but self-possessed, dignified.
"I know it," she repeated, in low, passionate tones. "I long ago saw through your mask."
"And I saw through yours. You pretended to the world that you loved me, but you married me only out of pique. You became convinced that your lovely, lovelorn Ray coveted your money, not you: that was the whole of it."
"This is not true."
"Why, then, did you marry me?"
"I will tell you," she answered, her glorious eyes full upon him. "After you cunningly and successfully slandered the man I loved, compelling me against my will to believe in your 'proofs' of his perfidy, I was still blind enough to regard you as a man of honor and truth, and in the wildness of my misery I began at last to imagine that I loved you.
46
Will you deny this?"
My cousin leaned suddenly forward with uplifted hand, and, ere I could stir, I heard the sound of a blow and knew that he had struck his wife. With a low cry of horror rather than of pain she sank into a chair and remained motionless. It was then that I heard a woman's cruel laugh, and, taking a step forward, saw Miss Grubb seated calmly on a sofa a few feet away.
My first impulse was to spring into the room and knock my cousin down, and had he attempted to strike again it would have been the worse for him. He made no such attempt. He had scarcely dropped his uplifted hand to his side when there came the sound of a loud resounding knock on the outer door of the house, and after an interval of a few seconds the unexpected visitor entered the drawing-room- A tall, well-built man of a pleasing countenance, dressed in a uniform of pale blue. I knew him at once to be one of the city guards, for I had seen his like before a few times. From Alaric and others I had heard that no one seemed to know where was the headquarters of these guards or to be able to calculate their comings and goings. They did not stand in the streets on the watch, but kept out of sight and appeared only when there was disturbance. What was more curious still, so far as any one knew they came without being sent for, as had been the case when the three white- Clothed men suddenly appeared and quelled the disturbance in the church. These latter, however, appeared to belong to a distinct order, the representatives of which were still more rarely seen.
"What do you want?" asked my cousin, in a tone of great surprise and annoyance, staring blankly at the newcomer.
"I come to inquire into this disturbance," was the prompt reply, as the guard advanced a few feet into the room.
"What disturbance?" demanded Paul, angrily. "Who told you there was a disturbance?"
"I come by order of the governor of the city," answered the guard, calmly.
"Does the governor of the city keep a spy in my house in order to be informed in case I should choose to quarrel with my cook?" was the insolent rejoinder.
"Our governor does not need to keep spies," replied the guard, with the same calmness and dignity. "He is kept informed in a surer way. He acts under orders from heaven."
Then turning to Cousin Mary, whose eyes seemed to rest on him with feverish expectancy, he continued: "The cry of this woman, once your wife, has been heard, and it is ordered that she now be released, if such be her will. The time is ripe for your separation. Tell me, woman, do you love the bonds which bind you to this man? Speak the truth fearlessly."
My cousin's wife rose slowly to her feet, her eyes still more intent upon the face of the guard; she hesitated, as if to weigh her words well.
"I loathe them," she said at last, in a low, distinct voice.
"Then from this day henceforth they are loosed. From this day you are set free."
"Set free!" the flash in her eye seemed to say exultantly, yet my Cousin Mary's face wore an incredulous look, like that of one unable to believe in some unexpected great good fortune. Her eyes traveled slowly and apprehensively from one to another of those in the room.
"And may-may I leave this house?" she inquired, at last.
"At once, if it be your will. It is so ordered, and you need have no fear," was the answer. "Is there some friend whose protection you would like to ask, or will you go with me to the palace of the governor, there to wait until a suitable home is assigned to you?"
"I should like"-she trembled and hesitated-"I should like to go to the house of-of my Uncle Arthur."
Only her Uncle Arthur! Those flashing eyes, those trembling eyelids, those faltering words-none of this was occasioned by the thought of Edward Ray, as I had been too ready to conclude. This was well. This uncle was dear to her, as I had known long ago-long before any of us had passed from the natural world; he was an upright man, and his house was the place for her.
"You may call him, then," the guard had said.
"How 'call him'?" faltered Cousin Mary. "He does not live near us"
"Think of him intently, earnestly desiring his presence, and I promise you he will come," was the confident answer.
There was then a strange, expectant silence, as she quietly obeyed. Meanwhile, my eyes wandered from one to another of those in the room. The guard wore the calm, confident air of the official who knows that, come what may, authority is behind him, added to which was the kindly expression of the man who takes delight in the happiness of others. My Cousin Mary was now flushed with excitement, and I noted a slight trembling of the hands and lips, but from the expression of her lovely eyes it was clear that she was profoundly calm within. What mattered anything now-now that she was set free. No less happy in her own way perhaps was Miss Grubb. It was with difficulty that she kept her seat on the sofa; she seemed scarcely able to restrain herself from a violent exhibition of exultation. At one moment a cunning, self-satisfied smile would break over her face; at another, triumph, scorn, malignance would be mirrored in her eyes as they rested on my Cousin Mary. Paul, too, seemed glad, but his joy was tempered by anger; he still stood upon his feet and looked threateningly at the guard.
I had barely made this survey when there came the sound of a knock on the outer door, and a moment later a voice was heard in the hall. With a low, glad cry, my Cousin Mary ran from the room and met her uncle without.
"I was walking in the street," I heard him say, "and all at once felt strongly impressed that you were in need of me."
"I am to go home with you," she said, and in the stillness I heard her kiss him.
She did not return to the drawing-room. The guide joined them in the hall, and the three left the house together.
A day or two later I saw my Cousin Mary in her uncle's home. Long afterward I saw her in her final home; and her companion in this last was not her uncle but Edward Ray. And they were among the good.
"I thank you!" cried Paul, ere the guard had gone. "I am in your debt-" with a mock air of gratitude. "You have rid me of an incumbrance and set me free." He put his arm round Miss Grubb who had risen with a flushed face. "She will be my wife now-" looking at her fondly; "she will now rule in my house as she has always ruled in my heart."
"You are free to take her if she be willing," returned the guard, "but you cannot remain here with her.
47
You both have now come into a new state and you must move onward in the direction of your final place."
He then turned away with a courteous salute and left the room. I was so overcome with surprise and concern that I stood motionless, although my impulse was to rush to my cousin's side and ask for an explanation of the strange things which I had heard and seen; and while I hesitated, in company with the woman he left the room, neither aware of my presence. It seemed to me that they had not heeded the last words of the guard, being absorbed in the expression of their now unchecked affection.
Like one in a dream, I crossed the drawing-room, quietly let myself out of the house, and in a state of great mental bewilderment, walked the streets several hours. I felt an intolerable pain at my heart as I reviewed my cousin's action. Paul, my beloved cousin-my dear, dear brother- Had acted not only with dishonor but brutally! What a change!- How unlike his former self! Could it be that hitherto I had seen only the outside-only the fair mask of an interiorly wicked heart? Oh! no, no! It could not be. His passions were inflamed; he was misguided-influenced by a wicked woman, but assuredly he was not wicked himself.
At last I retraced my steps and reentered the house. The servant showed me into the drawing-room, and, after a few minutes, my cousin appeared. As he grasped my hand, and the old familiar smile played over his face, I felt that I might take hope. But his first words brought back the pain at my heart and struck me dumb.
"What do you suppose" he began. "My wife has eloped with that scoundrel Ray. She pretended to be going to her uncle's, but I understand it all. Don't pity me," he quickly added. "I am willing enough rid of her. I can find another wife, as you will see, who is much more to my mind."
"What did I tell you?" demanded Miss Grubb, triumphantly, for she, too, had now entered the room.
I turned from her in disgust and addressed myself to Paul, during the ensuing half- Hour endeavoring to turn the conversation into serious channels; I spoke of honor, I truth, justice, heaven. But he was not interested; he openly showed that he was bored, presently yawning in my face. So, at last, I rose and took my leave.
Clearly my cousin was changed-was altogether other- than I had believed him to be. His wife-she who was once his wife- Had spoken the truth. Should I not, then, stifle my affection for him and go near him no more? Had I not so advised the unhappy Marie? The thought was at first intolerable. No-oh! no; not yet. I could not desert him yet. It might be that, after all, he was not interiorly evil. Who could tell? It might be that he had only been led into evil by the bad woman now with him. I would, therefore, go to him once again and reason with him, and in the end I might be the means of rescuing him from so unfortunate an entanglement.
But when I sought him at his house on the following day, I found all the doors and windows shut close, and there was no answer to my knock. The very house seemed changed; and, reflecting upon this afterward, I could not feel absolutely sure that it was the same place.
As I turned sadly away, the last words spoken by the guard recurred to me:
"You are free to take her if she be willing, but you cannot remain here with her. You both have now come into a new state, and you must move- onward in the direction of your final place."
(To be continued.)
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
ASCRIPTION IN THE LORD'S PRAYER EDITOR NEW CHURCH LIFE 1893
Dear Sir:-I have taken the liberty of inclosing a clipping of a short newspaper article, headed, "An Error in the LORD'S Prayer." The article in question upon perusal is self-explanatory enough, but I desire to trespass further upon your kindness by asking if the explanation given in the article is the true or correct one? I would not know how to explain the matter here referred to upon other grounds than those alleged in the article, and yet this does not strike me as the true explanation of so important a matter. If there were some better explanation as to the use of the singular number, rather than of the plural form of the verb "be," in the connection referred to, I should feel grateful for such explanation on the part of our religious teachers or papers.
I am very respectfully yours,
A SUBSCRIBER.
RICHMOND, IND., January 24th, 1893.
ANSWER.
THE newspaper article referred to maintains that the clause, "For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory," is grammatically incorrect, that the verb "is" should be "are," and that this is perceived when the clause is reversed, when it reads, "The kingdom and the power and the glory is Thine."
The clause, as it stands in the New Testament, is perfectly correct. It signifies "the Divine Truth from the LORD Alone," for "kingdom" signifies truth, and "it is also said, power and glory, because the Divine Truth has all power and glory" (A. E. 48). The singular number of the verb, therefore, is significative of the Divine Truth, which is unique, although it has varying attributes, expressed in general by the three words, "kingdom," "power," and "glory."
There are other instances in the Word where two or more subjects have the predicate in the singular number to express the spiritual unity of the subjects.
But even apart from the internal sense the clause is correct. It is simply elliptical, and when the grammatical test of reversing the expression is made, all that is necessary is to supply the ellipsis: "For Thine is the kingdom, and [Thine is] the power, and [Thine is] the glory." EDITOR.
PROPOSED CHANGE OF TITLE 1893
"THE Summary Exposition of the Internal Sense of the Prophetical Books and of the Psalms of the Old Testament" is the title given by the editor of the Second Latin edition to this work. Swedenborg left it in manuscript without a title. It is a cumbersome name for a book, and might be shortened with profit. In the Doctrine concerning the Sacred Scripture and in The Apocalypse Revealed Swedenborg refers to the contents of the Work as "summaries," not as "summary exposition," and his lead might be followed. It is also unnecessary to introduce the word "Books," and the phrase "of the Old Testament." The resulting name "Summaries of the Internal Sense of the Prophets and Psalms" is nearly of half the length of the current title, and is itself none too short. S.
48
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
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THE EDITOR'S address is No. 868 North Nineteenth Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Subscriptions are also received through the following agents:
UNITED STATES.
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CANADA.
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GREAT BRITAIN.
Mr. E. W. Misson, 20 Paulet Road, Camberwell, London, S. E.
PHILADELPHIA, MARCH. 1893=123.
CONTENTS
Editorial, p. 33.- Serving Two Masters (a Sermon), p. 34.-Mediation Between the Internal Celestial and the External Natural (Genesis xliv), p. 35.- A Visit to Emanuel Swedenborg, p. 38.- Celebration of Swedenborg's Birthday, by the Academy Schools, p. 41.
Notes end Reviews, p. 42.
The General Church- Address at the Dedication of the Pittsburgh Building. p. 45.- Celebration of Swedenborg's Birthday in the General church, p. 45.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale), xii, p. 48.
Communicated.- The Ascription in the LORD'S Proposed change of Title, p. 47.
News Gleanings, p. 48.-Births, p. 48.- The Sower, p. 48.- Academy Book Boom, p. 48.
AT HOME.
Illinois.- THE Chicago Society, of which the Rev. L. P. Mercer is Pastor, held its annual meeting on January 16th. It was resolved to dispose of the $16,000 mortgage, and, if necessary, of other property in order to carry out the proposals of the Executive Committee, which were to thoroughly renovate the temple on Van Buren Street to provide the means for entertaining and caring for the visitors, and to avail themselves of the services of an assistant Pastor.
THE Rev. A. J. Bartels has been visiting the Societies at Springfield and Pittsfield.
Massachusetts.- THE Boston Society have formed a New Church Friendly Aid Association for charitable and religious work. The committee have decided to commence by co-operating with existing organizations. At meeting, the president and some other officers of the Young Women's Christian Association were present by invitation, and gave accounts of their work.
THE Rev. John A. Hayes, of Lynn, visits Boston every Wednesday, and holds a theological class. The Holy Supper was administered to two hundred and forty- Two members of the Society in Boston on January 1st. The Association at its last monthly meeting, consisting of twelve ministers, passed a resolution "as ministers of the New Church" expressing their "appreciation of and gratitude for the noble ministry of the late Bishop Brooks, who, as an apostle of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, was enabled to carry the Gospel with so much power and comfort to so many of God's children." The resolution was sent to the Boston press.
California.- THE injury to the church building of the First San Francisco Society, by fire, will not necessitate the suspension of worship as the Sunday-school room is uninjured.
THE Rev. D. V. Bowen having ceased to be the pastor of the San Diego Society and having returned to Ontario, it is expected that New Church services there will be resumed.
MR. J. L. Dryden has been elected leader of the San Diego Society in place of the Rev. D. V. Bowen, resigned.
Florida.- THE pastor of the Society at Jacksonville has been unanimously elected president of the Ministers' Alliance, consisting of Ministers of the vastated Church.
Washington.-ON Sunday, January 22d, the Rev. Chauncey Giles ordained Dr. Peter C. Louis (colored) into the ministry of the New Church.
THE Rev. Frank Sewall preached to the colored Society of the Rev. P. C. Louis on February 6th, and afterward baptized thirty- Three adults and eleven children. The Rev. Thomas A. King, assisted by the Rev. P. C. Louis, then administered the Holy Supper.
A NEW Church Book Room and Library has been opened in Room 26, Metzerott Building, on F Street, corner of Twelfth, to be open to the public from nine A. K. to nine P. M. every week day.
Pennsylvania.- THE Rev. John Whitehead has been delivering a series of popular Sunday evening lectures in Pittsburgh, on religious topics of the day.
THE annual meeting of the people to whom the Rev. John Whitehead ministers, was held on January 2d. Their organization is said to number fifty members.
Ohio.-ON February 8th the Rev. John Goddard, of Cincinnati, preached a sermon in memory of Bishop Brooks.
Canada.- APROPOS of the news note concerning the Rev. Abel Armstrong, published In January, The Star in the East desires the readers of the Life to know that the Star "had anticipated that his energies would be devoted to work in some field for the New Church, but may have more definite information later on."
ABROAD.
Great Britain.- THE Quarterly Meeting of Teachers of the Failsworth District of the Sunday-school Union was held on January 21st. A paper on the Holy Supper was rend by a layman, and afterward discussed. Opinion was divided as to how early it was desirable to encourage young people to partake of the celebration.
THE name of a lady is on the list of the preaching appointments at the smaller Societies, at or near London, made by the Missionary and Tract Society of the New Church.
THE Rev. Lewis A. Slight, of Paisley, will take pastoral charge of the Edinburgh Society, which is at present without a Pastor, visiting it quarterly to administer the Holy Supper.
THE few Isolated Receivers who met together a year ago in Hackney, N. E. London, a district hitherto unexplored by the New Church, met to celebrate the event on January 10th. They reported an average attendance of seventeen persons at their monthly meetings.
CANDIDATE Stephenson preached to the Colchester Society on January 1st, and conducted Sunday- School in the afternoon. In the evening the Society met at the house of two of the members, recently married, to commemorate the event.
THE New Church Orphanage has received a donation of L1,000 from Mrs. Finnie, of Malvern Wells.
MR. Charles Higham has been appointed secretary of the Swedenborg Society, Mr. Elliott having resigned.
THE Blackpool Society held its third annual meeting on January 18th, receiving fourteen new members.
THE Rev. H. M'Lagan of the Queen's Park Society has accepted a call to the Melbourne Society.
Sweden.- SWEDENBORG'S birthday was celebrated by the New Church people in Stockholm, who issued invitations to the public to attend a special lecture by the Rev. Albert Bjork. There was an attendance of two hundred people, including the Rev. A. T. Boyesen and a number from his society. A dinner followed the lecture. About $40.00 were collected for the building fund, which, with contributions from members, and the amount on hand previously, makes about $1,600.
India.-MR. John H. Kelly, who is at present in Bombay, has two hundred and twenty readers of his lending library. He has a class of twelve members, studying Heaven and Hell. An American minister, who went to India about fourteen years ago, took with him the gift books, which he gave to a gentleman named Christopher, with whom he was boarding, with the information that the books were the ravings of a madman. The result was the conversion of Mr. Christopher who sent for Mr. Kelly, but died before the latter reached Bombay.
SOWER 1893
THE SOWER, an illustrated New- Church Sunday- School paper, intended to assist in the instruction of the young, either in the Sunday- School or the home. The Sower is published weekly nine months in the year-October to June, inclusive-in Chicago and Pontiac, Ill. Single subscriptions, 50 cents per annum; ten to twenty-five copies to one address, 45 cents each; twenty-five to fifty copies, 40 cents each; over fifty copies, 35 cents each. The Sower is entered at the post-office at Pontiac, Ill., as second- Class matter. Business communications may be addressed either to The Sower, Pontiac, Ill., or to Western New- Church Union, 17 East Van Buren Street, Chicago, Ill.
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM 1893
SINCE our catalogue was issued a number of books have been published that we can recommend, among them the following:
HEAVEN AND HELL. Rotch Edition. Cloth, $1.25, including postage.
SOLOMON'S SONG AND RUTH, in Hebrew. Extracts from the non- Canonical books of the Hebrew Bible (used as text-book in the Hebrew language in the Academy Schools). Paper, 10 cents; cloth, 30 cents.
THE LITURGY of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD. Eighth Edition. Contains a new rite, 05 Coming of Age," in place of the rite of "Confirmation." Price reduced. Cloth, 75 cents; flexible morocco, gilt edges, $150; same, round corners, $1.76; postage, 9 cents.
OUR catalogue contains a list of all other valuable books and will be sent free on application to
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM, 1821 Wallace Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
49
Lord's Resurrection 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII, No. 4. PHILADELPHIA, APRIL, 1893=123. Whole No. 150.
The Lord's Resurrection involved everything holy, and the resurrection of all.- A. C. 901.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE effect which early education has upon the salvation of man is repeatedly touched upon in the Doctrines of the New Church, especially in the teachings concerning the societies in Heaven whose function it is to educate those who have died infants in the world. Not one of these infants is lost, no matter how evil its hereditary. Its education in Heaven insures the subjugation of its evils, and its growth in love and wisdom.
Every infant that remains on earth is likewise predestined for Heaven, and if those to whom it is intrusted will faithfully co-operate with the LORD, it will reach its destined goal. The LORD, in making His Second Coming, has revealed to the Church the Truth by which the angels educate infants for Heaven, in order that the Church may thereby likewise educate for Heaven the infants committed to her care. For, wherever the Word treats of the instruction and regeneration of man and of the Church, it "involves arcana about the instruction of infants in Heaven" (Cf. A. C. 1602) and hence also arcana about the education of children on earth. This phase of the Divine Word becomes more manifest in the proportion in which the arcana of its Internal Sense are studied with the object of learning about the education of children, for they lend themselves to the application to any and all of the states and conditions of those who become images and likenesses of the LORD. And as the principles of education are developed by the Church from the particulars of the Internal Sense revealed in the Doctrines, the Redemption wrought by the LORD at His Second Coming affects the salvation of infants.
Title Unspecified 1893
LOVELY as an infant appears, its soul is in the form of the love which it has from the father- A love that has received evil accessions from a long line of ancestors. Nevertheless, the infant receives the sphere of innocence which inflows out of the Heaven of Innocence, the angels of which surround it and remain with it for several years. And the reason why their sphere is received by the infant is that the inherited reigning evil love in the father is veiled over by the honesties of moral life, and by goods, which are partly of' civil life and partly of spiritual life. These make the external of life even with the evil. These external forms of affection receive the celestial sphere of' Heaven and give it forth during infancy. But as the infant develops into a child, and advances later to adult age, it comes into its interiors, and finally into the reigning love of the father. "If this had been evil, and not tempered and bent by means, by educators, his love becomes such as was that of the father" (D. P. 277).
The father's reigning love, as transmitted to the child, can be tempered and bent by educators! What an important teaching! And who ought to be able to recognize the evil better than the father himself, who, by frequent self-examination has learned to know himself? By praying to the LORD, by searching the Scriptures and studying the Doctrines, he acquires the means to subdue his own evil, and thus also stores them up for the use of" tempering and bending" the form of the same evil love in his offspring.
Title Unspecified 1893
CAN those who are associated together for the purpose of performing on earth a work corresponding to that of the educational societies of Heaven have a stronger incentive for studying the Divine Revelation, and encouraging and helping one another in acquiring the means needed for changing the current of the life of infants and children, than the promise implied in the above quotation from the Angelic Wisdom concerning the Divine Providence? Can anything on earth compare with this most eminent and holy use? The pursuit of wealth, the reaching after honors and reputation, the love of pleasures, the thousand and one affections and ends that engage the minds of men and govern their actions daily, what do they amount to, as compared with the tempering and bending of the soft and flexible affections of children, so that they may not follow the tendencies of their ancestral inheritance, but may be led into paths that conduct them to the angels above?
Title Unspecified 1893
WHY and how it is that the instruction and education of children have so far-reaching an effect upon their lot in the life hereafter, becomes very evident as soon as it is recognized that their love is a substance, that their affections are mere changes of state of this purely organic substance, and that their thoughts are the changes and variations of the form of these affections. The younger the child, the more tender is this wonderful organism, and the more readily can it be changed in state and form by the Divine Truth, operating into those means of its own ordering, which are applied from without by the educator; for "by the Word of the LORD were the heavens made, and by the breath of His mouth all the host of them" (Psalm xxxiii, 6), that is to say, the angels are made by the LORD by the Divine Truth proceeding from Him, and by the life thence. For truths are not merely words-breath from the mouth, or sounds in the air- Truth and Good are the very principles and beginnings of all things in the spiritual and natural worlds, and by them the universe was created, and man is made daily.
Title Unspecified 1893
AS the Work on Conjugial Love is the Vade Mecum of those who would conform with the laws of conjugial life, so the Works on the Angelic Wisdom, replete with instruction concerning the formation of the mind, and. with the laws by which the LORD governs this formation, are especially to be recommended to parents and educators, who will find that the laws therein revealed about the LORD'S government of men will enable them to adopt the best rules for their government of children.
Resurrection 1893
The Resurrection of the Lord on the third day, in the morning, involved . . . that He rises again in the minds of the regenerate, daily; yea every single moment.- A. C. 2405.
50
DEATH AND RESURRECTION Rev. W. H. ACTON 1893
"Verily, verily, I say to you, except a grain of wheat falling into the earth should die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it beareth much fruit."-John xii, 24.
DEATH is nothing but the continuation of life in another world; for by death as through a gate we enter the spiritual world; and, thus, from the world of matter, which in itself is dead, do we pass into the world of spirit, which is the world of life. It is then that we really live.
This truth is everywhere represented in this natural world-in the innumerable and never-ending changes of decay and reproduction; life, in some form or another, continually succeeding death. The day must die before another morning of activity can arise. The year must advance to its winter and death, as we say, before the new year with its vernal warmth and vigor can once more clothe the earth with verdure and gladness, emulating the perpetual spring of Heaven.
And so with man: he, too, must die and cast off the gross material coverings which have enveloped him in; this world before be can enter that life which shall never end. It is with him even as with "the seed falling into the earth" which must first die before it can live again, and, as it were, live to eternity, in its fruit and seed, whereby it renews itself perpetually.
Everything in this world of nature proceeds, according to t is universal law, from death unto life. For the natural world is nothing but a theatre re-presenting or presenting again, as in an image, the universal spiritual world with its laws and progressions; and there is nothing in the material world, not even the minutest particle or most trivial event, which does not exist and flow from that universal law of correspondence and representation of the spiritual world in the natural. And this law in its fullest form is seen in man in whom the spiritual and natural worlds meet and conjoin themselves.
Therefore, in contemplating the changes of state through which everything in this world of nature must pass we behold death as but the preliminary step to renewed existence, and may see therein foreshadowed what must of necessity take place with each of us.
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, except the grain of wheat falling into the earth should die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it beareth much fruit."
In the Word, frequent mention is made of seed, particularly in the parables of the LORD, as where He, speaks of the sower sowing good seed. In every case by seed is understood the truths of faith from the Word, and by sowing, the instruction and implantation of the truths of faith in the understanding. By the growth of the seed, even until it becomes a full-grown plant bearing its fruits in its time, is represented the whole progress of man's regeneration by means of the truths of faith. Hence, the LORD says: "The Kingdom of God"- Thus the regenerate man-"is as if a man should cast seed, into the earth, which bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear (Mark iv, 28; A. C. 5212).
These seeds or truths of faith are sown in the natural mind, in the memory as scientifics, or knowledges of good and truth drawn from the Word.
The first knowledges implanted in the memory, especially those required in childhood, serve, principally, as the means of introducing genuine truths of faith and charity. For in themselves they have hardly any real life being, for the most part, mere appearances formed from ideas of time and space and thus of things material and dead. Still, so far as they contain within themselves genuine truths, they have the germ of life and may serve as covering and protection like the outer shells and husks of seeds.
All things of childhood and youth are of this character; both studies and recreations serve principally as means by which genuine truths and goods are insinuated, in proportion as they are useful, innocent, and orderly.
In the development of the child into a rational being his mind has first to be filled with these apparent truths and goods, and from them is his first or natural rational formed. But as it is formed from appearances of truth, it is not genuine and must be put off. Nevertheless it serves, even as the decaying coverings of the seed, to form the first ground in which the true rational can be formed. The former goods and truths were only appearances, but in the degree that the good of innocence is present there is the prolific germ, the first and inmost receptacle of spiritual life from the LORD. The earlier studies and pleasures which delight the natural mind serve to protect this germ, and indeed, to insinuate the good of innocence together with genuine truths of faith.
This change of state from the external things of childhood and youth to the things of manhood, every one may apperceive in himself, who reflects how few of those things learnt in earlier years now remain. The scientifics themselves have decayed and are no more, but the truths and goods they served to introduce, still remain, and so far as they have been permitted to grow have become living plants bearing fruit.
It may be seen, therefore, that it is necessary for the child to learn many things which afterward are rejected and forgotten. From ignorance of this fundamental law of education has arisen the cry for a so- Called practical education, and for the rejection of all studies which are not of a practical nature. For, modern educators, regarding only appearances, conclude that it is a waste of time to learn what will be most likely forgotten after leaving school. They only have regard to those things which perish with this life, caring nothing for those which are to endure forever.
The formation of this genuine rational is the one end to be kept constantly in view in all instruction and education. Only those knowledges which contain living truth must be implanted in the child's mind in order to prepare him for the later work of reformation and regeneration by which he becomes truly rational and wise. For, as was stated above, these knowledges or apparent truths are the means by which the genuine truths of Heaven and the Church are inseminated in the nature which serves as the ground in which they must grow.
Cherished in this ground by natural thought and affection, the grosser appearances are generally softened and opened so as to enable the germ to receive light and heat from the LORD. This germ of genuine truth, set free by the putrefaction of its external appearances, can now take root in man's natural life and can grow up into the light and heat of Heaven a living plant, bearing good seed, which again being planted in the life can produce in their order and succession other good seeds to eternity! Thus the progress of regeneration once begun continues forever in a continual circle of life from truth to good, from which again spring new truths capable of leading to new goods. For each seed, even the smallest, contains an image of infinity and eternity, and thus the power from the LORD of multiplying itself indefinitely.
This development of spiritual life is only possible, however, when the seed falling into the ground dies; for unless it die it abideth alone, inactive, unproductive, useless.
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As long as a man remains in mere appearances drawn from objects of the senses and their delights, he is merely natural and dead. For his life is the love of the proprium, and from this he seeks those appearances that favor his proprium; they become harder and more confirmed, thus false, as he lives the life of self-love. This must die and be rejected before he can receive genuine life. Otherwise all his truths of faith are without life as grains of wheat stored away, being mere knowledges stored up in the memory.
The first step in regeneration or re-birth is thus the death and rejection of the natural with its appearances and fallacies, and the opening of the interiors to the reception of life from the LORD. As a result of the awakened activity of the good which lies inmostly concealed within the truths of faith, comes decay and putrefaction; and temptations arise. As the regenerating man receives light and heat from the LORD he then begins to realize that his proprium is altogether vile and filthy, and it appears as though all that he had cherished as good and true was to be destroyed, and with it all his life; for before regeneration the appearances of truth and the delights of the natural man arising from them are regarded as, and indeed constitute, the all of his life. As long as this state lasts the seed abides alone without any quickening spiritual life. To live it must be planted in the ground of charity (A. C. 1843, 2189), and when so planted the death of the proprium follows. Hence, in the verse immediately following our text, it is added: "He that loveth his soul shall lose it; and he that hateth his soul in this world shall preserve it unto eternal life" (Ver. 25).
The condition, therefore, upon which man is given eternal life is that he must hate his own soul- That is, his proprium- And be willing that it should perish. In this consist the life and happiness of the angels: they not only know and acknowledge that all life is from the LORD, but they also rejoice that this is so; and paradoxical as it may appear to the natural man, who imagines that his life is his own, the more interiorly the angels are in this acknowledgment from affection as well as thought that all life is from the LORD, the more do they receive of life and the more do they live as of themselves (D. P. 158). Hence they enjoy the highest degree of happiness and liberty. Their life is the life of use from the love of use, and this alone gives life and happiness, for it is from the LORD.
Man can attain to this state only when the externals of the natural man, together with the fallacies and evils which accompany him have become rotten and dead, and the germ of genuine faith and innocence taking root downward in his life begins to put forth "first the tender blade then the ear, and at length the full corn in the ear. And when the fruit is ready He straightway putteth in the sickle, for the harvest is at hand."
"Verily, verily, I say unto you unless the grain of wheat falling into the earth should die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it beareth much fruit."
These words were uttered by the LORD just before His betrayal and death and when He, Himself, was about to fulfill them in the supreme sense. As he said, "The hour had then come when the Son of Man should be glorified" (v. 23). For this end had He come into the world, and He fought against the hells even to the death and final rejection of the mere human which He had assumed. This was necessary in order that He might be glorified and the Divine and the Human become one in Him Who is the Resurrection and the Life.
It was because the death and rejection of the earthly body represented the overcoming and rejection of evil and falsities of the natural man, and thus also resurrection into life eternal, that the LORD was willing to suffer death and to rise again the third day (see A. E. 899). And that the Church might also rise again, born into new and living truths from the Word, thus also it has become possible for man to rise again out of the proprium and be born into the life of Heaven and receive a new and angelic proprium from the LORD, who says:
"I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth on Me, even though he be dead, he shall live; and everyone who liveth and believeth on Me shall not die to eternity" (John xi, 25-6).
"And I heard a great voice from Heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead dying in the LORD, from henceforth. 'Yea,' saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; for their works follow with them."
"A prediction from the LORD concerning the state of those after death who will be of His New Church, which is that those who have suffered temptation on account of faith in the LORD and a life according to His precepts shall have eternal felicity. The Divine truth of the Word teaches that those who have on that account afflicted their soul and crucified the flesh shall have peace in the LORD, as they have loved and believed and thence done and spoken" (A. R. 639-641).
That the Lord rose again on the third day 1893
That the Lord rose again on the third day also involved that the Divine Truth, or the Word as to the internal sense . . . will be resuscitated in the consummation of the age, which also is the third day.- A. C. 2813.
CONJUNCTION OF THE INTERNAL MAN WITH THE EXTERNAL NATURAL 1893
GENESIS XLV.
IN the foregoing chapter the internal man was treated of; how he initiated the external man, by the medium, to conjunction with himself. In this chapter the internal man is further treated of; how he conjoined himself to the external natural man; but since conjunction with this is not given, except by spiritual good from the natural, therefore he prepares first to adjoin himself to that good.
(1.) All things now being prepared by the Celestial Internal for conjunction, whatever impeded that conjunction, and its near effect- That is, all scientifics not congruous and those that were adverse-were ejected from the midst, so that there were not any of them present when the Celestial Internal conjoined itself by the Medium with truth in the natural.
When a conjunction is effected of the truths which are in the external or natural man with the good which is in the internal- That is, when the truths of faith are conjoined with the good of charity- Then all those scientifics which are not in agreement, and especially those which are adverse, are rejected from the midst to the sides, thus from the light which is in the midst to the shades which are at the sides; and then they are partly not seen and partly regarded as of no account; but from the scientifics which are congruous and concordant, which remain, there is effected a kind of extraction, and, so to speak, a sort of sublimation, whence is the interior sense of things, which sense is not perceived by man while in the body, except by somewhat of gladness, as the mind is gladdened by the morning of the day. Thus is effected the conjunction of the truth which is of faith with the good which is of charity.
(2.) The effect of the conjunction was mercy and joy, and this was perceived even to ultimates, through the whole natural.
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(3.) The Celestial Internal gave the faculty of perception to truths in the Natural, for when there is conjunction there is given the faculty of perceiving by the affection of truth and thus of good; wherefore it also manifested itself in the presence of spiritual good from the natural; but truths in the natural were not yet in a state to speak, for there was a commotion among them.
The conjunction of the celestial internal with truths in the natural cannot be effected except by spiritual good from the natural, and when the conjunction is effected then they are no longer truths in the natural, but spiritual truths in the natural.
Truths in the natural were not yet able to speak, because when the internal is conjoining to the external, there is first effected a communication of the Internal with the external, but not yet reciprocal communication; when this is effected there is conjunction.
By the commotion among truths is meant a new disposition and ordination of truths in the natural. Scientifics and truths are arranged into fascicular forms by man's loves, into infernal forms by the loves of self and the world, but into heavenly forms by love toward the neighbor and love to God; wherefore while man is regenerating, and conjunction is effecting of the good of the internal man with the truths of the external, a commotion takes place among truths, for then they undergo another disposition. The commotion which exists manifests itself by anxiety arising from a change of the former state, namely, from a privation of the delight which had been in that state; this commotion also manifests itself by anxiety concerning the past life, in that internal good, and the internal itself were discarded to what was lowest; this anxiety is treated of in what follows.
(4.) The new natural now perceived an interior communication, and the interior communication was made, and it was manifested by influx of the good which the truths of the natural had alienated to lowest things. This is also the case with man's internal at this day. It is indeed among scientifics, because it is known from doctrinals that there is an internal man, but it is rejected to the lowest things, because it is not acknowledged and believed, so that it is alienated, and not indeed from the memory, but from the faith.
(5.) The heart or will ought not to be anxious nor the spirit or understanding sad, on account of having alienated, in the past life, the internal to lowest things, for spiritual life is imparted to them of Providence.
(6.) So the case is: there is a state of the defect of good in the natural mind, and that state endures until remains shine forth; but in the meantime good and truth thence does not appear.
(7.) It was consulted of the Divine Providence that there should be remains in the middle and inmost of the Church, and spiritual life thence to truths in the natural, wherefore deliverance from damnation, which deliverance is effected by remains- That is, by goods and truths stored up in man by the LORD: they who receive those goods and truths- That is, who suffer them to be implanted in their interiors-escape damnation, and are among the residues.
(8.) The truths of the natural did not let the internal down to scientifics which are of the natural, but the Divine did this, with the result that now the natural was from the Internal. The Celestial Internal or Internal Good by influx orders all things in the natural, and at length effects that the natural is from itself; for from it is everything in the natural, for it disposes the scientifics therein, thus all scientifics, for these are the things of that mind. Scientifics constitute the intellectual of that mind, but the good which flows in from the internal, and disposes the scientifics therein, makes, as it were, the voluntary there.
(9.) Truths in the natural ought now to ascend to spiritual good, for there is now perception with that good concerning the Celestial Internal, by the influx from the Celestial Internal into spiritual good, so that it disposes all and single things in the natural, wherefore there is a sure conjunction.
(10.) Spiritual good could now have life in the midst in the natural, and a perpetual conjunction with the Internal, of spiritual good and all things derived from it, and all the things derived from these, and natural good interior and exterior, and whatsoever is derived from spiritual good.
Good, when it is in the first place, and has dominion, produces truths continually; it multiplies them round itself, and also round each truth, and makes each truth as a little star, in the midst of which is something luminous; nor does good only multiply truths around itself, but by derivations successively it also produces truth from truths.
(11.) Life from the Celestial Internal continually inflows during the defect of good, lest spiritual good perish, and all that appertains thereto.
(12.) It was now testified from perception, and especially from the perception of the medium, that the celestial of the internal had manifested itself.
It was testified especially from the perception of the medium, because this was interior truth immediately depending on internal good, and had on this account clearer and more exquisite perception than the truths had which were beneath or which were external.
(13.) The spiritual heaven in the natural now communicated with spiritual good whatever was there apperceived and perceived, wherefore there was a close conjunction of the Celestial Internal with spiritual good.
(14.) The Internal now conjoined itself inmostly with the medium, as an effect of mercy; it was received by the medium whence there was a reciprocality of the conjunction.
(15.) The Internal also adjoined itself from grace with the truths of the Church in the natural, as an effect of affection, and the truths reciprocally communicated with it from reception.
(16.) This influx filled the universal natural, for the truths of the Church were present in the natural, wherefore there was joy everywhere therein, even to the lowest things.
(17.) The natural perceived from the Celestial Internal, concerning the truths of the Church in the natural, that they perceived that they should fill every truth with good, and enter into the habitation of the truths of the Church in the natural.
(18) Spiritual good and the truths of the Church could now accede to the scientifics of the natural, and also possess those scientifics, and appropriate the good therein.
(19.) The natural in general now willed to have the doctrinals of scientifics for those who did not as yet know the interior things of the Church and their service and accession. The affections of truth do not know the interior things of the Church except by means of truths; the affections without these are like the will without the understanding, for the will cannot see or know anything except by the understanding in which is its sight or eye.
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(20.) Instrumentals were not matters of care; for in the created universe there is not given anything essential in itself except in the Supreme alone- That is, in the LORD; who, since He is Esse or Essential in Himself, is called JEHOVAH from Esse; all other things are only instrumentals. Hence, the LORD alone should be regarded as an end, since essentials and not instrumentals are to be regarded, in order that they may have what is primary in the natural mind. By these words alone is meant that if essentials and not instrumentals are matters of concern to them, they shall have instrumentals in plenty. For example: if truths be matters of concern, they shall have scientifics in plenty; likewise, if good be a matter of concern, they shall have truths in plenty. Scientifics, indeed, and also truths, should be matters of concern, but they must regard good as their end.
(21.) This produced an effect from spiritual truths in the natural, so that from the internal they had doctrinals, as was pleasing, and support from good and truth in the meantime. The LORD does not openly teach any one truths, but by good leads to think what is true, and also inspires, unknown to man, an apperception and consequent election that this or that is true, because the Word so dictates, and because the truth squares; thus the LORD adapts truths according to every one's reception of good; and whereas this is according to every one's affection, and thus in freedom, therefore it is above said, as was pleasing.
(22.) Now truths were initiated into good and thus became new, and the medium had a fullness of truth from good, and much of truth from the natural; (23.) and certain things were given gratis to spiritual good, namely, scientifics with many things of service; the truth, of good, and the good of truth, also with many things of service; and interior truth for spiritual good in the meantime, or until full conjunction could be effected.
(24.) The Internal Celestial concealed itself from the truths of the Church in the natural, but gave them the perception that they should be in tranquillity.
(25.) Whereupon the truths of the Church in the natural receded from the scientifics of the Church, acceded to the habitation where was good natural not spiritual.
(26.) In this state it was apperceived that the internal was not rejected, and that the natural mind was under its, power, whence there was a failing of natural life and thence of the understanding. It is said thence because the life which is of the will always goes before, and the life of the understanding follows.
(27.) The influx from the Celestial of the Spiritual into the doctrinals from itself which might persuade gave new life. New life is effected when the spiritual from the internal flows in, and from the interior acts in those things which are in the natural, whence natural good becomes spiritual good.
(28.) Spiritual good rejoiced that the internal had not perished, and desired conjunction with it before the new should be instituted.
In the Lord everything is Jehovah 1893
In the Lord everything is Jehovah, not only His Internal and Interior Man, but also the External, and the very Body, wherefore He Alone it is who rose again into Heaven even with the body.- A. C. 1729.
IN last month's study of Genesis 1893
IN last month's study of Genesis (page 36, col. 1, lines 19 and 18 from bottom) for "Good of truth is of the celestial church, and the truth of good is of the spiritual church," read "Truth of good is of the celestial church, and good of truth is of the spiritual church." [Corrected in the electronic text.]
MOST ANCIENT CHURCH 1893
IX.
Its Night, Consummation, and Judgment.
1. HAVING followed the history of the Most Ancient Church from its first rosy dawn, through its golden day of celestial heat and light, and through its sad evening of waning glory and gathering shades, we must now, as it were, penetrate into that thick blackness of night in which the last posterity of that Church was finally lost and extinguished.
2. THE ANTEDILUVIANS, or the last posterities of the Most Ancient Church which lived immediately before the Flood, and perished in it, were like their ancestors, of a celestial genius, though in the last degree of its perversion. The construction of their minds was the same, but the quality had totally changed. The will and the understanding were still one. The will still ruled supreme, but the love in the will had changed into the opposite.
3. THEIR VOLUNTARY.- THIS quality of the will is described in these words: "And it was that man began to multiply himself upon the face of the ground, and daughters were born unto them" (Gen. vi, 1). The love of self became the ruling love, and from this self-exalting love were derived filthy and heinous concupiscences. The understanding still being one with the will, no truth could remain unperverted with them or check the wild, consuming fire of their lusts. The love of self was, therefore, free to develop itself into its very worst form, which is the love of universal dominion over others for the sake of self. Men of the present age, who are more in the love of the world, with its derivative lusts of pleasures, riches, honors, and the like, cannot well understand the quality of the love of dominion, but History has furnished some striking illustrations of its terrible nature, and all the ancient mythologies contain stories of the fearful arrogance of that race of giants who once fought with the gods for the possession of the universe.
This love of dominion for the sake of self is, inmostly, deadly hatred against the LORD and His Kingdom. The antediluvians were filled with burning, indescribable hatred against Him whose Omnipotent Love was the only barrier to their lust of possessing the whole world, and this hatred breathed forth hatred to all mankind, with the derivative evils of contempt, malice, revengefulness, cruelty, adultery, destructiveness, murder. Peace and mutual confidence were now impossible upon earth. Suspicion, distrust, and envy reigned, with all against each, breaking forth into bloody wars of extermination. Words fail to describe their state. These evil afflictions or concupiscences were "the daughters" that were born to them.
4. THEIR INTELLECTUAL was destroyed and replaced with insane persuasions, consequent upon profanations. These are described thus: "And the sons of God saw the daughters of man that they were good, and they took unto themselves wives from all whom they chose" (Gen. vi, 2).
The "sons of God" were the genuine truths of doctrine which by tradition had been preserved from the time of the Most Ancient Church even until its last posterities (A. C. 570). These genuine truths the Antediluvians by heinous perversions conjoined to the filthy cupidities of their will. They thus committed the most grievous kind of profanation, not only of truth, but also of good, for truth did not come to them as to us, through the rational, but through remains of celestial perceptions.
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Such profanation can be committed only by men of the celestial genius, who thereby become diabolical (A. C. 3399, 582, 1051). From this profane commingling of celestial truth with infernal lusts were born
5. "THE NEPHILIM who were in the land in those days, and especially after the sons of God came in unto the daughters of man, and they bare to them; these were strong men, who of an age were men of name" (Gen. vi, 4).
By the Nephilim (from [Hebrew] naphal, to fall; or from [Hebrew] nephel, monstrous birth) are signified those "who through a persuasion of their own height and pre-eminence made nothing all things holy and true" (A. C. 580).
Their wild persuasions are illustrated by this example. They knew from the doctrines of their ancestors that God had created men into His image and according to His likeness. With this truth their evil lusts at once conjoined themselves by turning it into the damnable falsity that God had transferred all His Divinity to men; that God, therefore, was not any more in the universe, but that men were the only real gods. (See A. C. 1268; T. C. R. 470; S. D. 3580, 4174).
In such blasphemous phantasies they further confirmed themselves in many ways, by experiences, by dreams, or by open communications with their wicked kindred in the other world, until these phantasies became persuasions so deeply rooted in their very life that they could never, nor by any means be eradicated (A. C. 794, 1192). "This kind of persuasion never existed either before or after with any other people" (A. C. 562). "Their rational and intellectual by their evil lusts became like a sticky, glutinous mass, into which all good and truth that came to them became inextricably entangled and absorbed" (A. C. 563). "They had been reduced to such a state by the immersion of the doctrinal or verities of faith into cupidities, that they could no longer be reproved, or know what is evil. All the perception of truth and of good was extinguished by persuasions, for they believed that alone to be true which was conformable to their persuasions" (A. C. 573, 582). "With the Antediluvians not only the voluntary was destroyed and made infernal, but also the intellectual, so that they could not be regenerated- That is, any new will be formed in their intellectual part" (A. C. 1051).
6. THEIR DEPRIVATION OF REMAINS.- Having reached this last extremity of evil, their human internal, in which the LORD in infancy and youth stores up "remains" with man, and through which alone He operates and endows man with spiritual and natural life, became closed with them, as it is with the devils in hell. No new remains could be implanted into their minds. Their will had become mere lust, their understanding mere persuasion. Whatever of spiritual life was offered to them, they instantly turned to the opposite. They were hopelessly lost, temporally and eternally, for there was no longer any medium for the influx of life with them. They consequently became extinct of themselves (A. C. 560).
7. THE DELUGE.-"When the Antediluvians had arrived at the summit of such persuasion, they became extinct, by themselves, and were suffocated, as it were, by an inundation not unlike a deluge. Their extinction is therefore compared to a deluge, and is also, according to the custom of the Most Ancients, described by the Deluge" (A. C. 563). By the Deluge, or Flood, described in the Word, is, therefore, not at all meant any universal deluge of natural water upon the earth, but the wild and devastating inundation of evil lusts and insane persuasions in the minds of the men of that age (A. C. 662, 641).
This inundation was called a "Flood," also from this that the last posterity of the Most Ancient Church were destroyed even as to their natural life by means of actual suffocation. Concerning this we read: "The internal respiration which the men of the Most Ancient Church possessed, was from the navel toward the interior region of the breast, but in the process of time, or among their posterity, it was changed, and receded more toward the region of the back, and toward the abdomen, thus more outward and backward, and at length, in the last posterity of that Church, which was just before the Deluge, hardly anything remained of internal respiration, and, when at last it was made none in the breast, they were suffocated of themselves. With some, however, external respiration then began" (A. C. 1120).
Some of this nefarious brood seem to have escaped actual extinction, and these continued the race of "giants," which, at the time of Joshua and even afterward, dwelt in certain places in the land of Canaan. They seem to have been termed, generically, Nephilim, but were divided into various tribes, such as the Anakim, the Rephaim, the Emim, the Zuzim, and the Zamzummim, by all of whom are signified remains of the direful persuasions and lusts imbibed by the Antediluvians. (Concerning these see a particular description in New Church Life, vol. ix, pp. 158, 159.)
8. HOW THEY LIVED AND LOOKED.- These Antediluvians "lived with their married partners in a certain delight, yet their marriages were merely a kind of adultery and lasciviousness" (S. D. 4076).
"They prided themselves on a multitude of children, and wherever they went they had with them their children, who walked before them in a curved line" (A. C. 1272; S. D. 3589). Their love of offspring was, however, merely another form of their selfish love of dominion.
"They could no longer express visibly any idea of thought but what was most deformed" (A. C. 607). "The men, as they grew up, became deformed, shaggy, and hairy; the hair hanging loose about the face. Their women had small faces, and about the head they had a round black cap, protruding, as it were, towering backward" (S. D. 3859; A. C. 1272). [Compare the headdress of ladies in the Middle Ages.]
9. THEIR STATE IN THE OTHER LIFE.- Among all the hells that of the Antediluvians is the most grievous and atrocious. "They can never be where other spirits are, but are separated from the other hells, and are kept at a distance from the world of spirits. They are neither permitted to ascend, nor can any one be let in among them" (A. C. 1266). "They so kill and suffocate all spirits with their most dreadful phantasies, which as a poisonous sphere is exhaled from them, that spirits are deprived of the power of thinking, and feel half dead" (A. C. 570, 581). "They are covered over with a certain misty rock, which breaks forth from their direful phantasies and persuasions. They make constant efforts to rise up, but cannot advance beyond the endeavor" (A. C. 1266, 1267; S. D. 4217), "though at times the rock is attenuated, so that they can be heard" (S. D. 3359.)
"Those of the Antediluvian; who persist in their attempt to emerge, are cruelly treated by their companions.
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Those who persist most strenuously in emerging are let down still deeper under that misty rock; for it is their insane ardor to destroy all that induces their attempts to emerge. All whom they meet they wrap in a piece of cloth, in order to take them captive, and they cast these into a certain sea, as it appears to them, or they otherwise treat them savagely" (A. C. 1267, 1270; S. D. 3365, 4217).
After having been totally vastated "the Antediluvians can serve as subjects, retaining only so much life as there is in the bony parts of the human body. They become like skeletons or lifeless appendages, and life is afterward breathed into them. Being scarcely aware of their own existence, or sensible or conscious, they can serve for bones [in the greatest monster-man of Hell] into whom other spirits can inflow" (S. D. 3912). For a detailed and graphic account of this Hell read Coronis, n. 38.
10. THE LORD'S VICTORY OVER THESE HELLS.- These unspeakably malignant and dangerous hordes before the advent of the LORD into the world "were not yet shut up in Hell, but wandered about and infused dire and deadly persuasions wheresoever they were able. . . When the LORD was in the world these were by Him cast into the hell, which is on the left, in front, at some distance. Unless this had been done very few could have been saved, for the falsity which they infused was accompanied by a direful persuasive power; and was deadly, much as never had been, and such as never again can be. With this false they were imbued, who before the coming of the LORD, infested those who were of the spiritual Church" (A. C. 7686, 581, 1266).
In the fourteenth chapter of Genesis it is stated that Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, "smote the Rephaim in Ashleroth Karnaim, and Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in Shaweh Kiriatlaim." These were the wicked Antediluvim crews against whom "the LORD fought in His childhood, and which He overcame; and unless the LORD had overcome them by His Coming into the world, it would not have been possible to survive at this day on the face of the earth, since every man is governed by the LORD through the instrumentality of spirits" (A. C. 1673). (Compare Hercules in his cradle strangling the serpents with his own hands.)
"From these things it is manifest that without the Coming of the LORD into the world, no one could have been saved. It is similar at this day; wherefore unless the LORD come again in the Divine Truth, which is the Word, neither can any one be saved" (T. C. R. 3).
(Concerning the "Modern Antediluvians" in the Christian world, see A. C. 1673, 2754, 3598, 4368, 4423; S. D. 3594.)
(The History of the Most Ancient Church concluded.)
Title Unspecified 1893
A. C. 2083 Not only the Rational, but also the Sensual, thus the whole Body also became Divine and Jehovah. He alone as to the Body rose again from the dead.- A. C. 2083.
LANGUAGE 1893
THE EXISTENCE OF LANGUAGE.
Etymology.
THE equivalent for the English word "existence," found in the Latin of the Writings of the New Church, is Existentia. This word is not found in the Latin of the classical period, but still it is regularly formed from the verb existo or ex-sisto. Existo first means "to cause a thing to stand out." Existentia, therefore, would mean, "the causing a thing to stand out." Existo is formed from the particle ex, meaning "out" or "forth" and sisto which is the causative form of the verb sto, "to stand," and, therefore, means "to cause to stand"- That is, "to stand" understood transitively, as when one says, "I 'stand' the lamp on the table;" it also means "to set," "to put" or "place." The Latin word ex, often e, is connected with the Greek word [Greek] or [Greek], and has with it the notion of procedure from within outward. It is found in very many compounds in English, as "expel," "external,"" evoke," "evince, etc., etc., in all of which the ex or e has the significance of "out" or "out of." Sisto is connected with the Greek verb [Greek], "to cause to stand," and [Greek] again with [Greek], "to stand." It is clearly of the same root as the English word "stand," as may appear from the participle of sto which is stans. Stand is one of the most widely spread of words, going through, in one form or another, perhaps the whole Aryan family of languages. It was, in Anglo- Saxon, standan; in Old English, standen; in Old Friesic, stonda; Dutch, staan; Old High German, stantan; German, stehen; Icelandic, standa; Danish, staae; Swedish, sta; Gothic, standan; Russian, stoiate; Latin (infinitive), stare; Greek (infinitive), [Greek] (to cause to stand), and [Greek] (to stand); and in Sanskrit, stha. All these refer themselves to the Aryan root STA.
Definition.
The first and probably most universal signification of this root in all these languages is, "to be at rest in an upright position;" then, "to he fixed in an upright or firm position;" also "to be supported on the feet in an erect or nearly erect position;" it is opposed to "lie," "sit," and "kneel;" it also signifies to continue upright in a certain locality, as, "the tree stands in the field." 2. To occupy or hold a place; to have a situation; to be situated or located. 3. To cease from progress; not to proceed; to stop; to pause; to halt; to remain stationary. 4. To remain without ruin or injury; to hold good against tendencies to impair or injure; to be permanent; to endure; to last; hence, to find endurance, strength, or resources. 5. To maintain one's ground; to be acquitted; not to fail or yield; to be safe. 6. To maintain an invincible or permanent attitude; to be fixed, steady, or firm; to take a position in resistance or opposition. 7. To adhere to fixed principles; to maintain moral rectitude; to keep from falling into error or vice. 8. To have or maintain a position, order, or rank; to be in a particular relation. 9. To be in some particular state; to have essence or being; to be; to consist. 10. To be consistent; to agree; to accord. 11. To hold a course at sea. 12. To offer one's self, or to be offered, as a candidate for office. 13. To stagnate; not to flow; to be motionless. 14. To measure when erect on the feet. 15. To be or remain (in law), as it is; to continue to be in force; to have efficacy or validity; to abide.
As a transitive verb stand is defined in Webster's Dictionary under twelve heads; but since all its various meanings as a transitive verb are derived from the intransitive, the definitions given will be sufficient for present purposes.
From these definitions it will be seen that sisto combined with ex means "to come out from within and stand or take an erect position," or "to come out and cause to stand." In usage, "to exist," means: 1. To be as a fact and not as a mode; to have an actual or real - being, whether material or spiritual. 2. To be manifest in any manner; to continue to be. 3. To live; to have life or the functions of vitality.
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From the word "exist" comes "existence," a noun derived from the participle. The meanings of the word "existence" are in usage as follows:
1. The state of existence or being; actual possession of being; continuance in being. 2. Continual or repeated manifestation; occurrence of events of any kind. 3. That which exists; a being; a creature; an entity.
The Existence of Language.
Nothing exists from itself, but from what is prior to itself. That from which any thing exists is internal; and that which exists is the internal of it. Each and all things which exist are to each other as cause and effect. No effect can exist without an efficient cause. They are related to each other as are conatus or endeavor and motion; no motion can exist without conatus, even so far that when conatus ceases motion ceases, wherefore, the internal of motion is conatus, or force moving. So, also, it is with living conatus, which is the will, and, with living motion, which is action. No action can exist without will, even so far that when will ceases action ceases, wherefore the internal of action is will. Hence in all and single things there must bean internal, in order that they may exist, and then that they may subsist; without an internal they are nothing (A. C. 9473).
To exist, therefore, is to receive life from within- To become an actual recipient of what is internal, like as the soul comes forth and stands out in the body, thus the body exists from the soul. It is the reception of life of which existence is predicated (A. C. 3937). Since all and single things which are in the world exist, and perpetually exist- That is, subsist, from things prior to themselves-it follows that they exist and subsist from a world which is above nature (A. C. 4524). But this world above nature is an existence from what is interior to itself, namely, the sun of the spiritual world, and this again from what is Inmost Itself, the LORD in His Infinite Esse; for from the Divine Truth which proceeds from the Divine Good of the Divine Love of the LORD the Heavens have existed; and from it they perpetually subsist; or, what is the same, from It the Heavens have been created, and from It they are perpetually created- that is, preserved; for preservation is perpetual creation, and subsistence is perpetual existence (A. C. 10,076).
Recapitulation.
The existence of a thing is the actual coming forth of, the essence of the thing and standing out into reality, and the continuing of it in permanent form. It is what the thing is on its own plane, on which it is always an ultimate boundary, containant, or receptacle of its own internal. Existence, therefore, is not only the coming forth of the essence of a thing from the internal and the causing itself to stand, but it is also the resultant thing of this coming forth and standing. What, therefore, is the Existence of Language? It was shown above that the Essence- That is, the internal of language-is the proceeding Divine Truth from the LORD. Now since essence coming forth and standing is existence, it follows that Language is the coming forth of the Divine proceeding from the LORD, and its standing out in ultimate forms. It is truth taking upon itself outward forms, or truth coming to rest in ultimate receptacles. The answer then to the question: What is the Existence of Language? what is Language? is this:- All Language is the external form of truth-it is truth coming forth and standing, and also truth come forth and continuing to stand. It is the Existence and therefore perpetual subsistence of truth with angels and men.
Summary.
The Esse of Language is that the LORD may be conjoined with man outside of Himself, and that He may make him happy from Himself; the Essence of Language is Good and Truth from the Divine proceeding from the LORD; and the Existence of Language is this Essence coming forth and standing erect in actual forms.
Lord alone rose again 1893
The Lord alone rose again . . . as to the body . . . and this because He glorified or made Divine His Body, while He was in the world.- A. C. 5078.
BALL 1893
WHY is a ball the first plaything given to little children by mother and teachers? Because of its signification. In the higher sense it is a representative of the LORD Himself, for it is without beginning or end. "The circle of circles is the ball. It should be our first idea of form, for it Is the general in which all things are contained." "A ball is the very form of human life, and human loving." "The first things that enter the mind are round things," insinuated by the celestial angels, for we are taught that goods are in round forms. And as these angels are in the highest good, and their heaven is nearest the LORD, it follows that all their thoughts and actions, yea, their whole lives, are in spheres more perfect than aught else, except the LORD, in His own complete life. And as "the centre of every round thing is a use," so, a life which has for its centre the loving, watchful care of little children must be in the most beautiful and perfect of round forms. From its very conception, the child is associated with things that are round, both spiritually and naturally.
"All fluids are in round forms;" hence their activity and motion; and we have learned that the little body of the embryo is composed of, and nourished by fluids, the finest of which is so pure and volatile, so nearly spiritual, that it cannot he seen, even with the highest magnifying power. Thus, it is in more perfect spheres than any other natural thing, and is a fit containant of the soul, which it clothes with a body, still keeping its beautiful round form. The more external parts of the little body are also formed from fluids, grosser and more imperfect but still round. Then what more fitting than that these round things should be continued and carried into the external life of the child, and that it should learn to recognize, by sight and touch, the ball, which is the form of heaven. And we may feel sure that into this the celestial angels can inflow more readily than into any other, since it is the form of their own life and its uses. The ball first given to the little ones is of wool; and is made of one continuous thread. This again is in agreement with correspondence; for by wool, we are told, is signified celestial good. Red has the same signification, therefore the first woolen ball is red. The other colors are given in order, white, blue, yellow, etc. The ball made of wood, and about the same size as the woolen halls is next given, a fitting emblem of the "natural good" which must find its place in the mind of the child, as a basis upon which to rest its celestial good.
These are a few of the reasons why the ball is given to the little ones as the first "gift" in their kindergarten plays; that thereby their ideas and thoughts may be kept in harmony with the "round things" which are given to them by the angels.
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How is the ball given? As a plaything. With songs, which are full of affection; with games, in which their love for one another is developed and trained; with stories, which lead them to think of the LORD and the angels, and which teach them that the LORD is Infinite Love and Infinite Power.
The following is a suggestion of some things that may be told to the little ones, and drawn from them by stories and questions about balls of different kinds.
Can the little children guess what I have in my hand? Something you will all like to play with, I'm sure. You have seen things like it many times, but you have never seen this. Shall I show it to you? Yes, it is a ball. It is red and warm and soft. It is made of wool. The little lambs have coats of wool, and the mamma sheep has a thick soft cloak of wool. Baby's stockings are made of wool, and the blankets which mamma tucks around her when she sleeps is made of wool.
The little birdies have their nests lined with wool, sometimes.
Wool ii not always red, as is our ball, but it is always soft and warm.
There are many things which are round like our ball.
The sun is round. It is red, too, but it does not look like our ball. It is shining and bright, so bright that we cannot look at it. It is very much more beautiful than our ball. It keeps us warm and gives us light and makes the flowers bloom and the grass grow, beside many other things.
The moon is a ball. It is bright and shining, but it does not shine so brightly as the sun. We can look right at it. It is not red, as the sun is, but, looks quite yellow, like our yellow ball. The moon does not make us warm, as the sun does, and this is because it is not red.
The stars are balls. They make us think of bright little eyes twinkling merrily up in the sky. But real they are balls, many of them like the sun, only very, very far away. Some of them are red, like the sun, and some of them are yellow; and if we look closely we can see some that do not sparkle.
We cannot count the stars. We can easily tell the number of balls that we have made, but the LORD has made more stars than any one can count.
The earth is round. It is a very large ball indeed, so large that it would take us a long while to travel around it. The earth is not red. It is brown, and it is made of rocks and water and many other things. This is in order that we may live upon it, and that the beautiful flowers and trees may grow, and that the little birds may sing, and the lambs, which give us the wool to make our balls, may skip and play in the bright sunshine.
The sun of heaven, which is from the LORD, appears as a ball, shining and beautiful and bright.
It is red, but a lovely brilliant red, so much more beautiful than the sun of this world that we cannot possibly tell how beautiful it is. The angels love to look at their sun because it makes them think of the LORD and to wish to obey Him. And this makes them happier than anything else.
Is there anything about our bodies which is like a ball? Yes, our heads are round, and our eyes are round, too. Did you ever hear of the eyeball? That is because the eye is really a ball peeping out through the eyelids.
Oranges are round. We have a ball which is just the color of an orange. And our ball and the orange look alike in another way- They are not quite smooth. Apples are round. Some kinds of apples are green, as our green ball, and some are bright and rosy, like the red one. Once we saw a yellow apple, just as yellow as our yellow ball, but it was shining, and smooth, and sweet. Our yellow ball would not be good to eat, as the yellow apple was.
Here is a ball which is not like the other balls. This is made of wood, and is hard; we cannot dent it with our fingers, as we can the woolen balls. It is heavy, too. If it should fall on our toes it might hurt us. It is smoother than the woolen balls, and it will roll, even better than they will, because it is so smooth and hard.
Is there anything which is the same in all our balls? Can you find where they begin or where they end? No. They have no beginning and no ending. Then, when we look at and play with our pretty balls, of whom can we think? Who has neither beginning nor end? -Yes, we can think of the LORD, who made the sun, so shining and bright, and the moon and the stars; who made the earth, too, and the sweet blue sky, which looks round-does it not? although not round like a ball. He made us also and gave us everything which we have. He takes care of us every little moment of time, and always will take care of us, and will keep us safe from all harm, as long as we live in this world: yes, and even when we go to live with the angels and see the beautiful sun in heaven.
Notes and Reviews 1893
A NEW translation of the Coronis, executed by the Rev. James F. Buss, has been published by the British "Swedenborg Society."
THE twenty-seventh Annual Report of the American New Church Tract and Publication Society is just published. There have been sent to clergymen 3,832 copies of The True Christian Religion, The Apocalypse Revealed, Heaven and Hell, and the Divine Love and Wisdom.
An Affectionate Welcome and Appeal addressed to the Ministers and Delegates of the Lancashire (England) Congregational Union is the title of a pamphlet, by William Graham, in which he urges the Union to appoint a Committee of Inquiry to investigate the claims of the New Church to a Divine Revelation.
IN its issue for March 8th the Messenger gives an account of the reception of the Doctrines, by the Rev. A. B. Francisco, of Harrisonville, Mo., (formerly pastor of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church), "and of the altogether remarkable circumstances attending his declaration of his adoption of the true Christian Religion."
THE New Church Messenger for March 1st publishes a letter from a correspondent who says: "Let the New Church Baptist . . . speak to the Old Church Baptist, the New Church Unitarian to the Old Church Unitarian. . . We should then have the most effective missionary board that was ever organized." "New Church Unitarian" may have a peculiar sound, but, unfortunately, Unitarianism has invaded the New Church.
THE correspondent of a contemporary says: "As we are almost all alone here [Nebraska] in the faith of the New Church, we are compelled to attend the M. E. S. S. and church, as the nearest approximation." [?] "Compelled" by what? Surely not the Doctrine, for this teaches, "That the Faith of the New Church can by no means be together with the Faith of the former Church, and that if they are together, such a collision and conflict takes place, that all of the Church in man perishes" (B. E. 102).
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Morning Light for February 25th, quotes from a speech by Dr. Blyden (an African), before the Liverpool Geographical Society, in which he says, referring to those who interest themselves in Africa: "These patrons profess to be philanthropists, not philosophers. They can only give what they have. They have the Anglican Church, which they are by various methods insisting in good faith that Africa shall have, but Africa will never be able to receive it until the people are changed into Englishmen. It is strange that men cannot see this."
New Church Life presents its compliments to The New Church Standard, and is pleased to notice the acceptance of its suggestion for an explanation of the translations proposed for [Hebrew], although, to judge from the Standard's expressions of surprise, it evidently did not read the comment aright that "there appears no reason why the same Hebrew word should be translated" by the words quoted from the Standard. That Journal now makes the reasons for its translations appear, and its thoughtful explanation is commended to at least the consideration of all.
THE Evening Telegraph, of Philadelphia, in a review of Alexander Kinmont's work entitled The Natural History of Man and the Rise and Progress of Philosophy, says: "Like most other Swedenborgian writers, Mr. Kinmont was diffuse and wordy to a degree intolerable to the rapid readers of our day, accustomed to gather their ideas from the 'scare' head-lines in the newspapers." These remarks scarcely confirm the belief, very general at this day, that the world is hungering and thirsting for the New Church; on the contrary, they are an exposition of the prevailing attitude toward the Church.
UNDER the heading "The New Church" the New Jerusalem Magazine for March has a notice of the death of the Rev. Phillips Brooks. It also contains two letters from Bishop Brooks to the Rev. James Reed, in one of which he says: "I am not a Newchurchman in the special meaning which the words have for you, but hope, still, that I have some small part and lot . . . in the New Church which comes down from heaven and not up out of the earth." This is probably the nearest approach to anything of the New Church in all his writings and utterances. What is there in it to warrant his being classed under "The New Church"?
THE greater part of the last installment of the Concordance is taken up with entries under "Know," which occupy 72 columns and are concluded in this part. Under this entry are included "Knowledges" and "Scientifics." The letter "K" is the shortest, thus far, in the Concordance.
At least four important references might be added under the entry "Key" in part 60, namely, A. C. 3353* and 8988 end, where the internal sense is called "Key," and A. C. 6415,* where the understanding of a passage of the Sacred Scripture is indicated to be dependent on a "Key from the Internal sense." The internal sense is the key that unlocks the secret treasures of the Word. The ordinary English translation of number 24 of The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Concerning the Sacred Scripture in which the science of correspondences is spoken of as such a key, is a mistranslation. The word "key" does not occur there in the original text. In Coronis, n. 1, it is written, "without cognition about the Consummation of the Age, about the Second Advent of the LORD, and about the New Church, the Word is as it were locked up: nor does aught else unlock it but cognitions; these are as keys which open the door and admit."
* As corrected in NCL 1893 p. 186.
In the February issue of the Life, an error was made in stating that the key to the abbreviations in the titles was omitted from Vol. 1 of the Concordance.
Unless the Lord had risen again on the third day . . . no man could have risen again to life; for man has this solely . . . from this that the Lord united the Divine to His Human.- A. E. 659 [d.]
THE LETTER FROM THE LIBRARIAN AHLSTRAND.
IN the February issue of the Life, a reference was made to a letter received some time ago from Mr. J. A. Ahlstrand, Librarian of the Royal Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden, in reply to certain inquiries addressed to him by the Secretary of the Faculty of the Philadelphia Schools of the Academy. In view of the general and permanent interest of this letter a translation from the Swedish original is herewith presented:
"STOCKHOLM, 1892, March 23d.
"HERR PROFESSOR:
"A severe and long- Continued attack of the influenza which has kept me in bed many weeks, and still makes any work quite difficult, is my excuse for having tarried so long in replying to your letter, and that I now must write rather briefly.
"In respect to Em. Tafel's reprint [of Summaria Expositio Sensus Interni], I can state that it is perfectly correct. Number 1-17 [of the list of "Contenta" or Universals of the Internal Sense] are found at the bottom of the first page of the MS.; number 14, which is inclosed in brackets in the reprint, is crossed out in the original. The other list, n. 1-6, is found at the top of the second page. The number-references are also found in the original and have been carefully reprinted as far as I have compared them.
"The Latin lexicons that were mostly in use during the last century are enumerated below. The most common were Schenberg's and Sjogren's, the latter of which was succeeded by others only in the present century.
"I thank you for the numbers of the New Church Life which you sent me. Permit me to complete a statement your address on the Royal Academy of Sciences (New Church Life, Vol. viii, p. 40), in which you say that 'the date when Swedenborg became a member of this Academy is not exactly ascertained.' According to the Journal of the Academy, Swedenborg was proposed for membership by Linnaeus on the twenty-sixth of November, in the year 1740. At the next meeting, on the third of December, he was unanimously chosen a member, and he took his entrance on the eighth of January, 1741.
"Have the kindness to express to Bishop Benade my thanks for his friendly greeting.
"With the greatest respect,
"J. A. AHLSTRAND.
"LATIN LEXICONS USED IN THE LAST CENTURY.
"Cellarius. Chr. Latinitates probatae et exercitae. Liber memorialis naturali ordine dispositus. Holmiae, 1713, 1729, 8vo.
"Swedberg, Jesper. Euchiridium lexico Latino- Suecani. Scarae, 1713, 8vo, 96 pp.
"Swedberg, Jesper. Lexicon Latino- Suecanum in usum Scholae Scarensis. Scans, 1715, 8vo, 842 pp.
"Giese, A. Vocabularium Latino- Suecanum, in usum juventutis . . . in certos titulos digestum. Stockholm, 1732, 8vo.
"Dictionarium Latino- Suecanum et Sueco-Latinum. Stockholm, 1733, 8vo, 804 pp. (There are four earlier editions of this work, but I have not been able to find the years of their publication.)
"Shenberg, P. Lexicon Tripartitum in hanc formam redactum, ut tironum imprimis inserviat. Lincopiae 1739 4to, 842 pp.
"Ditto Ed. 2da, 1742.
"Ditto Ed. 3tia, 1747.
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Sjogren, H. Lexicon Manuale Latino- Suecanum cum brevi indice Sueco Latino, methodo quodammodo nova conscriptum et coarctum. Holmiae, 1775, 8vo, 844 pp.
"Ditto, Ed. 2da. Wexionae, 1795.
"Ditto,Ed. 3tia, Holmiae, 1815."
angels know that the Lord alone 1893
The angels know that the Lord alone, in the whole spiritual world, is fully Man.- T. C. R. 109.
"THE HUMAN AND ITS RELATION TO THE DIVINE." 1893
"The Human and its Relation to the Divine," by Theodore F. Wright, Ph. D., is, according to the author's statement in his preface, an endeavor "to solve, by means within the reach of all, the problems which present themselves to him who seeks to know man and his relation to God." In doing this the "selfhood" of man is first treated of, since the knowledge of self is considered as the "beginning of philosophy," and therefore the subject-matter of the book begins with a treatment of self, or what is one's own and not another's, and the consequent sense of proprietorship, which is developed in man from infancy; first, by the infant's distinguishing between himself and another; second, by forming an idea of the world outside of himself; third, by noting the connection between one act and another; and, finally, by learning to "distinguish self and self- interest" and making "all serve his ends," in view of which development the author states "in the development of the human race there were no men, properly so called, till consciousness of self arose; when this arose, there was man and he stood upright and had dominion over the other animals." This is interesting, not to say startling, as bearing evidence of the spread among New Church people of a theory broached a short time ago by the Rev. John Worcester, which in plain words was an attempt to span the gulf between the Doctrines of the New Church concerning the immortality of the soul and the latter-day theory of Evolution, in that it conceived of an animal, a "hominine" animal, however, not gifted with immortality, as the progenitors of immortal man. This animal arose by graduated evolution from the simplest forms of nature, and which, as we now learn from the above quotation, only came to be man, properly speaking, when it became self- Conscious; in view, therefore, of the importance of self- Consciousness, many pages of the book are devoted to its consideration, mainly, however, to the history of its discussion by philosophers, ancient and modern, the "bone of contention" between them being that of "personal identity"- That is, as to whether the "I" of to-day is one with the "I" of yesterday; or in other words, does the ever continual change in a thing involve a change in the identity of the thing. To quote, "I am I, I know that I am I;" but could it be said "I am the I who was, I am the I who knew, who desired." The author himself throws no new light on the subject of consciousness, but leaves the reader "free to take out of the impartially presented material what he will and build as he will "- Himself taking the ground of the "reality of the ego, its indivisibility, etc.," and then proceeding to the consideration of "Man a recipient," in substance thus-"man as to his indivisible personality" is either create or uncreate. If uncreate, then some theory of metempsychosis or reincarnation must be adopted, the result of which would be that men would be God; but if create, then he must be regarded as a recipient, and, as considered in the following chapters, a recipient which is reactive and a free agent.
The chapter on the Divine, in its first part is largely devoted to a presentation of the various considerations of the evidence of God, known to what is called natural religion; such as the "ontological proof"- That is, "the notion of God being conceivable, must be true"- The "cosmological argument" or seeking for the "causes of things," the "teleological proof" or the "argument from design," and also the "argument from intuition" or "instinct," all of which is "too distant a view of the Divine" according to the author, and must therefore "yield in power to the denomination of the Divine in the Christ." This is the point of the book, and it is reached in these words: "The argument from the Christ, the Emanuel, God-with-us is, and forever will be, unmatched He was actually Jesus- That is, Jehovah the Saviour. He was the image of the Invisible God." But the unfortunate part is that the manner of treating this subject throughout is such as to leave the Old Church reader if he grasps the position at all, with the impression that it is one among the theories of the day concerning the Divine, with which the mind may sport in wantonness, and this because the true reason of the belief is not given, wherefore it comes with no authority, and will command little serious attention, otherwise than as a theory to be rejected first of all. For the LORD is not presented in His last revelation of Himself, in His Divine Human. And the New Church reader will look in vain amongst the many quotations from authors of books both human and Divine for the name of the LORD'S servant, Emanuel Swedenborg, and why? Mr. Wright explains in his preface: "No quotations from Swedenborg have been made, because I have written in the spirit of his works without consulting them." If this were true it might be sufficient, but it is not, for the "spirit" of which he speaks is none other than the LORD in His Second Coming, concerning which not one word is said, but instead, this: "There are two probable reasons why this argument has not been used (that is, the argument for the Divinity of the LORD'S Human); first, the histories of the Christ had been called in question; secondly, He was not so much regarded in His constantly-declared representative as in His supposed propitiatory character;" and further, "as more and more of the life of the Christ is studied in the land of His work [?] and among all nations, as more and more His mighty works are spiritually fulfilled in mankind, the scepticism which was mainly a revolt from gross medieval traditionalism will be cured." This is a sample of the "spirit" in which the author has written, and which he claims to be in the "spirit" of "Swedenborg;" whence it is manifest that the claim-while commendable as an acknowledgment of the source from which some of the views were drawn-is nevertheless, as a whole, untrue, and in effect unfair, for many readers will be unable to mark the distinctions between what is from the Doctrines and what is not, and there is very much that is not from them.
Another objectionable feature of the book is the constant and exclusive use of the term "the Christ" when speaking of the LORD, which when so used signifies a state of faith alone (A. C. 2594; A. R. 294), but in this respect it is a part with much else of the book, and goes to show that the author has, with many other New Church writers of the present day, what he aptly terms a "hospitable mind" which makes "strange doctrines welcome" which hospitality it may be said is the beginning of the end.
60
"No one putteth new wine into old bottles, else the bottles break, and the wine runs out; but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved:" (Matth. ix, 17), which signifies that "the new cannot enter where falsities were previously ingenerated, unless these are eradicated" (T. C. R. 784.).
Lord put off all the maternal in the sepulchre 1893
The Lord put off all the maternal in the sepulchre, and rising again therefrom glorified Himself.- Ath., p. 35.
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
(Copyrighted.)
A TALE.
XIII.
FOLLOWING THE DOWNWARD DRIFT.
MY cousin had been sent away, then, the house being no longer in correspondence with his state. Ah, it was too true-it must indeed be true; he had now come into the state of his interiors, and the real man stood confessed. Was he still in Newcomers or had he moved forward to another community? During several days I earnestly sought an answer to this question, wandering about the city in the hope of finding him established in another house there. But all in vain.
Had I dismissed him from my mind and gone about my affairs, I might have been spared much suffering, sorrow, and shame; but I was still infatuated with the thought that I might rescue him, and longed to see him again. And my wish was granted. While out walking some ten days later, thinking intently about my cousin, some strange, almost imperceptible attraction led me far beyond the city limits and downward over a long gradual slope into a valley. Here in an extremely barren district, divided between bare sandy soil and low bottoms filled with bogs and stagnant pools, I discovered a number of rude shanties or huts built of clay and arranged in straggling rows with irregular streets between.
Wherefore had I been drawn to this place- This worse than desert? Could he have found his new home here I At length I paused before one of the larger houses, over the entrance to which was the inscription "Sunday-school." My Cousin Paul had ever been devoted to the Sunday-school, and this ought, therefore, to be the place in which to look for him. Having entered the house, I immediately discovered him, for he was on the rostrum speaking, just as I had often seen him do during our, natural lives. But the manner and the matter of his speech were now widely different. On a bench at his right sat Miss Grubb, and in front some twenty or thirty people, nearly filling the small, ugly interior. I entered on tiptoe and sat down quietly near the door.
"Inmost Sunday-schools and churches," my cousin was saying, "a great deal is made of the pretended fact that Christ rose from the dead; but, outside of a few simpleminded- And imaginative persons, no one really believes it. It is merely the fashion to make much of this mystical old legend because our forefathers believed in it and because it is supposed to act as a restraining force on the vulgar. This is the whole of the matter. Nowadays when we say that Christ rose from the dead, we mean no more than when we say that Pallas Athene leaped forth a full-grown goddess from the head of Zeus, who was at once her father and her mother.
"But in our little circle here we are all more or less of one mind, and do not need to say what we do not mean. Let us call things by their right names. As a matter of fact, Christ did not rise from the dead. Such an occurrence contradicts all known human experience, and must be supported by a tremendous amount of evidence or it cannot be believed. The evidence is not forthcoming. It is best that we look this fact in the face. It is perfectly safe to say that there can be no future life. Is there any reason to believe that a man can think who has no brain? Well, a dead person has no brain, for his whole body has moldered away to dust. Can we conceive of a person living and performing the functions of life without eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and other sense organs? -Well a dead person has no sense organs. How can there be thought and life when the brain and body have been destroyed? It is utterly impossible. And of what consequence is it to us whether Christ rose from the dead or not? It is just as hard to make a living and just as easy to be happy, whether He did or not. Everything goes on just the same; men work and women weep and children die. On every side the fairest flowers are cut down in their prime; the pitiless and inexplicable decrees of fate continue to fill us with grief and rage just the same. The malign and remorseless monster, Death, continues to roam abroad, daily transforming mirth into despair. Without even a warning, we are arrested, imprisoned, flung into the nameless darkness beyond the tomb within the lapse of a few hours. A God who cart do nothing might just as well not exist."
There was much more in the same strain before the speaker of these vile words sat down. When he had finished, the listeners rose and filed past me out of the house. I did not like their faces, and shuddered as I looked at them; they were all bad-bad.
"What an excellent address!" some of them were saying.
"Horrible- Horrible," muttered, as my glance returned to my cousin, who now stood on the rostrum with the woman.
Alas, of what avail could be my words if I should speak to him now? He was past all persuasion. "Let me, then, no longer indulge in a vain and foolish hope," was my thought. "Let me not remain a moment longer exposed to the diabolical influences of this community."
I was in the act of rising, intending to quietly leave the house and hurry away, when my cousin saw, recognized, and smiled at me. This was more than I could resist; the old fascination seized me, and I walked forward to meet him. However, I was still very unhappy, and, after he had shaken my hand, I could not bring myself to do more than nod distantly to the woman at his side.
"What are you doing in this dreadful place, Paul?" I asked, with sadness. "Who could have believed that you would ever stand up and utter such atrocious sentiments I"
The grief displayed in my tone and manner wrought on him and seemed, for a moment, to draw him back to his former state; he looked startled-like one caught in a disgraceful action.
"Well, you see," he stammered, "they won't listen to the old orthodox way of putting it any more, and I must contrive to interest them. It is the only way of gaining an influence over them."
"Worse and worse," I groaned.
Then his manner changed. "After all, I spoke only the truth," he said, decisively. "It is really what I always believed in my inmost thoughts."
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"O Paul! Paul!" I broke in, in an agony of pain, "have you forgotten that we are in the spiritual world? Listen to me: we are now in the spiritual world, and you stand on the very brink of hell."
He laughed aloud and answered, flippantly: "Your mind has been abused, my poor cousin. I'll soon convert you from such folly."
It was useless, and I said no more. They led me out, and along the wretched street to their home- A miserable shanty of two rooms, meanly furnished. "To think of your choosing this place!" I exclaimed, looking about. "It is horrible."
"Well, it might be better, of course," said Paul, with a careless shrug; "but really it is not so bad. You surprise me."
Clearly, he did not see even external objects as I saw them-my poor, lost Paul!
His woman presently called him into the other room, and I could hear her talking bitterly. No words were distinguishable, but I well knew that she was abusing me. I felt that I could breathe more freely outside, and, accordingly, left the house. As I strolled away a few steps, I heard Paul's voice, and, looking over my shoulder, saw him standing in the doorway.
"That's right," he called out; "take a walk down by the lake. I'll join you presently"
The lake! Those stinking bogs and stagnant pools a lake. Alas, he was mad-with that incurable madness which is born of evil. The words of the angel Ariel recurred to me-words which were, in substance, that in I the spiritual world only those who tend downward to hell are insane and only the good are truly in their right minds.
I did not turn my steps toward the "lake," but walked slowly to the extremity of the village, gazing curiously at the low-browed, repulsive men and women as they went in and out of their houses. It seemed unquestionable that the place was on the very borders of hell. How could these people develop a more evil expression than was already theirs? My cousin's face was more agreeable to my eye than any I saw, but even his now wore a hardened look which suggested that of a criminal, while the appearance of his woman was in every way revolting.
On the outskirts of the village I seated myself on the' rotten stump of a tree, uncertain what to do. It was already late, and when I rose to retrace my steps it was growing dark. Glancing toward the region of the stagnant pools and bogs, I beheld, first, one, then another, and, finally, a dozen or more wavering phosphorescent lights floating over it. They did not burn steadily, but came and went in a fitful, uncertain way. "How well these false, treacherous stars correspond to the false beliefs, the fatuous imaginings of the wretched people of this region," was my thought, turning toward the village. Deep darkness had now settled upon the ground, and, but for the faint light shining through chinks in the walls, the huts would scarcely have been outlined in the gloom.
As I entered what I supposed to be the main avenue, the dark figure of a man rose before me.
"Who are you?" he demanded, roughly.
"Who are you?" I rejoined, mildly.
"I am a king," was the proud reply.
"Good-night, your majesty," I said, passing on.
"Stop a minute," he cried, following me. "What are your ideas about government? What government do you prefer?"
"I lived under a limited monarchy in the natural world,"-I said, after a moment of hesitation. "I liked it well enough."
"We have a democracy here- A glorious democracy. We tolerate nothing else," he rejoined, with a certain combative enthusiasm.
"But I thought you said you were a king."
"So I am. We are all kings here- All free and independent sovereigns."
"It strikes me that that is a very cheap sort of royalty."
"But you see," he eagerly explained, "while we are all kings, one of us is a king of kings. I speak of myself. I am an emperor."
"Ah! I see. . . . But what becomes of your 'glorious democracy'?"
At this he flew into an unaccountable passion and began to abuse me, wherefore I turned and walked quickly away. A little farther on another dark figure rose before me and demanded to know who I was.
"I am an ordinary person," I said. "I suppose you are a king."
"In one sense, yes," was the answer.
"There seem to be a good many kings about here," I remarked, irreverently, adding: "A pretty democracy this."
"But they are only kings of the ordinary type," was the disdainful reply. "I am a spiritual king. I am the Pope."
I was moving forward with a parting salute, but this "pope" ran after me with less dignity than haste: "Hold on; I will tell you a secret," he whispered mysteriously, "I am more than a mere pope. I am a pope of popes. I am the acknowledged lord of all the popes who have lived since St. Peter first turned over the keys."
"Good-night, your high mightiness," I said, and slipped away.
A few minutes later I realized that I was lost. Where my cousin's house now might be I could not tell. As I halted, looking from side to side, a third dark figure, this time that of a woman, approached me. As soon as she began to speak I recognized Miss Grubb. Without waiting to inquire my name or my errand, she burst into a tirade against my cousin, claiming that he had been beating her without cause, and heaping abuse upon him in the most violent terms. It seemed to be a matter of no concern whether she knew or did not know the person to whom she delivered herself, if only she could vent her rage. I said nothing in reply, and after a moment turned and walked away; observing that she persistently followed me, I began to run and soon eluded her.
I now approached a house to make inquiries, but the sound of quarreling and fighting within caused me to halt and then pass on to another. Here, as there was no answer to repeated knocks, and as light shone through large chinks in the side of the hut, I felt justified in applying my eyes to one of them and examining the interior. All that I could see was a man, old and gray, seated on a bench, with his elbows resting on a bare table before him, upon which stood a smoking candle. In the dim light it could be seen that his face wore a cunning, infatuated smile, and that his fixed, glassy eyes hung rapturously upon some object between him and the candle. What this object was I could not well make out until the man touched it caressingly with his hands and the clink of silver or gold was heard. Then it was clear to me that the precious object was a pile of money, or what was believed to be such, and that he who gazed upon it so lovingly was the immortal spirit of an earthly miser. I knocked loudly on the wall, at the same time calling out, but in his insane rapture the man appeared to be deaf to everything.
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"Here is one more example," I reflected, turning away, "of how the ruling love of every creature follows him into eternal life."
Later I approached and knocked at a neighboring house. Without delay the door was partly opened, and the heads of two men and a woman were thrust out, one after the other. Their faces, which were outlined in the dim light from the interior, were so evil and malevolent that, had I not been seen, I should have turned away without speaking. There was now nothing else to be done, and I called to them, inquiring the way to my cousin's house.
"What did you say?" asked one of them, sullenly. He did not have the manner of a deaf person, and I knew that he had heard me perfectly.
"He is a stranger," said the woman, with a cunning smile.
"Let us knock him down and rob him," whispered the other man.
I turned abruptly and hurried away, prudently looking over my shoulder; and when I saw them rush out after me, I began to run swiftly and so escaped them. I ran until I found myself in front of the "Sunday-school," which was recognized with a sense of relief. Now it would not be difficult to find my cousin's house. Observing that the door was open and the interior dimly lighted, I stepped forward and looked in, wondering that, instead of the voice of a single speaker, I heard a confused medley of sounds. For one minute I stood staring, then turned away in horror. There is a limit beyond which it is not well to go, and what I saw in the "Sunday-school" by night will not be recorded here.
Arriving shortly at what was supposed to be my cousin's house, I was about to knock when a sudden suggestion of prudence arrested my hand. Suppose it were not the place? My last experience had made me apprehensive. After a moment I concluded to look through a chink before knocking, and it was well that this was done. Applying my eye to the hole through: which light penetrated, I at first saw only the outlined figures of a man and woman seated on a bench before an open fireplace which was duskily lighted by a few burning coals. The woman's face was turned directly toward me and gradually I made out a pair of bold starting eyes which were strangely familiar. A moment later I recognized my cousin's woman, and by this time I was also aware that she and the man close at her side (who was not my cousin), were caressing each other.
Turning away in disgust, I had scarcely taken ten steps when I ran against a man unawares. The shock of collision was quite as unpleasant to him as it was to me, to judge from the loud oath which he uttered. Immediately I recognized Paul.
"I beg your pardon," I said, mildly. "Don't you know me?"
"Oh! it is you," he answered, after a moment spent in curbing his anger. "Where have you been? I couldn't find you when I started out."
I told him that I had lost my way and even now was uncertain where to find his house. I began to speak to him then imploringly:
"Paul-my dear cousin- Come with me away from this horrid place. I cannot believe that you really are what you appear to be; you have been the victim of a bad influence-you have been dragged down by that wicked woman, but there may yet be time. Why should you stay? That woman with whom you are infatuated- she is unfaithful. Listen to me-she is not true to you."
He demanded to hear more, and I told him what I had seen in the house near which we stood. Uttering frightful oaths, he turned and hurried toward the place. Instead of following him I moved yet farther away, halting anon to listen as the sound of a door burst in from without was borne to me. This harsh sound was followed shortly by the noise incident upon a desperate fight-now the fall of an overturned table, now a man's furious oath, now a woman's terrified scream. How long it lasted I know not. Sick with horror, I stood still until the wretched woman limped past me, weeping and groaning. Hearing Paul's angry voice a few feet behind her and dreading to meet him just now, I leaped backward out of sight, and so avoided him.
A short while later, as I stood in the same neighborhood, doubtful what to do, two dark figures rushed past me and accosted a third in my hearing, "Where is that man who dares to criticise our form of government?" they shouted, in a fury, and I recognized the voices of the two "kings," or rather of the "emperor" and the "lord of the popes."
Far from informing them of my whereabouts, I stepped quickly out of their way and withdrew from the neighborhood. The night was full of dangers. I dared not trust myself even in the house of my cousin, and concluded to remain in the street, protected by the cloak of darkness and the possibility of shifting my position at will.
Ah that night of terrors; of continuing alarms! Once I saw a door open and in the dim light recognized a face which caused my heart to stand still. The face of Downing-Downing, the evil spirit who weeks ago had enticed me into the pseudo-paradise. He was here. Was this his camping-ground, and was I, then, in hell?
For an hour I paced restlessly about, praying for deliverance from my position; but there was no change. If any, the night and gloom thickened; the streets were still crowded with unseen dangers- An oath here, a blow there, emphasized by a cry of pain, hoarse or shrill according to the sex of the victim, and now and again a frail hut trembled with the force of some fierce struggle within. Was this a deep and black temptation which would end anon or was I lost? O heaven I was I lost!
Even as I put this question, dark figures, only half outlined, started up about me, and seemed to listen with bent heads to every thought throbbing within my brain; sometimes surrounding me as if to shut out all escape; sometimes crowding near in broken groups and pointing at me, while whispering and laughing softly, derisively. In agony I prayed until I could no longer pray to be set free from the devilish crew which seemed to beset me. But I was not set free, and I thought that I should die-my immortal spirit could not live on through such soul-freezing terrors.
"We know you," these crowding shadows seemed to say with glee. " We have heard you pretend to yourself that you are good, and we have laughed. You feed upon the recollection of good deeds done, but your good deeds like ours were ever the offspring of selfish aims. We tell you it is vain to deceive yourself, for deep down in your heart we see the shape of the cloven foot. We recognize you as one of us. You may struggle-you may writhe-but it is too late. This is hell, and you cannot escape."
I shut my ears with my hands; I bowed myself to the earth and strove to lift my thoughts to heaven. I could not pray, a cold, determined, remorseless hand seemed to clutch my brain. The shadow of hell's night was over me, the thick curdling darkness was a monster with a thousand snaky arms which pinned me down. Too late too late; all was over.
"Oh! let me not give up!" rose a faint cry within me at last. "My heart is dead, and prayer is not for me, but let me lift my soul upward through the dark a little way.
63
Let me, in this tempest, fix my thoughts upon that Sun of heaven which I know forever rides serene above all clouds. Fell spirits hot from depths of hell may tempt with poisoned words, may drown the earth in deathly gloom, may shadow all my soul with night, but still mayhap one ray from that bright Sun will filter down to me. . . Give up? Once and forever, no! The crowding troop of devils may pile their shadows to the sky, but cannot shut me from that single ray!"
I became aware that the morning was breaking- That darkness was receding; the objects of the neighborhood were being dimly outlined. And that which tortured me was gone from before my eyes- The black horror was lifted from my soul.
(To be continued.)
Lord, in the sepulcher 1893
The Lord, in the sepulchre, and thus by death, rejected all the human from the mother and dissipated it.- Ath., p. 35.
JOURNEY TO THE MOUNTAIN 1893
ITHIEL had been taught all through his childhood and youth that there was a land upon the mountain to which every one ought to emigrate. Upon arriving at the age of maturity he had determined, after due deliberation, to leave the house of his father and go to live up there in the country of which he had heard and read so much. His natural inclination was to stay where he was. It was so pleasant there, and he loved to think for himself and to act from his own will.
He has determined to go, but, after all, why should he leave this delightful valley. To his unenlightened eyes the place he is about to leave is a pleasant country with beautiful paradises, where there are magnificent trees through which flit bright-winged singing birds; and green meadows with fragrant flowers; and wide orchards laden with fruit and blossoms; and rippling brooks with flocks of sheep and grazing kine along their banks.
He looks up the mountain's side whither he must climb, and the way appears rough and stony, with no relief of turns and pleasant by-ways. The top of the mountain he cannot see, for a cloud intervenes between him and the summit. His companions try to persuade him that above the cloud the mountain is bare and bleak and cold. He himself does not know from any proof of actual sight. He has been told that above the cloud is a country, more beautiful than any he has ever seen, inhabited by a people happy in useful pursuits. His companions ask him: "Have you ever seen any one who has been on the mountain?" He admits that he has not, though he has read what has been written by one who claims to have been for a long time and often on the mountain, and he is rationally convinced that what he has written is true.
But he vacillates and postpones his departure. Now his trouble begins. Disappointment, sorrow, and disease come to him. When this condition comes upon him his companions desert him in his extremity; but unseen messengers from the mountain wait upon him and minister to him. When it seems to him that he is at his very end he yields to despair, and gives up the hope that he can ever make the journey, but thinks that he must die where he is.
But even now the bitterness of his disappointment is sweetened, his sorrow is comforted, his disease is healed, and when he walks forth again he sees that the country he is about to leave is not at all what it had before appeared to him; but that it is a sandy desert with gloomy ravines where there are phosphorescent logs upon which sit dark-plumed screeching owls; and slimy bogs full of malodorous weeds; and broad wastes beset with thorns and thistles; and stagnant pools with packs of wolves and prowling tigers upon their sides.
He turns away with horror, and betakes himself to the upward path, and as he looks up he sees that the cloud has lifted a little, and he catches a glimpse of the beauty of the mountain and the felicity of its inhabitants.
third day 1893
The third day on which He rose again, signifies the full and whole [glorification].- Ath., p. 35.
SCHOOL SOCIAL 1893
WEDNESDAY evening, the 23d inst., witnessed one of the most enjoyable socials that have been held this school year in Philadelphia. At seven o'clock the guests began to arrive and were received by the Chancellor, assisted by seven young ladies of the School, who also provided the programme for the evening. The presence of the Professors and Councillors, with their wives, together with several invited guests, rendered the social still more enjoyable. Mr. W. C. Childs acted as master of the ceremonies. As usual the social was opened with a promenade, which ended in a waltz.
Every feature of the programme was a surprise, so well had the lady managers kept it secret. Four of the young ladies distributed daisies, violets, red carnations, and pansies. Those who had received flowers of the same kind formed into a set in one corner of the room and danced the Lanciers.
After an interval the room was partitioned off with a curtain, the ladies being on one side and the gentlemen en the other. Each gentleman was supplied with a rod, at one end of which was attached a cord and at the end of this some candy. The lines were then cast, and the gentleman who was fortunate enough to have a bite danced with the lady. To make the scene more realistic some of the baits disappeared with the fishes. Again, the ladies' handkerchiefs, which were all numbered, were put into a basket and he who wished to dance took one from it and searched for the lady who had the duplicate number and then waltzed with her. A very pleasing spectacle was the scarf waltz. Each couple had a red or white scarf, these being the School colors. The ladies stood in a line opposite the gentlemen, the couple holding each one end of the scarf. It was so arranged that the red and white should alternate. The two couples at the head then started down the centre, under the scarf which were held aloft, and joined the other end of the lines. Then two more couples followed, etc.
Later, as a surprise to the young lady managers, the color song was sung by six or eight gentlemen to new music, by Mr. Whittington. The gentlemen, led by the author of the song, Mr. Jordan, marched into the hall with the Academy banner to the tune of the song, and after forming in a circle sang the song, which was received with such enthusiasm that it had to be repeated. The unique programme was brought to a close by all promenading around the room and singing the song again.
Too much praise cannot be bestowed upon the lady managers who labored so hard to bring about the success of the social.
64
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
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THE EDITOR'S address is No. 868 North Nineteenth Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Subscriptions are also received through the following agents:
UNITED STATES.
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Pittsburgh, Pa., Mr. Wm. Rott, Tenth and Carson Streets.
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CANADA.
Toronto, Ont., Mr. B. Carswell, 20 Equity Chambers.
Waterloo, Mr. Rudolph Roschman.
GREAT BRITAIN.
Mr. E. W. Misson, 20 Paulet Road, Camberwell, London, S. E.
PHILADELPHIA, APRIL, 1893=123.
CONTENTS.
Editorial, p. 49.-Death and Resurrection (a Sermon), p. 50.- Conjunction of the Internal Man with the External Natural, p. 51.-Notes on Ecclesiastical History, IX. The Most Ancient Church: Its Night, Consummation, and Judgment, p. 53.- The Existence of Language, p. 56.
Notes and Reviews, p. 57.- The Letter from the Librarian Ahlstrand (Latin Lexicons used in the Last Century), p. 58.-"The Human and its Relation to the Divine, p. 59.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale xiii, p. 60.- The Journey to the Mountain, p. 63.- School Social, p. 63.
News Gleanings, p. 54.-Births, Marriage and Death, p. 64.- A Journal wanted, p. 64.
AT HOME.
Pennsylvania.-ON February 26th the Rev. C. Giles ordained the Rev. Adam B. Dolly (formerly a minister in the Methodist Church) into the ministry of the New Church.
THE Rev. A. B. Dolly will act as Missionary within the limits of the Pennsylvania Association, visiting regularly the Society in Lancaster and Allentown.
THE Pennsylvania Association has recently established a small circulating library in West Hazleton.
THE Frankford Society has an equal representation with other churches in the Woman's Christian Association, an organization composed of the Protestant religions bodies of the place. It considers this an important step toward a better social relation in the community where its usefulness must be found. But the step may be in the direction of further vastation of the Frankford Society.
THE Lancaster Society will remove, owing to alterations which render this necessary, from No. 10 North Queen Street, where it has met for the last seventeen years. After April 1st it will meet at No. 323 West King Street.
Texas.- THE Judge of the County Court and the Mayor of Liberty, with several others, have lately become interested in the Doctrines, and have received a visit from the General Pastor of the Texas Society.
Illinois- THE Rev. L. P. Mercer preached at Joliet on February 12th and 19th.
THE Ministers' Conference of the Illinois Association have passed a resolution favoring the principle that the Convention should pay the expenses of the delegates of the Association.
THE Pastor of the Englewood Society lectured on March 9th on "Emanuel Swedenborg, the Qualifications and Duties of a Modern Seer."
New York.- THE New York Association held its twenty-ninth Annual Meeting on February 22d in the house of worship of the Orange Society. There were present seven ministers and fifty delegates. The most important question discussed was "Woman's field of use in the world at the present and in the future." This discussion was on the reports of the Committee (which consisted of ministers, laymen, and women) appointed to report on a resolution, which was offered last year, authorizing the Board of Directors to employ women as missionaries, teachers, etc. The majority Report, recommended the passage of the resolution practically, on the ground of the inability of its signatories to get definite teaching from the Writings on the subject. On the other hand the minority report opposed the passage of the resolution quoting from the Writings in support. The Rev. J. C. Ager welcomed both reports, and thought in substance they were nearly the same. After discussion it was resolved to meet on March 25th in the church of the New York Society to further discuss the subject. Both reports have been printed.
Ohio.-MR. C. T. Athearn, of Jewett, gave on February 25th, by request, an address on the Doctrines of the New Church, at a school- House two miles out in the country.
Maryland.- THE Baltimore Society, being without a pastor, desires to hear from those open to a call.
Massachusetts.- THE Sabbath-school Conference held its Annual Meeting on February 22d in the church of the Boston Society.
Washington, D. C.- AT the meeting of the Maryland Association, held on February 22d, there were present the Rev. Messrs. F. Sewall, P. J. Faber, T. A. King, P. B. Cabell, P. C. Louis, and L. F. Hite. Mr. Hite has been re-engaged as missionary. The newly formed colored society, of Washington, has been taken into membership after a lengthy debate, but it will be represented by five white Newchurchmen. A resolution was adopted, requesting Convention that the Rev. Frank Sewall be invested with the office of Ordaining Minister.
THE Ministers' Conference of the Maryland Association was held in Washington on February 22d. The subject of "A New Church Evidence Society" was discussed. The Association on the following day held its Annual Meeting of the Sunday- School Union.
ABROAD.
Great Britain.-MR. Lardge, of the Clayton-le-Moors Society, is delivering a series of lectures for the people in that place. On Sunday, February 5th, his subject was "Mind the paint."
A FOUR days' mission has been concluded in Southport, Bolton, and Preston. At the first-named place the attendance each day averaged 100 persons.
ON February 11th a lady delivered a lecture on "Charles Kingsley" before the Glasgow (Cathedral Street) Society.
SUNDAY services were resumed in Jersey on February 5th, after an interval of six months, during which the building was undergoing repair.
THE meetings of the Band of Hope in connection with the Birmingham Society, "are conducted in a purely unsectarian manner, and . . . have been the means of introducing several into New Church Society, and from thence to a knowledge of New Church doctrines, of which they would otherwise have been ignorant."
ON February 7th the Rev. Joseph Deans lectured, by invitation, to the members of the St. Rollox Eclectic Club, Glasgow, on "The Morality of the Bible."
THE Rev. Charles H. Wilkins has been preaching to the Camden Road Society for several Sundays. One of his subjects was the consideration of the question, "Is Christianity played out?" which question has been the subject of much controversy in a London daily paper.
THE Rev. Mark Rowse, of Leeds, visited the Society in Sheffield, on February 12th, this Society being without a pastor, and administered the Holy Supper to twenty-one persons.
A WOMAN lectured before the Walworth Road (London) Society on February 16th upon "Why all women should be Socialists." The meeting was also presided over by a woman.
THE Walworth Road Society has given notice of motion for the alteration of several rules of Conference, to be moved at its next Session, in order to provide that the President, or any past President specially appointed by him for that purpose, may ordain into the ministry those approved by the Conference.
FOUR Missionary lectures were delivered at Barnoldewick, during February, with an average attendance of sixty-eight.
THE Wigan Society enters this rear upon its one hundredth anniversary. It is proposed to hold a Bazaar in October in aid of the new place of worship.
AT the annual meeting of the Wretham Road (Birmingham) Society, the membership was reported to be three hundred and forty, with an average attendance at the Holy Supper of sixty-one.
THE magazine from which was culled the item in the February Life about the expected speakers at the World's Congress of Religions, states that the announcement was premature.
Australia.- THE Rev. J. J. Thornton, of the Melbourne Society, has resigned owing to the serious illness of Mrs. Thornton, and is going to England for a year.
JOURNAL WANTED 1893
BIRTHS, MARRIAGE, AND DEATH.
THE Secretary of the Council of the Laity the General Church of the Advent of the LORD would be pleased to hear from any one who can dispose of a copy of the Journal of the Pennsylvania Association (or General Church of Pennsylvania) for the year 1883.
Address MR. REUBEN WALKER Secretary
Care of Academy Book Room,
1821 Wallace Street,
Philadelphia, Pa.
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spiritual angels 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII. No. 5. PHILADELPHIA, MAY, 1893=123. Whole No. 151.
The spiritual angels are especially affected by songs which treat of the Lord, His Kingdom and the Church.- A. C. 8261.
Title Unspecified 1893
MUSIC is from Heaven, and leads to Heaven. All Heaven is ordered to an exquisite harmony. According to this harmonious form proceed the thought and speech of the angels, which, in consequence, fall into numbers and cadences without an effort- As spontaneously as the song of the lark issues from its tender throat. And whole societies and heavens of angels sing in perfect accord and concert without special training or preparation.
The angels are with men. Where men prepare themselves for the closer consociation and influx of their angelic associates, the harmonious flow of the thought and speech of the angels is communicated to them, and finds utterance in discourse of elegance and song of harmony. The music so produced has the effect of stirring affections similar to those whence it springs, and thus to impart joy and gladness.
Title Unspecified 1893
No music is so replete with heavenly influences and so capable of producing delight as that which wells from the heart when it is full of love for the Word of the LORD, and sounds forth the Divine truths thereof. The delight produced in others by such song varies according to the state of mind of the singers and of the hearers. Those of them who know of the Internal Sense of the words that are being sung, and who think of it and are affected by it, have an internal gladness; but those who think of the literal sense and are affected by it, have only external gladness. When the Internal Sense is present, the singers and hearers enter into thought similar to that of the angels attendant upon them, with whom they sing in concert; for these angels are at such times also glorifying the LORD. And while the spirit of a man is thus together with the multitude of the heavenly host that is praising God, he experiences heavenly gladness from the holiness and blessedness which inflow through these angels from the LORD. In this state of gladness worldly distractions vanish, the evils to which the proprium inclines cannot approach, but the man seems as to his whole being as it were raised up into Heaven among the angels. For the gladness of heart, made active by the song of the Church, breaks forth from the interior, even to the extreme fibres of the body, and moves these with a glad, and at the same time a holy, tremor.
Nothing moved the ancients so much as the celebration, in song, of the Advent of the LORD, and of the salvation of the human race by Him. And so in the New Church, every joy will be exceeded by a more interior and a fuller joy, whenever the LORD'S Advent and His authority in the heavens and in all the lands is acknowledged and confessed in song. This, in fact, is "the new song" prophesied in the Apocalypse.
Title Unspecified 1893
IN ancient times musical instruments of various kinds were used in holy worship, each of them applied to affections of celestial good and to affections of spiritual good, and to the joys evoked by them. In the New Church, to which is revealed the secret that "the angels, who in Heaven constitute the celestial kingdom of the LORD, derive the Internal Sense of the Word from the mere affection of man while he reads the Word, resulting also from the sound of the words in the original tongue," and that "the sounds of musical instruments elevate the affections"- This comes almost as a direction from the LORD, likewise to use musical instruments of various kinds in Divine worship.
There is, therefore, a profound reason for the pleasure with which the formation of orchestras in various centres of the Church is witnessed (see page 75); and the experience with them in worship, testifies to their noble use.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE LORD, in His great Mercy, is also providing a distinctive New Church music, written in the sphere of the Word now opened as to its Internal Sense. On the occasion of the singing of some of this music for the first time the accompanying sermon (see page 66) was delivered, the text coming in the regular course of a series of sermons on Genesis. At the celebration of the LORD'S Resurrection, eight of the first nine Psalms were sung, accompanied by the orchestra (see page 76).
Fourteen Psalms, set to music, have thus far been printed. The translation has been made anew for this purpose, being based, more fully than any heretofore, on the translations given in the Doctrines of the New Church, and it is furnished with the summaries of the Internal Sense. These are inserted over the respective groups of verses to which they refer, and the music is so written that the priest can either read the Internal Sense where it is printed, or give all the summaries together at the beginning of the Psalm, the singing in that case continuing without interruption.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE music is called, in the sermon, devotional and educational, because, while it breathes a most devout spirit, its hold on the affections stimulates the zeal to master its more difficult passages, and at the same time its fine quality gives new ideas of music to the majority of the worshipers. The reverence and sweetness that pervade it are singularly affecting. Not every part captivates at once, but all of it is liked better as it grows more familiar, and hidden beauties, not perceived at first, reveal themselves as the music becomes better known. It stands unrivalled among all the music that has thus far been produced in the New Church, for its remarkable adaptation to the spirit and letter of the Psalms for its fine harmony and for its classical beauty and purity. So different is it from other music, and so expressive of the affections contained in the Psalms, that it is, in the true sense of the words, New Music.
Title Unspecified 1893
In olden times . . . they who sang and who heard songs, from the holy and happy, which inflowed out of heaven, had heavenly gladness, in which they seemed to themselves as it were raised up into heaven.- A. C. 8261.
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DISCORD AND HARMONY Rev. EUGENE j. E. SCHRECK 1893
"And Judah approached him, and said, By me, my lord, let, I pray, thy servant speak a word in the ears of my lord, and let not thine anger kindle against thy servant, because as thou as Pharaoh. My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father or a brother? and we said to my lord, We have a father, an old man, and one born of his old ages, the youngest, and his brother is dead, and left is he alone to his mother, and his father loveth him."-Genesis xliv, 18-20.
THE protracted reading of the lessons in the Arcana Celestia about the conjunction of the Internal Man, represented by Joseph, with the Natural Man, represented by the sons of Jacob, must impress the mind of every one with the long duration of the preparation for this most desirable event, while at the same time it enables the mind to dwell on many of the particulars which enter into the preparation. For more than a year have our thoughts been dwelling upon this wonderful subject as described in the nativity of Benjamin, and his subsequent history, and that of Joseph and his other brothers. Yet with all our thought we have far from fathomed the Divine Wisdom in the matter with which we have been occupied, and there are still a number of lessons before us ere we shall read of the final and lasting conjunction. In the present chapter, the Medium between the Internal Celestial Man and the External Natural continues to be treated of: first that the Internal Celestial Man infilled the Medium with spiritual truth from itself. The Medium is Benjamin, spiritual Truth which was with him is the silver cup of Joseph; the Internal Celestial Man is Joseph; the External Natural Man are the ten sons of Jacob. Then the temptation of the External Natural Man is treated of, and this until it submitted itself spontaneously to the Internal Celestial. The temptation is described by their being accused, and that in despair they returned to Joseph; the spontaneous submission is described by their all offering themselves as servants, and, for them, Judah. The conjunction of the External Man with the Internal does not take place without temptation and spontaneous submission. While the present chapter thus treats of the initiation of the External Man by the Internal Man in preparation for the conjunction with itself, the next chapter treats of this conjunction; but even there, because this conjunction does not take place except by spiritual good from the Natural, which is Israel, therefore it prepares to adjoin that to itself first.
Regarding the story of the silver cup merely from the sense of the letter, it appears strange that Joseph should make use of so curious a proceeding to bring the brothers back to him. But the events were so ordered for the sake of the spiritual sense, which throws a wonderful light on the whole history. Benjamin is the means or the medium by which the Internal Man is eventually conjoined with the Natural Man; and the silver cup is interior truth. Truth which is given by the LORD 15 first received as if it were not given; for man, before regeneration, thinks that he himself acquires truth for himself. For, does he not himself go to church and listen to the teaching? Does he not of himself revolve the teaching in his mind and adopt it? Does he not give it forth again, in his intercourse with others, in a form quite peculiar to himself? Does he not make independent studies in the Doctrines and in the Word, and confirm them by his own reading and experience? Can any one force upon him what he is not willing to receive? Does he receive anything else as truth but what from the light that is within him he sees to be true? He feels no forces operative around and in him, and if he should, he would resent them as interfering with his freedom. So long as man thus goes on in the way of procuring truths for himself, in reliance upon his own freedom, upon his own ability, his cleverness, his insight, his industry, and thinks that it is all due to these, he is committing spiritual theft. For such is the inscrutable Divine Mercy that all these exertions of the man himself are really accompanied by an insinuation of truth. Man, does receive truth while so engaged; for the truth is given in all abundance, and whosoever will can take of it no matter what his motive. The silver cup is actually placed in the wallet of Benjamin by command of Joseph. But to vindicate to one's self and to attribute to one's self of justice and by merit the good and truth, is to take away from the LORD what is His. To represent this it was so done by Joseph, but still they were accused of being thieves in order that the conjunction might take place. For man, before he has been regenerated, cannot do otherwise than believe so, he indeed says with his mouth from the doctrine that all the truth of faith and the good of charity is from the LORD, but still he does not believe it before faith has been implanted in good; then he acknowledges it for the first time from the heart. And this implantation of faith in good takes place only as man actually shuns evils as sins against God. It is one thing to confess from Doctrine, it is altogether another to confess from faith; many may confess from Doctrine, even those who are not in good, but who are in the very theft about which they can talk so well; so that even the evil spirit who claimed to be Lucifer, who made himself equal to the Most High, told Swedenborg that in the world he had preached against himself, and had devoted Lucifer, who was himself, to hell. Men can make such a profession because doctrine is mere knowledge to them. But no others can profess from faith but those who are in good, and indeed in spiritual good- That is, in charity toward the neighbor. That they were accused of being thieves in order that the conjunction might take place, appears also from this that Joseph thus brought them back to himself, and kept them some time in the thought about that deed, and that he then manifested- That is, conjoined himself to them.
When they came to Joseph, Judah was their spokesman, because he represents the good of the Church in the natural or External Man, while Joseph represents good in the Internal Man, and the communication between the two can take place only by good. He supplicated the Internal that it might kindly hearken and not turn itself away, "and he said: 'By me, my lord, let, I pray, thy servant speak a word in the ears of my lord, and let not thine auger enkindle against thy servant.'" With this preliminary, Judah recounted the story of their former reception by Joseph, and the sequel. In this supplication for mercy is involved the prayer for freedom from all the depressing and terrifying trials through which they had passed, and which represented the temptations even to despair which the natural man has to endure. Their brother lay in prison, they dare not again return to Egypt, except their younger brother went with them; yet what assurance had they that he would not also be taken from them by the mighty ruler of Egypt, and then would their father die, laying the guilt upon them. When at last, with fearful apprehensions, they came to Egypt, they were received kindly, and their brother was restored to them. But hardly had they left, in this pleasant turn of events, when they were overtaken and convicted of theft.
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Rending their garments in their despair, they once again returned to the powerful prince and offered themselves as his servants if only his anger could be pacified. Thus by hard trials, by alternate hope and despair, were they forced to submit themselves entirely. Thus by hard and grievous temptations, by alternate hope and despair, are men brought to acknowledge their own unworthiness, and the dominion of the LORD alone. "And let not thine anger enkindle against us, because as thou, as Pharaoh." What other conclusion could they arrive at, but that the lord of Egypt was angry with them, and yet, who that is acquainted with the whole story does not know that Joseph was anything but angry with the sons of his father. Like them, shortsighted and ignorant, do men who suffer misfortunes and trials attribute anger and aversion to the LORD because they do not know the whole story of His loving providence. Even though they may know intellectually that the LORD is ever loving, and overrules all for their good, yet when times of anguish and trouble come they believe that He is afar off, and that He has left them so that there is no longer any help. The greater the evils in them that must be overcome the longer the times of desolation and despair, and they cry out as did David: "O LORD, do not in Thine anger rebuke me, and do not in Thy wrath chastise me. Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for languishing am I" (Psalm vi, 2, 3). Yet in the very attributing of anger to the LORD there is the general acknowledgment that all things are from Him, and when better and clearer days come they then see that the anger was not in the LORD, but in themselves. Is it not generally so, that we attribute to others that which is in ourselves? Are not the faults that we most clearly see in others, those that we have ourselves? When anger arises in our own hearts is not our first impulse to attribute it to our neighbor? Anger, malice, hatred, revenge, resentment, that distort the fair image of the brother and make a monster of him, can be rooted out only by suffering. When by suffering the faculties are weakened and debilitated, the real benignity of the neighbor makes its way into the heart, and emotions are stirred that gradually throw off the weight of evil lusts. Yet what heartaches these trials and temptations occasion! Can they come with the sanction of an Infinitely loving Father? And when they are induced by the caprices and ignorance of others why should we suffer?
There is no heartache, there is no anguish which is not permitted by the LORD for the good of the sufferer because he needs it. This is a certain and uncontrovertible truth. If trouble comes to us through others it is because an as yet unconquered evil needs the discipline to weaken it and to prepare for its extirpation. Why should Israel, who loved Joseph, and had no knowledge of his sale to Egypt, why should the otherwise innocent Benjamin suffer? He was the particular thief that stole the silver cup. Yet he represented a more interior truth than all. Hence his trial was the most acute. The problem of life is the subjugation of the natural man under the spiritual, and whatever happens to man has relation to that, for where the natural man is subject to the spiritual he is subject through the spiritual to the LORD, Who always loves him and cares for him.
That this is within the temptations is expressed in the words of Judah: "My lord asked his servants, saying, 'Have you a father or a brother?' and we said to my lord, 'We have a father, an old man, and one born of his old ages- The youngest- And his brother is dead, and left is he alone to his mother, and his father loveth him.'"
Israel, the father, is the spiritual man from the natural, with whom Joseph seeks to become conjoined eventually, and through whom he becomes conjoined with the sons of Jacob, among whom Benjamin was numbered. Israel loved Benjamin. The spiritual from the natural loves the truth which comes from the good that has been established in man by regeneration, and by this love all are ultimately conjoined with the LORD. This love itself comes from the LORD, and accompanies man interiorly in his temptation- Combats. It can be perceived by the instructed ear running through all the discords and resolutions that eventually flow forth into the full harmony that delights the soul and lifts it up. Anger, and the temptations which make the LORD appear angry to man, are discords. Love is harmony. In hell are the discordant sounds of wailing and the gnashing of teeth, where their worm dieth not and their fire is not quenched, but in Heaven are the celestial harmonies of the harpers, harping on their harps, and of those that sing the new song before the throne and before the four animals and the elders. In Hell are the unharmonious and repulsive forms of evil and falsity; in Heaven the beautiful harmonies of form and color, showing forth the good and truth that are built into the architecture of its temples, and exist in all the wealth of representative images with which the celestial world is replete. Yet man is in hell, though his destiny is Heaven. He must walk through the valley of the shadow of death. He fears the anger of God, but he has no need to fear evil, for above all the tumult of conflicting emotions that anger produces on a lower plane, beyond the discordance of his troubled state, the sweet consolation is born in to him when most he stands in need of it that "his Fat her loveth him:"
What is this love? Is the predicate of harmony more than a figure of speech or an analogy? Yea, it is more. It stands for the essence of the thing. Love is harmony. It is the essence of harmony, and the harmony of sound, of form and color is but the effect of this- The soul and life of harmony-love! Listen to the words of Divine Revelation touching this sweet and beautiful and wonderful thing that we call love:
"Love is spiritual conjunction because it is the conjunction of minds or of the thought and will of two. Hence, love regarded in itself is something purely spiritual, and its natural is the delight of consociation and of conjunction. As to its essence, love is the harmonic resulting from the changes of state and from the variations in forms or substances of which the human mind consists. If that harmonic is from a heavenly form it is heavenly love. Hence it may be evident that love cannot derive its origin from anything else than from Divine Love itself, which is from the LORD, thus that love is the Divine, which inflows into forms and disposes them that the changes of state and the variations may be in the harmony of Heaven."
In order, then, "that spiritual gladnesses or felicities may be understood, an idea of them can be had from the harmonies of sounds. . . . The harmonies of sounds and of speech, especially of the sense of speech, pertain to spiritual harmony. The gladness which thence results is a spiritual gladness, therefore the music of the- Ancient Church, therefore the singing in the Heavens is so delicious" (S. D. 904). "Truth is that which constitutes the harmony; the pleasantness then resulting is goods" (D. P. 312). Falses produce disharmony. Hence in all relations into which love is the prime factor- And what human relations are there in which it does not so enter?-it is falsity which causes disharmony, and truth which creates harmony. Especially is this true of our relation to the LORD, of our relation to the consort, of our relation to the young.
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It is a well-known law that one of the causes of internal cold in married life is falsity of religion. The reason of this is that "falsity in spiritual matters either takes away religion or defiles it. It takes away religion with those with whom genuine I truths have been falsified; it defiles it with those with whom there are fakes indeed, but not genuine truths, which therefore could not have been falsified; with these, goods can be given with which those falses can be conjoined by applications by the LORD; for these falses are like various discordant tones, which, by skillful adductions and insinuations, are drawn into harmony, whence also the gratefulness of such harmony. With such as these there can be some conjugial love, but with those who have falsified in themselves the genuine truths of the Church, it cannot be given." And herein is to be sought and found the origin of the reigning ignorance about love truly conjugial, or the negative doubt that such a love can exist. (C. L. 243.)
In times of temptation, the discordance and undelight that is experienced arise from the presence of the falses that cause the temptation. Yet if man has opened himself to his Father's love, such falses are not confirmed, and the LORD keeps them from contaminating the truths which are with the man. The falses and truths are kept distinct, but are blended by the Infinite Master- Hand and drawn into harmonies.
We are invited by the LORD to learn of the marvels of spiritual harmonies from the harmonies of music that appeal to the sense of hearing; and of His Infinite Providence, which reaches down to and disposes even the minutest particulars of the life of His Church, which He loves with an Infinitely tender Father-love, we have been given by Him through one of His servants on earth, harmonies which express to a finite extent the Infinite harmonies of the sense of His Divine Speech, revealed by Him at His Second Coming, to the New Church. The music of the Ancient Church was delicious. We now have the first-fruits of the music of the New Church, a music produced by the influx of the New Heavens, that sing the new song, into a sphere on earth where the echo of that new song is caught up and prolonged, for its newness, its difference from all other singing that ever was, arises from the inmost adoration, within it of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, the Visible God, in whom is the Invisible. If we will carefully study the harmony of the music recently composed to which we are permitted to sing the sixth Psalm, we shall find the discordant tones that attend states of temptation, "by skillful adductions and insinuations" drawn into harmony, the gratefulness of which affects all who heir it. The states of alternating grief and hope, of despair and consolation, uttered in discords and accords, in resolutions from minor to major chords and back again, expressing the temptations through which every one must pass-do they not remind us of the lessons that we have been learning in the story of the sons of Jacob, of the trials, the hope and the final despair through which they passed? Yet, what a wonderful harmony throughout the music! how the discords blend into harmony! what compassion in the sustaining bass-notes, the depth of which serves as constant reminder of the Father that loveth him who is the ostensible cause of all the tribulation! And after the prayer in the state of temptation and despair, what hope, what consolation, what courage, firmness, and victory are expressed in the closing verses of the Psalm!
Among the many blessings for which we should offer up praise and joyous thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father, this merciful provision of a devotional and educational music is one of the chiefest. While it affects our hearts, it contributes none the less to the harmonious development of our understanding, from the plane of memory through that of knowledge, to that of rational insight to the Divine Truths that have been revealed to us. Can we not, for this Divine gift, the better and more fully understand what we are taught about the harmonies of our minds, and, as far as mortals can, all of whose sensations are yet clogged with things of earth, join in the feelings and thoughts of the angels as described in the following relation?
"I again heard harmonious singing, and its harmony was brought by the LORD out of disharmony, to the delights of spirits and of angels, who were so amazed from the mere delights that they said they did not know whether they were translated to the inmost heaven, even spirits not good, so that they were transported out of themselves from delight. It still continues, and such is the quiet that I have not often perceived such quiet, because they are in a delicious stupor" (S. D. 2108).
As discords vanish into heavenly harmony, so by true music, the music that comes from the harmony of souls in whom truths are arranged by good into accord with the heavenly, the Divine, sphere, man is lifted up into a serene atmosphere, such as the angels breathe, and his externals, corporeals and phantasies are made quiescent.
Is not this harmony within our minds, within our wills and our understandings, worth all the effort which it costs to attain it?
An intense tone, no matter whether it be produced by the human voice or by au instrument, will cause every strung, yes, every object that has the same potential pitch, to thrill in unison with it. The world is full or harmony. It is heard in the thunder, in the roar of the cataract, in the sand we tread, in the trees above our head, in the very machines that do our bidding in the ordinary occupations of life. They all have tones that need but the proper impulse to call them forth, and all join in the glorification of the Creator as they can catch up the harmony that is sounded forth to Him. It is an evil use that destroys this harmony.
In us also, the little world that is a reflex of the larger one around us has all the material for a universal concerted and harmonious rendering of a song in praise of the LORD, and it awaits only the impulse from the little heaven within us or each least fibre to add its delicious tremulation to the general glorification of Him who was redeemed and saved, and who has restored the harmony of Heaven and earth. Shall this heaven be built up within us? It lies entirely with us. The strings that give a discordant sound must one by one be stretched, and through the torture, even of the screw, be brought to the state in which the hand of the Master may call forth sweet sounds by the mere touch of His fingers.
Let us set our determination, our will, steadfastly in this direction, then in the times when the sorest anguish is suffered, Judah may approach Joseph, and say, "By me, my lord, let I pray, thy servant speak a word in the ears of my lord, and 1st not thine anger kindle against thy servant, as thou as Pharaoh. My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father or a brother t. and we said to my lord, We have a father, an old man, and one born of his old ages, the youngest, and his brother is dead, and left is he alone to his mother, and his father loveth Aim."
PRAYER.
O LORD, our Heavenly, Infinitely loving FATHER, from whom comes all that good and true, grateful and beautiful, we pray Thee to implant in us and confirm in us the love for Thee and for the Order and Harmony that is from Thee!
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We acknowledge, O LORD, that the harmony that we love is not of Thee, but that by the habitual custom of our daily thought and affection, and thus of our life, we have acquired a harmony contrary to Thine own. Teach us, O LORD, that we may learn to distinguish; help us to be willing to have our ears cultivated to a perception of true accord, and to a delight in it. Lead us to give up what has seemed delightful and harmonious from the evils and falses in which we have been living, and to recognize their essential jar and discord. We offer ourselves to Thee as servants- As instruments- To do and to suffer what Thy Divine Wisdom provides. Have mercy on us, O LORD, and forgive our constant prevarications. With the power of Thine Omnipotence alone can our hardness be broken, our stubbornness be turned to compliance and ready response to Thy directing hand. Place Thine hand upon us, for its very presence will dispel the hells that constantly rise up within and against us. We are not worthy, O LORD, of such mercy, yet whither shall we turn? Of Thine Infinite Love Thou hast promised to come to us, and in this is our only hope and our salvation. If Thou come not, - There is no hope for us. Save us, O LORD! hide our sins from Thy Face, and rescue us. Amen.
[After the prayer followed the singing of Psalm vi.]
Gladness of heart 1893
Gladness of heart is expressed especially by song.- A. C. 8261.
CONJUNCTION OF THE CELESTIAL INTERNAL WITH SPIRITUAL GOOD FROMTHE NATURAL 1893
GENESIS XLVI.
IN this chapter the conjunction of the Celestial Internal with spiritual Good from the natural is treated of. Next are enumerated the truths and goods of the Church in their order with which there should afterward be conjunction.
(1.) In the beginning, the conjunction of the Celestial Internal with spiritual? Good from the natural was by charity and faith, and worship thence- That is, in the continuous and successive process of the glorification of the LORD, in the Supreme Sense, but in the continuous and successive process of the regeneration of man in the Internal Sense; for in this chapter the subject concerning the conjunction of the natural man with the spiritual or of the external with the internal now goes on, and is continued, wherefore, it is said, "in the beginning of conjunction."
(2.) In this beginning there was an obscure revelation to natural truth and apperception by that truth.
(3.) The Divine Intellectual, from which is influx, instructs that the natural, with all things of it, must be initiated into the scientifics of the Church; truths must also become goods.
(4.) It was promised that the presence of the LORD should be in that state of descent into scientifics, from Whom was afterward elevation from scientifics to things interior when the internal celestial would vivify.
(5.) Thus natural truth was elucidated from the doctrine of faith and charity, and the truths which were spiritual promoted natural truth, together with those things which were of innocence, and the things which were of charity, by the doctrinals which were from the scientifics of the Church.
(6.) The, goods of truth and the truths procured by prior truths, which were of the Church, were initiated into the scientifics of the Church; thus natural truth and all things of faith therein were initiated into those scientifics.
(7.) These truths were in their own order, goods were likewise in order, so also all the faith of charity were collated into the scientifics of the Church.
(8.) The quality of truths from the spiritual in their order, which were collated into the scientifics of the Church, that is to say, the quality of the truth of the natural in general and of the truths of the natural in particular, is indicated by their order as follows:
Faith in the understanding, which is apparently in the first place; (9.) the doctrinals of faith in general; (10) faith in the will and its doctrinals in general, and a doctrinal not of genuine origin; (11.) spiritual love and its doctrinals in general; (12.) celestial love and its doctrinals, wherefrom the false and evil was extirpated and the truths of that good, which are the goods of charity; (13.) conjugial love and its doctrinals; (14.) celestial marriage and its doctrinals;
(15.) the doctrinals thus far enumerated were from spiritual affection in the natural by the cognitions of good and truth, constituting a Church and its state of spiritual life and its quality. (16.) Further, there were the good of faith, and consequent works and their doctrinals; (17.) the happiness of eternal life and the delight of affections and their doctrinals; (18.) these are of the external Church from the affection of external good; they were from the natural. What has just been said describe their state and quality. (19.) Then there were the things which were from celestial affection-namely, the internal of the Church- That is, its good and the truth thence; (20.) internal celestial and spiritual things in the natural, from the marriage of good with truth and of truth with good, which things were the new voluntary and its intellectual, which are of the Church; (21.) the internal spiritual and its doctrinals. (22.) All these were from celestial affection, and what has just been said describes their state and quality. (23.) Then came the holy of faith and the good of life and their doctrinals; (24.) temptations in which is victory and doctrinals concerning them. (25.) These latter are of the internal Church, from the affection of internal good; their state and quality has just been described. (26.) All the truths and goods initiated into the scientifics of the Church, which were from marriage, excepting their affections, which were not from marriage, have now been described as to their state and quality; (27.) from things celestial and spiritual in the natural were the voluntary and the intellectual which are of the Church; all these things were in full order.
(28.) The good of the Church in the external now communicated immediately with the internal celestial concerning the midst in the natural- That is, concerning what is best therein, for what is best is in the midst- That is, in the centre or inmost; around that on every side are goods arranged in a heavenly form, nearer and more remote according to the degrees of goodness from the best in the midst.
(29.) Doctrine from the internal celestial inflowed into spiritual good from the natural, in the midst in the natural, and this was apperceived by spiritual good from the natural, whence there was a close and intimate conjunction from mercy.
(30.) Spiritual good perceived from the internal celestial that now it had new life after the apperception of mercy, for it perceived life thence in itself.
(31.) From the internal celestial, truths in the natural now had perception and goods in their perception and communication with the natural, where are the scientifics of the Church concerning the truths and goods of the Church that they were to be initiated into the scientifics, which were of the Church.
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(32.) These truths lead to good because they have good from truths, for interior and exterior good and whatever is thence is present.
(33.) If the natural, in which are the scientifics of the Church, wills to be conjoined and to know the goods of the truths of the Church in the natural (34.), then it will perceive that from the beginning, and as yet they have truths from which is good, and that it was so from the first goods, thus shall the station of those truths be in the midst of the natural where are the scientifics of the Church. In this way there was separation from perverted scientifics, which are opposite to the scientifics of, the Church. The scientific which confirms good is that to which the perverted scientific is opposite. Perverted scientifics are what destroy the truth of faith and the: good of charity, and also are what invert order. In regard to their separation, which is here treated of, it is erected by the orderly arrangement when good with truths is in the midst or inmost; then perverted scientifics, which are opposite, are ejected.
Hitherto the conjunction of truths with scientifics has been treated of, concerning which it is further to be known that the conjunction of the Internal or spiritual; man with the External or Natural man can never be effected unless truths be insinuated into scientifics; for scientifics together with the delights of the natural affections constitute the external or natural man, wherefore unless conjunction be made with scientifics, it cannot be made at all; nevertheless in order that a man may be regenerated, his internal and his external must be conjoined; for unless they are conjoined, every good inflowing by the internal man into the external is perverted, or suffocated, or rejected, and then also the internal is closed. The manner in which that conjunction is effected, is what is described in this chapter, which manner is by the insertion of truths into scientifics.
Title Unspecified 1893
That the harmony of song and also the musical art can express various kinds of affections, and apply to things, is from the spiritual world, and not from the natural, as is believed.- A. E. 326 [a].
MUSIC OF THE ANCIENTS 1893
Music is the art that ultimates the perception of the rhythm, which is the form of the Flux of Heaven. The speech of the angels is rhythmical throughout. This speech, "when it falls from Heaven toward lower things," is perceived as harmonical music (A. C. 1648).
The History of Music is, therefore, as old as the History of Mankind in Heaven and on earth. In the Most Ancient Church it is true there was no external respiration or external sense of hearing, and hence there, could not have existed any external art of music. But the men of the Golden Age enjoyed the perception of essential music itself, the music of Heaven, which is the harmony of celestial and spiritual thoughts and affections. Nor were they in the mere passive enjoyment, but also in the active cultivation of this internal music, even as the angels are in their wonderful choirs. The cultivation of music was then the same as the cultivation of the regenerate life.
External music came with the opening of the external organs of respiration and hearing and with the beginning of external speech. As this speech at first was "congruous" with the speech of Heaven, so also must the first form of external music have retained many of the essential features of the heavenly harmony from which it descended.
How different is this view of the origin and character of ancient music from that of modern, materialistic science, which traces the beginning of this art back to the rude and wild sounds produced by savage nations in supposed imitation of "the music of nature."
It is true that archaeology has as yet brought back to us no remains of ancient musical notation or other technical evidences of an ancient development of this art. But we know from the Doctrines that the arts and sciences of the. Ancients were of a different character from our own. With them there was more of internal intuition and synthesis than of external analysis. Hence, they did not require so much as we a great amount of exact facts and technicalities. Would ancient music have been less beautiful and expressive than ours because more spontaneous and inspired?
"In Heaven no one leads the choir, but all simultaneously lead each other; nay, the more numerous they are the more easily is this done, because they are ruled by God Messiah" (S. D. 489).
"The harmonies of sounds belong to spiritual harmony, and the gladness thence resulting is spiritual gladness; hence, the music of the Ancient Church, and of the singing in Heaven is so delightful" (S. D. 904).
Spiritual and mental poverty in a nation produces poor music, barren in varieties of forms and harmonies, and confined to some few simple and monotonous melodies. "As one tone does not produce any tune, still less any harmony, so neither does one truth" (A. C. 4197). This explains the low musical development among gentile and barbarous nations. With the introduction of the truths of Christianity music received new inspiration in Europe. In the Ancient Church, which possessed spiritual truths in great abundance, music must have been very highly developed both as to harmony and melody.
The human voice was the first musical agent employed by the Ancients in their joyful confessions and celebrations of the LORD. To this were "afterwards added stringed instruments and wind instruments, "which emulated and exalted the singing" (A. C. 418).
Concerning the universal use of music in the grand representative worship of the Ancient Church, we learn as follows in the Writings:
"The glorifications of the LORD with the Ancients were effected by songs, psalms, and instruments of music of various kinds" (A. C. 8261).
"The delights in ancient times were spiritual delights, wherefore it was allowed to adjoin dances to the songs and musical harmonies, and thus also in this manner to testify the-gladness" (A. C. 8339).
"The musical instruments in the worship of the representative Church represented the spiritual things of faith, similarly also songs, whence there were so many singers and musicians" (A. C. 418).
In our Word music and musical instruments are first mentioned in Genesis iv, 21, where Jubal, the descendant of Cain, is spoken of as "the father of every one striking the harp and the organ," by which is signified the goods and truths of faith of the new Spiritual Church raised up at the end of the Most Ancient Church (A. C. 417).
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Of the music as practiced in the Ancient Church and its derivations not a trace or a tradition remains, as far as is known, though the monuments of Egypt, Chaldea, and Assyria with their ever-recurring representations of a great variety of musical instruments, afford abundant proofs that this art continued to be extensively cultivated long after the Ancient Church itself had perished among these nations. An instance of this may be found in the long list of known and unknown instruments mentioned by Daniel in connection with the dedication of the golden image which Nebuchadnezzar erected in the plain of Dura.
When, after the fall of the Ancient Church, a representative of a Church was instituted among the sons of Israel, music from the beginning retained its eminent position in the worship and life of the people. Thus Moses and Miriam and the whole people celebrated their deliverance from the bondage of Egypt with songs of triumph, accompanied with timbrels and dances. The movements of the camp in the wilderness were afterward directed by the sound of silver trumpets (Numb. x). With the long blasts of the horn the marching priests brought down the walls of Jericho, and at the sound of the trumpets the Midianites fled before the 300 warriors of Gideon. This wonderful power of music we find again illustrated in the influence of David's harp upon the spirit of Saul, who then represented the falsities opposite to spiritual truths. These were dispersed by the sound of the harp, because the harp corresponded to the affection of spiritual truth and. confession of the LORD, which evil spirits cannot endure (A. R. 276; A. E. 323[c]).
Under the rule of David sacred music became a permanent feature of the worship in the Temple. "The sounds of musical instruments elevate the affection, and the truths form it. For this reason the Psalms of David are called 'Psalms,' from playing [psallere, striking on stringed instruments], and also 'songs,' from singing; for they were played and sung together with the adjoined sounds of various instruments" (A. E. 326[d]).
"It is known that the confessions of JEHOVAH in the Temple of Jerusalem were made by songs, and at the same time by musical instruments which corresponded" (A. R. 276).
"Hence there were so many instruments about the Temple, and this or that was so often celebrated with certain instruments. Hence the instruments are taken and understood for the things themselves which were celebrated by means of them" (A. C. 420).
Of the 38,000 who composed the tribe of Levi in the reign of David 4,000 were appointed to praise JEHOVAH with the instruments which the king had made, and for which he taught them a special chant (I Chron. xxiii, 5).
"Singing men and singing women," as well as young girls "playing with timbrels," seem also to have been employed in the Temple choir. According to Josephus, more than 240,000 various musical instruments were, in the reign of Solomon, stored in the Temple treasury.
This splendid musical service was interrupted by the Captivity in Babylon, where the people sorrowfully hung their harps upon the willows by the rivers, as we read in Psalm cxxxvii. But "when the LORD turned again the Captivity of Judah, their mouth was filled with laughter and their tongues with singing" (Ps. cxxvi, 2). Under Nehemiah the Temple choir was to some extent restored, and seems to have continued until the final destruction of the Temple.
Of the characteristics of Hebrew music nothing can be determined with certainty. Collections of Hebrew music have been made by Jewish musicians and rabbis, who claim that certain of the chants have been handed down by oral tradition from the time when they were used in the Temple service. These are in general characterized more by beauty of melody than by wealth of harmony, thus preserving the leading features of all Oriental music. Many of the rabbis also insist that the Hebrew system of accentuation is a complete system of musical notation, whereby they are enabled not only to recite correctly but also to sing or chant the whole Hebrew Bible as it was done in ancient times. This, however, may be only another of the fantasies which teem in all rabbinical "learning." No modern Oriental nations possess original systems of musical notation. Among the Christians such notations were adopted about the eleventh century.
It is generally believed that the inscriptions to many of the Psalms indicated to the ancient Hebrew musicians some well-known melodies according to which the Psalms were to be sun g or played. But we know, from the Writings of the Church, that these inscriptions indicated the musical instrument that was to be chiefly employed, and, in the internal sense, the general spiritual affection prevailing in the Psalm.
Musical instruments 1893
Musical instruments and also dances signified joys and gladnesses which result from affections, and also the very affections of the mind which their sounds produce, singly, or in composition.- A. E. 323 [c].
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS IN THE WORD 1893
IN the Letter of the Word, and especially in the Psalms of David, various musical instruments are mentioned, which "involve spiritual and celestial things, in so much that it may thence be known what good is being treated of" (A. C. 4138).
"As instruments of every kind from their correspondence signify the delightful and pleasant things of spiritual and celestial affections, on many of the Psalms there is an inscription indicating how they were to be played, as upon Neginoth, upon Nehiloth, upon the Octave, upon Shigaion, upon Gittith, upon Muthlabben, upon Sheminith, upon Shoshanim, upon Mahalath" (A. C. 8337).
From these extracts it may be seen how important it is for the understanding of the general affection in the spiritual sense of each Psalm to understand the natural and spiritual meaning of each instrument mentioned in the Hebrew original.
The present article is an effort to present in a short summary the correspondence of the most common of the instruments, together with whatever light may be gained from philological and archeological researches.
Musical instruments may in general be divided into two classes, stringed instruments and wind instruments, with an intermediate class, the instruments of beating or shaking.
The stringed instruments correspond to and excite the affections of truth, or the affections of spiritual good and truth, and the wind instruments correspond to and excite the affections of good, or the affections of celestial good and truth.
I. STRINGED INSTRUMENTS.
(a.) [Hebrew] Neginoth, is mentioned in the Arcana Coelestia, n. 8337, as a special instrument, but is supposed by the learned to be the common name for all stringed instruments, being directly derived from [Hebew], to strike, like "Psaltery," from [Greek].
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(b.) [Hebrew], Kinnor (Chaldee [Hebrew] Sept. [Greek], Swedenborg Cithara), is well-known as being identical with the Harp, the most common of the stringed instruments among the Jews and other ancient nations. It signifies, specifically, "spiritual truth, or the truth of good" (A. E. 323[b]), and, further, confession and glorification of the LORD from spiritual truths or from spiritual affection (A. E. 935).
(c.) [Hebrew], Nebhel (Chaldee [Hebrew], Sept. [Greek] and [Greek], Swedenborg Nablium), is an instrument generally connected with the harp, and has always been translated Psaltery, which instrument it seems to have resembled in form. The root meaning is "to be curved, rounded," which agrees with its spiritual signification, "spiritual good, or the good of truth" (A. E. 323[b]) According to Josephus, the Psaltery had twelve strings, which were played upon with the hand. One variety mentioned in Psalm xxxiii, 1, the [Hebrew] (Swedenborg, Nablium decachordo A. C. 420), had only ten strings.
(d.) [Hebrew] Minnim, mentioned in Psalm cl, 4 is translated by Swedenborg Fidis (A. C. 420), which simply means a stringed instrument. The root meaning is "to divide, to number." It is supposed to have been a kind of lyre or lute.
(e.) [Hebrew] Machalath is mentioned as a musical instrument (A. C. 8337. See Psalms liii and lxxxviii). The root meaning is "to be smooth." According to Genesis, it was a cittern or a kind of lute.
(f.) [Hebrew] Sherninith (A. C. 8337) was probably an instrument of eight strings.
(g.) [Hebrew] Sabkha, was among the instruments enumerated in Daniel iii. The name indicates that it was identical with the [Greek], an ancient stringed instrument used by the Greeks, the particular form of which is unknown.
(h.) [Hebrew] Shalishim (I Sam. xviii, 6), was either a three-stringed instrument, or else a metallic instrument of triangular form.
(i.) [Hebrew], Gittith (Ps. viii, 1; A. C. 8337), is an altogether unknown instrument. It is supposed to have been brought by David from Gath, where he once resided. The Septuagint renders it "the wine-press."
(j.) [Hebrew] Muthlabben (Pa. ix, A. C. 8337) is also unknown. It means literally, "death to the son," and is supposed to refer to the opening words to some well-known song, but is given by Swedenborg as the name of an instrument.
(l.) [Hebrew], Shiggaion (Ps. vii, 1; A. C. 8337), is equally obscure. The root meaning seems to be "to wander about." It is supposed to be the name of an irregular, dithyrambic song.
II. INSTRUMENTS OF PERCUSSION.
Instruments of beating, such as the drum, "which stringed instrument, nor a wind instrument, but as it were a continuous stringed instrument" (A. C. 8337), evidently are intermediate between the spiritual and the celestial class of instruments. Compare these two statements: "By the instruments which are beaten and which are blown is described the joy of those who are of the celestial kingdom" (A. E. 863). "Drums and harps belong to the class of spiritual instruments" (A. C. 4138).
(a.) [Hebrew] Toph (Sept. [Greek]; Swedenborg, tympanum, A. V. variously drum, timbrel, tabret), was the common name of various forms of the drum, and signifies in general "the delight of the affection of the good of faith" (A. C. 8337), or "the joy of spiritual good" (A. E. 323[b]).
(b.) [Hebrew] Tseltselim (Zech. xiv, 20) is translated by the Septuagint [Greek], and by Swedenborg "Cymbalum" (A. C. 420). It was the ancient cymbals, which consisted of two-metallic plates, which produced a clanging, clashing sound, when struck against one another.
(c.) [Hebrew], Menaanim (II Sam vi, 5; Sept. [Greek]) has been translated "comets" in the English version. The root meaning, however, is "to shake," which confirms the Greek rendering of "sistrum," a kind of metallic rattle greatly in use in Egypt.
(d.) [Hebrew] Ughabh (Sept. [Greek]; Swedenborg "organum," A. C. 417, et al.), the organ, "is an instrument intermediate between a stringed instrument and one that is blown, wherefore by it is signified spiritual good" (A. C. 419).
The ancient organ was called a syrinx, and consisted of seven reeds.
III. WIND INSTRUMENTS.
(a.) [Hebrew], Shophar, and [Hebrew], Chatsotserah, are both translated by Swedenborg "buccina," which signifies trumpet, the most common of the Hebrew wind instruments. It signifies, spiritually, the affection of celestial truth (A. R. 792).
(b.) [Hebrew], Yobhel (Ex. xix, 13), was a trumpet of a special, though unknpwn form, which signifies" celestial good." From this name came the word "jubilee" which represented "the conjunction of the good and truth which is in the inmost heaven" (A. C. 8802).
(c.) [Hebrew], Keren, the horn, was a very common instrument, and was of various shapes.
(d.) [Hebrew], Nehiloth, was evidently a wind instrument, probably the flute. The root meaning is "bored through."
(e.) [Hebrew], Chalil (I Sam. x, 5; Isa. v, 12) which name comes from the same root, evidently was a similar instrument. A flute or a pipe signifies "the affection of celestial good" (A. R. 792).
(f.) [Hebrew], Symponia (Dan. iii), was a name borrowed by the Chaldees from the Greek [Greek]. It is supposed to have been a kind of bagpipe, which still is called zampogna among the peasants of Southern Italy.
Notes and Reviews 1893
ANOTHER number of The New Jerusalem has been published after an interval of three months.
Contrasts and Parallels Between the First and Second Christian Churches During the First Century of Their Existence is the title of a forty-eight page tract by Isaac Pitman, printed in the reform spelling of the first stage.
THE Rev. J. J. Thornton, who is leaving Australia, has been compelled on that account to resign the editorship of The New Age. Mr. W. J. Spencer, of Julia Street, Ashfield, Sydney, will therefore assume these duties.
WITH the Indian New Church Messenger for March come some specimen sheets of a book or books, apparently about to be published, being a reprint of the articles on Genesis and Revelation which have appeared in that paper.
The Manual of the Pennsylvania Association of the New Church, for April, completes its fourth year.
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Its readers are not asked to subscribe for another year until the desirability of continuing its publication shall have been discussed at the next Annual Meeting of the Association.
WITH the issue for March 23d the publication of The Dawn was suspended, its mission, the forwarding of the total abstinence movement in the Church, seeming "to be now very largely accomplished." The Dawn was in its eleventh year.
THE April issue of the Concordance contains entries ranging from "Lamentations" to "Last Judgment." These latter entries are very numerous. A large portion of the special treatises on the Last Judgment are transcribed, and the references to the Diary are very full. "Ultimate" is included under "Last." "Language" will appear under "Tongue."
New Church Messenger for April 19th contains a communication from the Rev. J. F. Potts in which he explains that the reason of the different numbering of the closing paragraphs of the Diarium Minus, to be found in the English translation of that work and in the Swedenborg Concordance, is, substantially, that the translator of the Diarium and the compiler of the Concordance have worked independently of each other.
HOW true it is that the Letter of the Word may be used to confirm any falsity. The appeal of the Conference of Seventh-day Adventists to the people of the United States against the closing of the World's Fair on Sunday, printed in The Religious Liberty Library, for March, states "As Christians we appeal on the ground of the divine right which Jesus Christ has recognized and declared- The right of every man to dissent even from the words and the religion of Christ with the words: 'If any man hear My words and believe not, I judge him not, for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.'"
THE Editorials of the last few numbers of The New Church Standard have been treating of the difference between the faith and charity assumed to be genuine by receivers of the Doctrines, and the faith and charity which are truly genuine. The April issue considers, in this connection, the statement made a month or two ago in the New Church Messenger, that "the greatly multiplied charities are the most notable feature, are the real harvests, we may say of this love age." A very instructive brief history of the Apostolic Church is compiled from the Writings Under "Notes and Comments" the Standard exposes folly of New Church Evangelists who practice and advocate fraternizing with Old Church ministers and avoiding the manifestation of the antagonism which exists between their Doctrines and those of the New Church; and comments on the interior agreement of the Messenger's editorials with the falses taught in its columns by the Rev. E. A. Beaman, on the subject of Authority. A study on the "Hollow of the Thigh," and a tilt between the Editor of the Pacific and the Editor of the Standard close this highly interesting number.
THE result of not accepting the revelation of the state of the Christian world, male in the Writings, is a favorable attitude toward the theories that arise in that world. Their reception and the straining of the Doctrines to favor them follows as a matter of course, and the Church and its societies are infested and disturbed. The wine question was a case in point. The woman question is another. The latter is assuming considerable proportions, the last meeting of the New York Association declaring itself without a dissentient vote in favor of a resolution that opens the Association's ministry to women. The subject deserves more attention than the present opportunity allows, for a blow is aimed at that which is dearest and sweetest in Heaven and earth The present note is simply to call attention to the printed "Report of the Committee of the New York Association, appointed to consider Resolution No. 1129, 'Resolved, That the Board of Directors be authorized to employ women as missionaries, teachers, visitors, or for such other purposes as they may think desirable,' offered by C. C. Parsons, at the annual meeting held in Brooklyn, February 22d, 1892." The Committee consisted of four gentlemen and three ladies, among the former being the author of the resolution and two ministers. The Committee was divided- four being in favor of the resolution, and three opposed. Both sides presented elaborate arguments with abundant quotations from the Doctrines. This report is worthy the attentive and serious consideration of all who have the welfare of the New Jerusalem at heart. It is instructive in many ways. As it embodies the result of many years' thought on the subject, of both parties, it assumes an important position in the history of the New Church. The convictions expressed in the majority report have from time to time been uttered for a number of years past, but this is the first time that they have been gathered up and presented in connected form. It is to be regretted that the minority did not avail themselves of the opportunity of combatting and exposing the position of the majority more thoroughly.
Copies of the report can be had on application to the Presiding Minister of the Association, the Rev. S. S. Seward, 185 Lexington Avenue, New York City, or to the Secretary, Mr. John Filmer, 1119 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, New York.
MEETING OF THE IMMANUEL CHURCH 1893
The General Church.
A MEETING of the members of the Immanuel Church was called by the Pastor, the Rev. N. D. Pendleton, on Friday evening, April 21st. After a light supper, wine being served, a toast was drunk to the "General Church of the Advent of the LORD." The Pastor called upon Mr. H. L. Burnham to read a circular issued by the Council of the Laity, recommending a uniform system throughout the Church for the support of the Priesthood, and providing for the temporalities. In the general discussion of the circular which followed the reading, it was evident that the suggestions had been received with delight, especially that the Bishop's office be supported by voluntary offerings made at family worship.
Afterward a toast was pledged to the Immanuel Church. The Pastor announced that the office of Treasurer had been made vacant by the removal of Dr. Felix A. Boericke to New York, and that as the office of Treasurer and that of Chairman of the Board of Finance are really one office, the present Chairman of the Board, Mr. Hugh L. Burnham, has been appointed Treasurer of the Church. Mr. Burnham made a short address acquainting the members with the condition of the finances of the Church, and announced that a new use had been undertaken, which was the providing of an official residence for the Pastor. The matters brought forward by Mr. Burnham were discussed in an informal manner. A very interesting point in connection with the new use and our ability to undertake it was made by one of the members, who likened it to the addition of another child to a family. No one stops to consider whether or not he can support the little one, but goes right ahead and does it. A minister present said that the simile was a good one because it was correspondential. All uses are spiritual offspring.
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
LARYNX H. F 1893
"THE entities of nature are more beautiful and have allotted to them a better place in proportion as they attend to several functions and at the same time per form distinctly various things." (The Brain, Vol. 1, n. 430.)
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This principle obtains in every organ of the body-it is a part of the animal economy that it should be so, though of course the various functions must not be heterogeneous; they must work together mutually, to accomplish the common end, each by its mediate end. Thus it is with the Larynx. In performing its uses it concurs with the actions of the various other organs about it, and besides lending them a helping hand, solicits in return aid for itself from them. Though the Larynx is distinctively the organ of speech, still did not the tongue, palate, etc., help it and complement its movements, our voices would be very imperfect. Nor would breathing fare better.
The passage from the nose to the lungs is broken off by the intervening cavity of the mouth. The door above is the velum palati, but the passage continuing below at the abase of the tongue is closed by the epiglottis. So, when these are opened the air has free ingress and egress, the tongue acting in lieu of a front wall toward the mouth and preventing the escape of the air thither. But during deglutition these doors close, both by the mechanical action of the food and their own intrinsic muscles, in order that there may be a continuous passage to the esophagus. The Larynx in thus forming a bridge of its epiglottis, by means of which the bolus of food may cross to the opening, of its proper channel for the time being, suspends its own particular functions to help its neighbor. Still further, the Larynx aids the pharyax in raising itself to grasp the morsel and in drawing downwards while swallowing it.
Especially does the Larynx co-operate with the ear. A sort of marriage relation exists between the two. Although they live in separate chambers, they assiduously communicate with one another internally by means of vibrations along the tissues composing the Eustachian tube, and externally by the more circuitous route of the air. In every case where two organs are closely connected in their uses but separated from each other in the body, we find this internal and external communication; in the case of the brain and the lungs, there is a communication through the nerves and another by means of the action of the air upon the sheaths of the olfactory filaments. In infancy the above-mentioned use of the Eustachian tube seems more evident. When the Larynx is active the ear is always passive- That is, listening to the sounds of the Larynx, and when the ear is active the Larynx is in a state of readiness to repeat what is heard or say something in return. Hence, while the little child is learning to speak, the ear first hears the correct pronunciation of a word, and, anticipating what the untaught Larynx is about to say, corrects and guides it, as also judges of the sound when uttered.
The Larynx is held in shape by its cartilages, the thyroid and cricoid, which are fastened together by suitable ligaments, but in such a manner that they can move with considerable freedom. By means of its own muscles and others extraneous to itself, this wonderful organ can mould itself into innumerable forms corresponding to the speech which it utters. The sound of the voice ex- presses affections; its articulation the thought agreeing, hence the modes and actions of the Larynx are indefinite, for the affections and thoughts of the mind, which are similitudes of the Divine Love and Wisdom, image their infinity. Thus there is not a single principle in acoustics, not a single curve in mathematics, with which the Larynx is not endowed.
Now as to how the sound of the voice is produced. Sound is produced in two ways: by the air impinging upon a hard body which exalts its tremors into audible sound, and by the vibrations of a body when struck, as a string or drum- Head, being communicated to the air. The Larynx has the properties of both. The sound of the voice is a result of the vibrations of the laryngeal membrane, as well as that of the trachea. The air from the lungs is directed against the parieties of the air passage and causes them to vibrate. This may be done almost in the bronchia or up at the very outlet of the glottis. The vibrations creep up from below into the Larynx, where they receive a more definite quality. In the little sinuses or pockets, situated between the vocal chords, they are gathered together and sent off into the pharynx and mouth by means of the surrounding tissues, and by the column of air emitted. Here the epiglottis plays a part. This little cartilaginous lid, elastic and spongy in texture, directs the air to any certain point above, besides carrying vibrations to its tip and sending them off into the air. Thus the sound waves are communicated to other parts and are exalted so that they can be heard more distinctly, for the whole cranium vibrates in unison with the vocal apparatus, as the body of a violin does with its strings. The sound made by the strings on a solid and inert body is scarcely perceptible, whereas the notes come out full and clear when the string is drawn taut over the proper sounding board. The membrane of the Larynx vibrates, but its tremors are living, and can therefore express affections which flow forth from life, they are not mere mechanical motions, the results of mechanical force. The membrane, when the Larynx is going to speak, puts itself in readiness to receive the impulse of the air, and as soon as it is touched, begins to tremble, not from the force of the air alone but from the excitation of the nerve fibres by the air; these fibres are the initiament of the sound wave.
The universal essences of sound are, that which regards quantity, whether it be loud or soft, and that which regards quality, whether grave or deep, acute or high, vocal and canorous. The difference between the latter two is, that the one is more or less recitative,-with a simple vibration, while the other is of a more exalted tone, for a compound vibration gives it birth.
It is the duty of the Larynx to produce these differences of sound, and to make the necessary pauses between words by suspending midway the breath or flow of air.
The fact that Flint, Dalton, and others claim that the vocal cords are what produce the voice, does not militate against what "true science" teaches; it only goes to show that their sole means of obtaining the information was by means of the laryngoscope. The strings of the violin must have their bridge which vibrates with them, as is shown by the difference in sound caused by the "mute." The vocal cords perform a use similar to that of the bridge, as will be seen in what follows.
For a deep note the glottis is widened, its lid thrown back by its muscles and the downward movement of the base of the tongue, the Larynx, and even the trachea are pulled downward and shortened, thus loosening the membrane and enlarging the calibre of its tube. On the other hand, a high note requires the full length of the organ, a small opening at the top and the membrane tense. The elongating of the Larynx and trachea may not be sufficient, so the vocal sinuses swell outwards and stretch the membrane still more over their margins, the vocal cords. The cords themselves, lying loose and passive against the walls of the Larynx during breathing, when a sound is to be emitted, are drawn tighter and brought out across the passage so as to almost close it. This is done by the two arytenoid cartilages, which are stationed one on each side at the back of the Larynx near the top, and act like little arms in tightening the vocal cords.
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The mechanism of the Larynx in performing all these wonderful and diversiform motions would become dry and parched were it not for the presence of friendly glands which continually moisten its tender membranes and sheathe them from the irritating air. These glands are the arytenoid and epiglottedian glands situated near and around the rima glottidis, the thyroid gland, and the tonsils. H. F.
String instruments 1893
String instruments were applied to affections of spiritual good, and wind instruments to affections of celestial good.- A. E. 326 [a].
OUR CHURCH ORCHESTRAS 1893
Sound and speech are produced from no other source than from the affections and thoughts of the mind (D. P. 279).
Sounds produced upon musical instruments imitate those produced by the human voice in singing, and when played together with them they exalt them, and they represent the affections of the mind similarly as singing.
All good affections flow through the Spiritual world to the natural from the LORD by the successive order of influx from Him, and sounds produced in the natural world are but the outbursting of the affections of the mind from an interior desire to express them. Love is the fountain in the will from which like streams the affections flow into the understanding and there produce thought. Thoughts, when excited or called forth, ultimate in speech, and affections and thoughts together, in singing, which is both of sound and speech.
By some kinds of musical instruments are expressed affections of one quality, and by some are expressed affections of another quality, and when suitable harmony conspires they actually call forth those affections. The highest application of the harmonies produced by musical instruments is to Divine Worship, for the wind and string instruments, from their correspondence, call forth the celestial and spiritual affections for good and truth, thus for the LORD. And when they unite with the human voice in harmonious choirs they exalt the affection for the glorification of the LORD.
Harmonious sound and its varieties correspond to states of joy and gladness in the spiritual world, and the states of joy and gladness exist there from the affections, which, in that world, are the affections of good and truth. Hence, musical instruments correspond to the delights and pleasantness of spiritual and celestial affections (A. C. 8337).
PHILADELPHIA.
THE Philadelphia orchestra of the Church of the Academy was organized under the leadership of Mr. R. M. Glenn, a little over a year ago, and at the present time numbers twelve instruments. Eight of this number are string and four are wind, divided as follows: Three first and two second violins, two cellos, and the piano; a cornet, a flute, a clarionet, and last but not least, a trombone. This instrument, as it has been but lately introduced, and owing to some difficulty in securing a teacher, has not as yet been heard to advantage, but from some knowledge of the instrument we can judge that its deep, mellow tone will assist very materially in the staying power of the orchestra. The cornet has indeed rather the opposite to the "staying" effect upon the hearers, but as it no doubt helps to drown any defects among the other instruments any objections to its use would be overruled. A bass-viol will be added shortly.
The idea which was uppermost in the organization of this orchestra, as well as those in other cities, has been that ultimately the instruments might be introduced into Divine worship; but in this city, until recently, this has not been practicable, as a degree of proficiency that would warrant had not been reached. However, at the celebration of the Glorification of the Human of the LORD, recently held here, the first opportunity presented itself.
By dint of six weeks' hard work, the leader, to whom the greatest praise is due, succeeded in drilling the orchestra in the Psalms, a number of Hebrew anthems, and also some selections to serve as antelude and postlude
This last feature of having the service opened and closed by the orchestra prove itself entirely in keeping with the sphere of worship. The blending into harmonies of the wind and string instruments served as a very impressive introduction into the holy sphere which surrounds the worship, and also has the effect of continuing and confirming it at the conclusion of the worship. In the accompaniment of the singing, by the orchestra, the volume of sound was perceptibly increased not alone from the instruments but also from the singers, as the sustaining power of the orchestra encouraged them to add more power to their voices.
At the socials of the School and Church, the orchestra has been heard but little, but several of the individual members have added very much to the enjoyment of those occasions.
In conclusion, we would say that the members of the Philadelphia orchestra desire us to convey their best wishes to the other orchestras in New Church centres, and also to say that they look forward to the time when they may have the pleasure either of listening to or playing in company with them.
PITTSBURGH.
OUR correspondent in the smoky city writes as follows concerning the recently formed orchestra of the Pittsburgh Church of the Advent:
"We meet every Sunday evening at different houses and play our new piece first. We have a new one every week or two and then go through all our old ones. So our meetings get longer each time. We have no regular leader, so we have to depend upon individual struggles and frequent repetition. The nucleus of our orchestra consists of five performers who play the piano, first violin, second violin, viola, and cornet respectively. Then there are two cellos, one of which plays bass. Lately there has been added an energetic clarionet, and last week a new flute came to town."
They have adopted the plan of taking private lessons until greater proficiency is attained, when they intend engaging a leader who will also play first violin. Our correspondent in describing his merits, says: "He can out-play all the rest of us combined"
Two violins were introduced into the Easter Service, assisting in the Hebrew anthem [Hebrew].
BERLIN.
THE Berlin orchestra can as yet hardly be called an orchestra, as it is only in its infancy. They have three violins, a cello, and the organ, with prospects of a clarionet, cornet, bass-viol, a viola, and probably a flute.
They have considerable difficulty, as in Pittsburgh, in finding a suitable leader, and are also thinking of engaging a stranger to give individual and combined lessons.
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Yet, in the face of this most important difficulty, they do not lose courage, but intend going on as best they can until the time when they can make a more suitable arrangement.
CHICAGO.
WE have not received as yet any definite news regarding the orchestra of the Immanuel Church, but from outside sources we have been able to gather a few items of interest.
The orchestra, under the efficient leadership of Prof. O. Blackman, contains, as near as we can learn, fourteen instruments. Six violins, two cellos and a double bass, a cornet, a trombone, two clarionets, and a flute completing the number. The recent removal of Dr. Felix A. Boericke deprived the orchestra of a cornetist.
On Wednesday, March 29th, a musical evening was held in the Immanuel Church. A very tasty programme was printed, the numbers of which were of a classical nature. Instrumental selections from the best composers being interspersed throughout with vocal selections.
WE should be very pleased to hear of the formation of orchestras in London England, and Parkdale.
O. R.
Joy 1893
Joy . . . pours itself forth . . . by the sound of singing, and thence the joy of thought, by the song.- A. E. 326 [a].
FESTIVAL OF THE GLORIFICATION 1893
THE festival of the Glorification of the LORD was celebrated on Sunday, March 26th, and Easter Sunday following, in the Church of the Academy, Philadelphia, y special services. Each was a chorus in celebration the Union of the Divine and Human of the LORD. The first, commemorating the Humiliation of the LORD, was divided into five parts, namely: 1. Humiliation of I the LORD before the Father. 2. Temptation of the LORD in general. 3. Temptation of the LORD, even to despair. 4. The Lord combat and victory. 5. The passion of the Cross.
These divisions were based on the universal contents of the Prophets and Psalms given in the little work containing the "Summaries."
The Church orchestra was introduced for the first time in the Sunday worship. They played a restful selection, after which ensued the usual long pause of silence for meditation and preparation for the worship. Then the Chancellor and the Vice- Chancellor of the Academy entered, followed by four assistants, all in the robes of- Their distinctive degrees. The opening consisted, as usual, of the withdrawing of the curtains of the Repository, the laying of the Word in the original tongues, and a volume of the Writings in the original edition, on the altar, and the praying of the LORD'S
Prayer. To this the Chancellor subjoined a special prayer. On rising, all sang the introit: "Arise, O LORD, into Thy rest."
The Chancellor introduced the special services of the day with a presentation of the general doctrine bearing on the Advent of the LORD, all responding in the middle and at the end with two short verses from the Sacred Scripture; an anthem was sung, after the Vice- Chancellor had given the internal sense of it.
After a pause came the first division of the service, which commemorated the Humiliation of the LORD before the Father. The Chancellor gave the doctrine bearing thereon, and this was followed by a responsive service, from such Psalms as particularly treated of this subject. The Vice- Chancellor would first give the internal sense, and then the other priests and the people would read the Psalms in part responsively and partly in unison. Afterward one of the priests read a lesson from the Doctrines, and another priest a lesson from the Testaments. The singing of a Psalm, with the usual introductory reading by the Vice- Chancellor of its internal sense, concluded the first division of the service.
In like manner were the remaining divisions arranged, the special feature of one of them being the partial reading of the letter of the Psalms by the Chancellor; and a special feature of another division being the responsive reading of the Psalm by the men and the women of the congregation, their, voices blending in unison in some passages. This feature was especially impressive and delightful, reminding one of the responsive singing of the son of Israel under Moses, and of the women under Miriam (Exodus xv).
After the benediction had been pronounced by the Chancellor, he, the Vice- Chancellor, the priests and the people, read responsively the invocation to bless the LORD in Psalm cxxxv, verses 19-21, all uniting in saying "Amen and Amen." The Chancellor closed the Word, the curtains covered the Repository, and all, the priests included, seated themselves in silence, while the orchestra played softly,- A most appropriate conclusion of the peaceful sphere that pervaded the morning's worship. Then as the people arose and stood in silence the priests walked out, the orchestra resumed its playing, and the people silently departed. On the next Sunday, when the Glorification of the LORD was celebrated, the exercises were similar.
The service used was also divided into five parts, namely: 1. The Glorification of the LORD. 2. The Human Glorified no longer the Son of Mary. 3. The Fulfilling of all things of the Word. 4. The Liberation of the Faithful. 5. Conjunction with the Human Race.
This service from its very nature was most delightful. The greater part of the singing was in the Greek and Hebrew languages. Some of the responsive reading was by the priests on the South and North of the Chancel separately and alternately; in like manner also by the congregation on the North and South sides of the Hall.
As on the previous Sunday, the orchestra played whilst all remained.
In the afternoon the Holy Supper was administered. Thus ended a celebration of the Festival of the Glorification of the LORD which has not its parallel in the history of the New Church. The sphere of worship was most full,-being greatly enhanced by the music from the orchestra, which accompanied the singing throughout.
THE Easter service of the school was held on Sunday morning at the usual time, Mr. Czerny, the Head-Master, and Mr. Synnestvedt officiating. Worship began by the opening of the Word and prayer. Then [Hebrew] was sung, after which the "Ten Words" were repeated in Hebrew. [Hebrew] was then sung, after which Mr. Synnestvedt read concerning the LORD'S progression to union with the Father (T. C. R. 104, 105), and the account of the LORD'S resurrection from John xx. This was followed by the singing of [Hebrew], the Head-Master having first read the Internal Sense and Mr. Synnestvedt the English translation. After the singing the Head-Master delivered an address, the subject being "The Work of Redemption."
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He showed that the work of redemption consisted in the subjugation of the hells, and in the preparation for a New Church. The world of spirits had in the course of time become so filled with evil spirits that the influx from heaven could not reach men. On earth men had wholly turned away from the LORD, and had lost all knowledge of Him. They worshiped evil spirits in place of the LORD, and went to them for instruction. All men would have perished if the Lord had not come.
He concluded by showing that the LORD had come a second time, but not not in person. This was no longer necessary, as He could effect a judgment upon evil spirits by a powerful influx from His Glorified Human.
Then [Hebrew] was sung. Two violins accompanied the organ. All then read responsively Psalm cxv. Worship closed with the singing of a Greek doxology and with the benediction.
There were about seventy persons, old and young, present at the worship. The service throughout was very impressive.
The Holy Supper was administered in the afternoon.
IN Berlin an impressive service was held on Easter Sunday, consisting of responsive and unisonal reading of the Word and the Doctrines by the two priests and the people. A special feature of these services was the responsive reading of the Doctrine by the two priests. In the case of some of the Psalms that were sung, the Pastor read the universals, and the minister the summaries, the people singing the Word in the letter. It was, indeed, a well-prepared and effective service, much appreciated by all.
After the offerings had been received, a special thank-offering was made by a married pair, whom the LORD had recently blessed with another child, the Pastor introducing the doctrine of the conjunction of conjugial love with the love of infants. This service made a deep impression on all those present.
IN the Immanuel Church, of Chicago, the Resurrection of the LORD was also commemorated on two days. On the first day the service prepared for the Church of the Academy in Philadelphia was used, with such modifications as were rendered necessary by the smaller ministerial force. A special service was prepared for Easter Sunday, on the same plan as that in Philadelphia. The Holy Supper was administered at its conclusion.
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
(Copyrighted.)
A TALE.
XIV.
THE METAMORPHOSIS.
BUT, after all, the day did not really break. The heavy darkness was only replaced by a gray twilight, resembling that which shadows the earth when the sun is eclipsed. Yet even so much was a blessed relief. Beginning now to feel more hopeful, I realized that I was not as fatigued, physically, as I had believed; the misery of body was largely the result of mental torment.
After some little time for reflection, I repaired to my cousin's house, determined to reason with him once more and then take leave of him forever. I found him sitting in his doorway smoking a dirty clay pipe and gazing out toward the stagnant pools and bogs. As his features were now more and more clearly outlined, it was impossible not to contrast the coarseness of his face and the evil look in his eye with the refined and amiable expression worn by him in the world.
"He is lost, lost," I told myself, as I approached, watching him. "But I will speak with him once more. . . What a dismal morning!" I said, addressing him.
He looked up absently out of the corner of his eye- Almost as if he did not know me.
"I never saw a finer morning," he rejoined, after a moment.
"How is your-" I could not bring myself to say "wife." "How is-she- This morning?" I asked, wondering if she had been disabled, and apprehensive lest any reference to her might anger him.
"She is inside," was his answer, without visible irritation.
A moment later I saw her, and she appeared to be none the worse for the beating she had received. She walked to the door, thrust her friend out, and looked from side to side; then, after bestowing a malevolent glance upon me, retired from, view.
I was now about to address myself to Paul, when I became conscious of a human presence just behind me- a presence which in a moment began to afflict me with a deadly, suffocating pain. A quick glance over my shoulder showed me that a man had walked up close behind and stood there in silence, almost touching my clothing. Leaping forward with a cry of pain and fear, I faced him. With horror I saw that it was Downing, and that he wore a wicked smile on his face. He seemed to gloat over me in my torture, and, with an ugly laugh which lived in my memory, he walked forward and disappeared through the door of my cousin's house.
"Paul-Paul-do you know that man?" I cried, in great agitation, now relieved of that intolerable pain.
" Of course I do," was the answer; "he is a very good friend of mine."
"He is an evil spirit- A devil!" I cried.
My cousin laughed aloud.
"How you amuse me!" he said.
It would have been well had I turned away at once and sought my own safety; instead I halted to once more implore Paul to save himself by retreat from this evil community on the confines of hell.
"It is time to stop this nonsense!" the man cried, suddenly, starting up. "You are incorrigible; you are mad. To your eyes everything is distorted-you talk like a fool!"
"O Paul! Paul!" I cried, in despair.
"I don't acknowledge that name," he rejoined, in great anger, and with a wildness of the eye. "I know no such name. I am unnamable. Do you know why?"
"I certainly do not."
"I will tell you; I am a god."
I started back with an exclamation of horror.
"Yes, I am a god, and you know it. Go down on your knees and worship me, you miserable wretch!"
Supreme horror made me calm.
"A god indeed!" I said, contemptuously. "You a god!"
"What!" he demanded with the fury of insanity; "don't you see my crown of fire? Don't you see the lightning blazing in my hand?"
"I see a theatrical madman," I said.
"I'll make you see it!" he yelled.
He leaped to the door of the hut, calling aloud: "Come out, come out!"
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And as Downing and the woman appeared, he shouted: "At him, both of you! He says I'm not a god- He dares to say I'm not a god! Do not spare him."
I turned to go, but they were too quick for me. My cousin and the woman placed themselves in front of me and Downing came up behind. How the latter operated I could not tell, but my cousin and the woman seemed only to fasten their eyes and concentrate their thoughts upon me. Immediately I was afflicted with an internal torment such as cannot be described. I struggled against this determinedly, but the struggle only increased my agony. I thought I should suffocate-fall dead. And then all at once I seemed to see what my cousin wished me to see- A crown of fire upon his head and flashing lightning in his right hand. Beyond him in the lowlands, where lay the stagnant pools and bogs, I seemed to see, even as he saw, a lake of pure water.
"Aha! you see it now," I heard him cry, exultantly. "Yes, I see it; but it is only lying phantasy," I answered, for I still resisted. "It is nothing but devilish magic."
Still battling, I fell down upon the ground and prayed aloud for deliverance from this hellish thraldom. Then they literally danced about me in the intensity of their efforts to bind me through magical arts. But I was delivered; in a moment I saw again with my own eyes.
"Hear him pray!" they had cried in derision, but as I rose to my feet they realized that a power superior to theirs had set me free, and their rage was terrible. With loud, mad curses, they redoubled their efforts, running around me and scanning every limb and feature as though in search of some weak spot through which to strike. The internal torment, which had been lightened as I prayed, was now more than ever intensified.
"Kill the saint!" shouted Paul, with a wild laugh.
"Torture him first!" cried Downing, hoarsely.
Then, as if by magic, the three possessed themselves with daggers and threatened me. In terror I broke from among them and ran-ran blindly until I stood on the boundary of the stagnant pools an ii bogs. Close behind me they came, yelling like demons. I looked to the right and to the left; there was no escape. Once more I glanced backward at my pursuers, then plunged into the bog before me. I sank to my knees- To my waist; but still struggled with the last energy of despair. I leaped upward and forward, and somehow made headway.
But I gained nothing. They plunged into the mire after me and gained on me at once. They seemed to lie down and wallow in the mud- To swim like fishes- To slip over the surface of the bog like serpents. Did they imagine themselves to be swimming in the "lake"? . . . Struggle as I might, I could not leave them behind; they were always there: on the right, on the left, behind, in front, threatening me with their daggers. Was this reality or a distorted dream? Turn where I would, with whatever speed, one of them was always before me, gliding like a serpent across my forward path and uttering mocking cries.
Why not give up? It was useless to prolong the agonizing struggle. . . . At last I passed the bog, then tore through the slime of a shallow stagnant pool; then came another bog, another slimy pool. . . . Why not subside beneath the yielding ooze and die? To live was torment intolerable.
Anon I struggled up a sandy incline and fled across a barren plain which seemed scorched by a torrid but invisible sun, and was strewn with cruel stones and thorny shrubs. Flee as I might, it still availed me nothing. Did I choose a route and bend my flying steps that way, from behind some shrub or stone along the path a figure would start up- The figure of a dusky, hellish thing which mocked me in my agony; so would I be distracted from my course.
All hope of rescue was abandoned, and I told myself that I was being finally driven into hell. Still, on I went till the sky was black and the ground was red before my eyes- Till the air seemed hot and charged with poison- Till my lungs failed me and I gasped for breath. So I ran blindly up to a perpendicular wall of rock, cutting off my own retreat. I heard the yells of the pursuers at my back and knew that the end had come. I threw myself down on the earth and ground my teeth against a stone. Let them come-let them come.
So they came. With derisive yells, with brandished daggers they rushed upon me. I closed my eyes- And then, all in a moment, I felt safe. I knew that I was rescued. A heavenly presence was at hand. Opening my eyes, I saw that an angel stood behind me; for from him radiated a soft, intense light which fell across me toward my enemies, and from which they drew back in fear and hate. I clasped my arms about the angel's feet and held fast; I felt like one snatched in out of a wild, wild storm-like one rescued from the jaws of death and drawn into an impregnable fortress of stone.
From my unshaken fortress I now looked forth upon my howling foes, tormented with the sense of their powerlessness to do me hurt. A frightful change had come over them. Looked at through the heavenly light encompassing the guardian angel, they now appeared to be inhuman things with the cloven feet and claws of beasts. The face of my cousin was dark, shapeless, hairy; that of the woman, hideous with warts and ulcers. The face of Downing was livid and corpse-like, and his eyes were of a dull red, like clots of blood. The bodies of all were monstrous.
And as I looked and saw these terrible things, all at once the perpendicular wall of rock was rent as though by an earthquake, disclosing a black, sooty cavern tending obliquely downward into unknown depths, out of which flowed forth dense smoke, as if from a subterranean fire, and a hot, noisome stream of air which filled me with nausea and loathing. But when it reached those evil ones they seemed entranced, leaping forward with every sign of joy, altogether forgetting me. With harsh, unearthly cries, but with manifest delight, they one after the other ran forward to the mouth of the cavern and leaped headlong downward out of sight.
I closed my eyes that I might see no more, and then a darkness seemed to shut me in- To flood my mind, till the last spark of consciousness was extinct.
XV.
AT THE FEET OF ARIEL.
WHEN I came to myself and opened my eyes I saw first of all the calm face of the angel Ariel. Then I became aware that I was in another place-upon a couch in a house- And that my clothing no longer showed the stains of the mud and slime from the bogs. Strange as it would seem, I felt tranquil in body and mind. I sat up, my eyes intently fixed on the angel; I forgot to greet him.
"Was it all a dream?" I asked.
"No, it was not a dream, although you have lately been asleep," was the quiet answer.
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"Then, they ran into that terrible pit and were killed?" "Not at all. They alighted without even a shock. They were merely, of their own free will, leaping through one of the gateways of hell."
"But the smoke- The fire?"
"There was no real fire. At a distance the hells seem to be on fire, but this is only an appearance from correspondence. What is called hell-fire is only the fire of self-love, of lust, of hate. The love of doing evil- This is the fire which never dies, and is said to consume the wicked."
I hung upon his words. His face, his eyes, even more than the words from his mouth (which I but imperfectly recall) seemed to illumine my mind. "Ah, now I understand," I said, feeling joy in the thought that a great and hidden truth was made clear to me.
"What dreadful monsters they were," I added after a moment, with sadness.
"They are such in the light of heaven," was the reply, "but in their own light they appear otherwise. It is of the mercy of the LORD that they should not see their own or each other's deformity, and they therefore appear to themselves and to each other as more or less perfect men. Nor does hell seem dark and gloomy to them, for, on account of their inverted state, everything that is really ugly and repulsive appears to their eyes beautiful. This is because they love evil and not good. . . . They live in communities similar to that which you have lately seen on the confines of hell, and are happier there than they could be anywhere else because they there have opportunity to ultimate their evil lusts."
"But do they not suffer torment?"
"Bitter torment-which the commission of evil inevitably entails. Were it not so, the wicked could not be restrained within bounds. It is of the mercy of the LORD that a certain order should rule even in the hells, and therefore the devils are compelled to labor for their daily bread, and are not allowed to do all the wicked things which they long to do. Hence they are tormented. But since what one loves is one's very life, a limited indulgence in their evil lusts is permitted the infernals, for otherwise they would be deprived of existence itself."
"Poor Paul, poor lost Paul," I mused later, tears in my eyes.
"Do not grieve for him," said the angel; "he has gone where he can enter more fully into the delight of his life than he could elsewhere."
"It is so hard to think of him-down there," I insisted, shuddering. "He always seemed so kind, so good."
"And yet his every act in hatter years was dictated by selfish motives. He was kind solely to gain influence; he wished to rule others for his own selfish ends. A good action, done for its own sake without hope of reward, was to his mind consummate folly. Such a man loves neither the Church, his country, the public good, his neighbor, nor anything but himself alone; he, therefore, becomes, not an angel, but a devil."
"He always seemed so just," I added, clingingly. "I remember when he had some public offices at his disposal, disgusted with the favor shown their relatives by other men in high places, he refused even to consider the claims of those akin to him, and was publicly applauded."
"But this was not justice," was the convincing answer; "we are to love and do charity to our neighbor according to the good that is in him, and those akin to us by blood are our neighbors, not more, not less, but equally with others. In this case it was a question of fitness for the positions, and this man undoubtedly saw among his relations some well fitted to do the duties in question, but in order to gain glory for himself he was unjust to them."
"You speak positively-"
"I do. I was present when he was explored as to his interior quality, and I know the man."
"How 'explored'?"
"When one has been in the world of spirits some time," the angel explained, "he is let into the state of his interiors. He is then examined or explored as to his real quality. His book of life is read; that is to say, a certain influence is brought to bear, under which his natural memory is excited into activity, and he recalls the evils done in the body. These are reviewed by the angel examiners as they pass through his mind. He is then condemned, not for past commission of evils, but for his present attitude toward them. Those who are past redemption are observed to be delighted with the recollection of their evil deeds, but those who can be saved are seen to be bowed with humiliation and sorrow. This man who was akin to you through the natural tie of blood, far from showing remorse, furnished unmistakable evidence of intense exultation when the record of the evil cunning, hypocrisy, and secret wickedness of his life passed before him."
Notwithstanding what I now heard and all that I had seen and been taught, I presently found myself asking a foolish question. I made inquiry if the LORD, in His Infinite mercy, could not save a wicked man in spite of himself.
"The LORD does not disrupt the eternal laws of order and change a hawk into a dove or a wolf into a lamb," was the quick answer. "It is of His will and mercy that man be placed in the natural world in equilibrium between good and evil, free to choose the one or the other. Were man compelled to choose the good, the god-like gift of freedom would be taken away from him, and he would be no longer a man, but a mere automaton. The whole design of creation, which is a heaven from the human race, would be frustrated. It is better that vast numbers should become devils than that all should be lifeless automata, and indeed it is far better to live and become a devil than not to live at all, for even the devils, tormented as they are, find a joy in existence and have their own evil delights and pleasures.
"To understand how impossible it is for man to enter heaven simply through an act of mercy you must understand that the loving and doing of good or evil affect the very substance and structure of one's soul. This is why the evil are inwardly delighted when they perceive the foul exhalations from hell, and gladly cast themselves downward through the way opened to them. Were this man of whom we have spoken elevated into heaven, he would be unable to breathe, like a fish out of water; he would be unable to endure the atmosphere in which the angels live, and would suffer unspeakable torment. I have seen some who believed themselves worthy of heaven so affected. It having been permitted them to approach a heavenly society, they were seized with horrible pains, and fell down as if dead, and as soon as the heavenly atmosphere was withdrawn from them and they revived, they ran away with shrieks of terror and gladly cast themselves down to their own place."
(To be continued.)
When the heart is full of joy 1893
When the heart is full of joy, and hence also the thought, then it pours itself forth by song.- A. E. 326 [a].
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NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
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THE EDITOR'S address is No. 868 North Nineteenth Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Subscriptions are also received through the following agents:
UNITED STATES.
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CANADA.
Toronto, Ont., Mr. R. Carswell, 20 Equity Chambers.
Waterloo, Mr. Rudolph Roschman.
GREAT BRITAIN.
Mr. E. W. Misson, 20 Paulet Road, Camberwell, London, S. E.
PHILADELPHIA, MAY, 1893=123.
CONTENTS.
Editorial, p. 65.-Discord and Harmony (a Sermon), p. 66.- Conjunction of the Celestial internal with Spiritual Good from the Natural (Genesis, xlvii. p. 69.- The Music of the Ancients, p. 70.-Musical Instruments in the Word, p. 71.
Notes and Reviews, p. 72.
The General Church- A Meeting of the Immanuel Church, p. 73.
Communicated- The Larynx. p. 73.-Our Church Orchestras, p. 73.-Festival of the Glorification, p. 76.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale), xlv, xv, p. 77.
News Gleanings, p. 80.-Birth, p. 80.- Directory of Schools and Places of Worship, p. 80.- Academy Book Room, p. 80.
AT HOME.
Ohio.- AT a meeting held February 10th the Greenford Society abolished its Constitution and adopted the new order of the General Church of the Advent of the Lord. The change was further ultimated by the adoption of a new name: "The Church of the Advent, of Greenford."
Massachusetts.- SUNDAY services have been discontinued since January 1st, at No. 33 Summer Street, Lynn, but the Rev. J. A Hayes conducts a class every Tuesday evening for the study of the Word.
THE Massachusetts Association held its one hundred and twenty-sixth semi- Annual meeting in the Church of the Boston Society on April 6th. Eighteen ministers - And eighty delegates were present. Twenty Societies, with a membership of seventeen hundred and eighty-four, reported to the Association, "several reported friendly relations with other denominations." The Society at East Bridgewater at its last celebration of the Holy Supper substituted the "juice of the grape" for wine. The sermon preached by the General Pastor was written at the request of the Ministers of the Association, and grew out of the consideration at one of their meetings of the work of the late Phillips Brooks. During the discussion which followed the sermon, a minister said that distinctions based on merely doctrinal differences are not of the New Church.
THE Rev. Julian K. Smyth has been elected a member of the Advisory Council on the Parliament of Religions.
A WOMEN'S meeting was held in Boston on April 10th to consider the matter of representation at the New Church Congress to be held in Chicago in September. A committee of fifteen was appointed.
Washington, D. C.- THE Rev. Frank Sewall, a member of the recently formed "Society for Philosophical Inquiry," lectured by invitation before the Society on "Emerson and Swedenborg on the Imagination."
Illinois.- THE pastorate of the Rev. S. C. Eby, of the Peoria and Olney Societies, will cease on May 15th.
THE Rev. T. A. King was installed by the Rev. L. P. Mercer, Presiding Minister of the Illinois Association, as Coadjutor Pastor of the Chicago Society, on Sunday, April 9th.
About four hundred persons attended the Easter Services of the Society of which the Rev. L. P. Mercer is pastor, and over two hundred and fifty partook of the Holy Supper.
New York.- THE adjourned meeting of the New York Association was held on March 25th, in the house of worship of the New York Society, when the subject of the "Parsons' Resolution" was further debated. The Rev. C. H. Mann presented the following resolution, which was accepted as a substitute and finally adopted:
"Resolved, That the Board of Directors be requested, when it may have occasion to employ persons to perform any of the uses of the Association, to select of those who are available for the purpose such persons as can best accomplish the work to be done, whether the be men or women."
MRS. C. Parsons addressed the Woman's Union of the Brooklyn Society on "Why Swedenborg was born in Sweden." The Messenger, from which this note has been culled, gives no further particulars in regard to this interesting question.
THE Seventy- Third Annual Session of the General Convention will be held in the house of worship of the New York Society on May 27th, 1893.
Pennsylvania.- THE Pennsylvania Association held its annual meeting in Philadelphia, on Good Friday, March 31st. Nine ministers, twenty-eight officers and delegates, and one hundred and twenty- Three visitors were present. The Association accepted an invitation from the Frankford Society to hold the next annual meeting in its Church.
San Francisco- THE House of Worship of the O'Farrell Street Society, which was injured by fire on January 8th, is nearly ready for use again.
ABROAD.
Great Britain.- A COURSE of Missionary Lectures has been given at Warminster, under the auspices of the West of England New Church Association, resulting in a correspondence in a local paper.
MR. S. B. Dicks has resigned the leadership of the Bromley Society.
A WOMAN lectured before the Glasgow (Queen's Park) Society on "The Human Eye," on March 2d.
THE Rev. W. A. Presland has been requested to extend, for another twelve months, his engagement with the Camberwell Society.
THE Rev. Joseph Deans delivered a lecture in Glasgow on invitation of the Working Men's Evangelistic Association, on February 23d. At the conclusion of the lecture he was challenged to publicly discuss the question of the sole deity of the LORD JESUS CHRIST. The challenge was accepted, and the debate took place on March 13th, 15th, 20th, and 22d.
MR. Stephen J. C. Goldsack has accepted a call to become the minister of the Keighley Society about August.
Switzerland.-PROFESSOR Scocia has supplied the new book depository in Zurich with thirteen works translated by him of which number nine are books of the Writings.
DIRECTORY 1893
Schools of the Academy of the New Church.
Philadelphia.- Theological School and College, and School for Girls, 1821 Wallace Street. School for Boys, 1826 North Street. Bishop Benade, Superintendent; Rev. Eugene J. E. Schreck, Dean of the Faculty.
Chicago.-434 Carrol Avenue. Rev. Wm. H. Acton, Head-Master.
Pittsburgh.-Wallingford Street, Shady Side. Rev. Andrew Czerny, Head-Master.
Berlin, CANADA.-King Street. Rev. F. E. Waelchli, Head-Master.
London, ENGLAND.-Burton Road. Rev. Edward C. Bostock, Head-Master.
Parkdale, CANADA.-Rev. Edward S. Hyatt, Head-Master.
Places of worship of the Academy of the New Church and of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD.
Philadelphia.-1826 North Street. Bishop Pendleton in pastoral charge. Services on Sundays at 10.44 o'clock A. M.
Berlin.-King Street. Rev. F. E. Waelchli, Pastor.
Chicago.-434 Carroll Avenue, between Ada and Sheldon Streets. Rev. N. D. Pendleton, Pastor. Services will be held every Sunday during summer at 11 o'clock A. M.
London, ENGLAND.-Burton Road, Brixton. Rev. Robert J. Tilson, Pastor. Services morning and evening.
Pittsburgh.-Wallingford Street, Shady Side. Rev. Homer Synnestvedt, Minister.
Greenford.-Regular monthly visits by a Pastor.
Allentown.- Hersh's Building, Hamilton Street, corner of Lumber. Services conducted every Sunday by a visiting minister.
Brooklyn, E. D., N. Y.-172 Broadway. Services every Sunday, with occasional visits by ministers.
Colchester, ENGLAND.- Services every Sunday, with regular visits from a minister.
Liverpool, ENGLAND.- Services every Sunday, with occasional visits from a minister.
Denver, COLORADO.
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM 1893
AMONG the many valuable books on sale at the Book Room, we wish to keep some prominent before the renders of the Life:
THE WORD IN GREEK AND HEBREW. According to the New Church Canon. Especially bound for us in Europe. Scarlet, high polished Levant, red under gold edges. Price, $12.00. The most suitable book for Church or Family Repository.
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE; OR, THE WORD OF THE LORD. Oxford. Octavo edition.
According to the New Church Canon. Handsomely bound in full cochineal morocco, gilt edges. Price, $5.00.
The Same. Very neatly bound in red cloth, gilt edges. Price, $250.
CONJUGIAL LOVE, New English Edition. Especially bound for us in Europe. Hard grain. Cochineal morocco. Red under gold edges. Price, $5.00. Same in cloth. Price, $1.00; postage, 15 cents.
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM,
1821 Wallace St., Philadelphia.
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Title Unspecified 1893
Vol. XIII, No. 6. PHILADELPHIA, JUNE 1893. Whole No. 152.
The quality of the joy of thought is set forth by the words of a song conformable and agreeable to the matter which is in the thought from the heart.- A. E. 326 [a].
Title Unspecified 1893
NOT many years ago, the Second Coming of the LORD was defined by leading ministers of the Convention as a "new and more powerful influx and operation of Divine Truth with men. It is now taking place, and the signs and effects of it are everywhere visible." The grave error of this conception of the LORD'S Advent was pointed out, and of late years the definition has not been made prominent in such express terms.
Nevertheless, the false conception has remained, and is bearing fruit. One of its fruits is the subversion of the Divine Order relating to woman and her function. The arguments of the New York Association in favor of women entering upon careers which the common sense of mankind has always acknowledged to belong to men, are based upon the premises that the Christian world has entered upon a celestial dispensation, and that the Doctrines of the New Jerusalem are not the interpreter of effects, but that effects are to interpret the Doctrines.
The position assumed is, essentially, that the outwardly revealed Truth is not to govern the affections of men, who are thus to be led to Good, but that they are receiving good by influx through their opened interiors, and that their actions, as expressions of this good, are to explain the Truth that has been revealed.
The avowed celestial movement involves regeneration without reformation- The change of the will without the previous change of the understanding and consequent self compulsion- And is opposed to the Divinely affirmed Word of the LORD: "Amen, amen, I say unto thee, Unless a man be born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God" (John iii, 5). "Water" in the spiritual sense is truth, and "spirit" is a life according to it.
The action of The Association in extending an invitation to women to enter the priesthood is quite consistent. For, if the composite man of Christendom is becoming celestial, and needs no longer to subject his deeds, affections, and intentions to his understanding as enlightened by the Divine Revelation, then there is no necessity for the individual man and woman to do so. Whatever they do is right, because they are celestial, and if the Revelation teaches differently, it must be forced into conformity with the experience of these celestials beings.
Does it seem incredible that such a profane attitude is assumed by a large Association of professed receivers of the Doctrines of the New Jerusalem? Then let the following quotations from the majority report of a committee of that Association, sustained as it was by the last general meeting of that body, stand in evidence:
"The third reason, we think, that according to the Doctrines, woman is to assume very different relations to man in the corning age of the world than ever before, is that men and women are to associate on a more interior plane of their being . . . On the spiritual plane, woman is a form of affection and man of intelligence, and hence in the dispensation that is just passing away, which has been on that plane, she has been related to him as affection to intelligence. But on the celestial plane of life, to which we are surely coming, man is a form of love and woman of perception. Hence as we enter upon this plane of the opening of the interiors, we hold that a new relationship between men and women must be established with it, even as when entering upon the spiritual from the natural such a new relationship came into existence." (Report, p. 8.)
Let not the unwary reader he misled by the introductory phrase, "According to the Doctrines," which induces the appearance as of reliance upon them. Such an appearance is utterly dispelled by the subsequent avowal of the report, especially by the words italicized by us:
"But in considering the question before us, we hold, that while the teachings of the Church are our great guide, we are to interpret those teachings in the light of the events of history, and are to be open to the exercise of judgment upon the significance of those events 'in freedom according to reason.' The reception of the Doctrines of the New Church is not for the restriction of the exercise of organs of vision in beholding, and of the intelligence in interpreting the signs of the times. Whatever we may at first sight think that the Doctrines teach, we may be sure that they do not teach contrary to the logic of events. Women are to-day entering fields where a few years ago they would not have been tolerated," etc., etc. (Report, p. 10.)
By such reasoning, which is of a piece with that of which it is written in the Angelic Wisdom concerning the Divine Love and Wisdom, that thought from the understanding opens the eye, but thought from the eye closes the understanding, "events" have been suffered to "interpret" away the Doctrine, quoted in the minority report, that "the wife, because she acts from cupidity, which is of the proprium, not so from reason," should therefore be under the prudence of the man, who acts from reason (A. C. 266); also that other teaching likewise quoted in the minority report, that "women who think like men about religious matters, and speak much about them, and still more if they preach in the congregations, destroy the feminine nature," etc. (S. D. 5986).
"We must trust her" in determining the question of entering the callings of men, says the majority. Yet the Doctrine teaches that she cannot be trusted in such matters, for the reason that "the wife acts from cupidity which is of the proprium, not so from reason like the man," and therefore "she should be subject to his prudence." The majority contends that if woman is left to enter the ceilings of man, the mistake, if such there be, will be found out. "Her inability will he her ample restriction." But in this plausible plea, there is overlooked what the minority in vain calls attention to, that I "women can be initiate into the exercise of the duties of men, but not into the judgment on which the right performance of the duties interiorly depends" (C. L. 175), and there is further overlooked the supplemental teaching, which, unfortunately, the minority did not adduce, that this defect in the performance of men's duties by women, is not always appreciable in this world, but becomes manifest in the other: hence, the Revelation of Truth out of Heaven, to guide men who without this heavenly light are in the darkness of the world.
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Let men who prefer the lumen of the world to the Divine Truth, take heed lest they "prefer darkness to Light."
But what is the supplemental teaching to which reference has just been made, which strips off appearances and reveals realities? It is nothing less than this:
"It is also considered by some, that women can elevate the sight of their understanding into the sphere of light,, equally as man, and to see through things in the same high light, which opinion has been induced upon them by the writings of some learned authoresses; but these, when explored in the spiritual world in their presence, were found not to be of judgment and wisdom, but of ingenuity and wit; and the things which proceed from these two, from the elegance and neatness of the composition of the words appear as if sublime and erudite; but only before those who call all ingenuity wisdom" (C. L. 175).
Thus again does the Doctrine adjudge the attitude of the New York Association. For sublimity it would have elegance; for erudition, neatness; for wisdom, ingenuity; for judgment, wit! In brief, for manliness, effeminacy!
The principle which determines the subordination of woman's cupidity to the prudence of man is the same which determines, in the man himself, the subordination of his cupidities under his prudence. And since the wife acts more from affection, if that affection be controlled by the husband's wisdom, it reacts upon the man, for she will be a better and stronger help to him in his own overcoming of his will by his understanding. There is, after all, very little of what is good and true in the world. Neither the man nor the woman has much of it. And they who willfully blind themselves to this fundamental truth, and conjure up an undefined widespread sort of regenerating influx, and a celestial era' I do themselves and others untold harm. While, in this corrupt age, woman is cupidity instead of will, man is phantasy instead of understanding. And the false heaven, which phantasy, inspired by cupidity, creates, hides the very hell in which man is living "the feminine sex is such, and so formed, that will or cupidity reigns more than understanding; such is every disposition of their fibres, such is their nature. But the masculine sex has been so formed that understanding or reason reigns, such also is the disposition of their fibres, such is their nature; hence is the marriage of both, as is that of the will and understanding in every man, and because at the present day there is no will of good, but cupidity, and still an intellectual something, or rational [intellectuale quid, seu rationale] can be given, hence it is, that so many laws were enacted in the Jewish Church about the prerogatives of men, and the obedience of the wife" (A. C. 568).
How express, how definite, is the teaching! Note that because the state of man is such at the present day, the Jewish laws about marriage were enacted, for the real purport of those laws was never understood until now-until the Internal Sense of the Word was revealed. As the Jewish Church figured the truly Christian Church which is now beginning, so its laws were significative of the spiritual laws which are now to be observed by the Newchurchman.
The force of the teaching in n. 568 of the Arcana Coelestia, will, no doubt, be sought to be broken by the allegation that "at the present day" means in Swedenborg's, not our own day. But such an argument falls by the weight of its own absurdity. As if laws, enacted nearly four thousand years ago, and preserved for so many centuries, were intended to cover the conditions of a single generation, and that generation even, living in ignorance of them. Laws enacted by the LORD are not intended to be a dead letter: they are intended to be known, understood, obeyed. To consider them as applicable only for a season in which they are not yet known is preposterous. Even now, more than a century since their true significance was revealed, they are not grasped, as is evidenced by the discussion in the New York Association; and even the minority, with its much clearer insight into the general question than the majority, casts a slur upon them. (See Report, page 15.)
Men and women of the present day are in evil, and it is of the first importance that they fully, freely and frankly recognize and acknowledge this, and that the only means by which they can be drawn out of the evil into which their cupidity would plunge them, is "an intellectual something or rational," which predominates with the man when he applies himself in an affirmative spirit to the Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, for "it is man's voluntary which is acted upon by hell; and not so much the intellectual, unless it is immersed in cupidities" (A. C. 845). And hence it is by the intellectual something that man can be regenerated; but when cupidity has sway, then the rational is suppressed, and the Divine Truth, from which alone the rational can be formed, is contradicted. Though the Divine Truth teach that "women who think like men about religious matters, and speak much about them, and still more, if they preach in the congregation, destroy, the feminine nature," cupidity maintains, as in the words of the majority: "That women will in any general way unsex themselves is an utter impossibility. They could not if they tried." (Report, p. 10.)
Such falses expose the folly of the claim to the celestial. For, from the good of the celestial comes truth: falsity, never.
Harmony 1893
The quality of the joy of heart is set forth by the harmony.- A. E. 326 [a].
GOVERNMENT BY CONSCIENCE Rev. N. DANDRIDGE PENDLETON 1893
NINETEENTH OF JUNE SERMON
"I was seeing in visions of the night, and behold He was coming with the clouds of heaven as the Son of Man, and He came even to the Ancient of days, and they made Him approach before Him. And in Him was given Dominion and Glory and a Kingdom, and all peoples, nations and tongues shall worship Him. His Dominion is a Dominion of an age which shall not pass away, and His Kingdom which shall not perish."-Daniel vii,13, 14.
THESE words from Daniel are a prediction concerning the Second Advent of the LORD, at which time He was to come not in Person, but in the "clouds of heaven"- That is, in the literal sense of the Word which is signified by the "clouds of heaven"- And also that He would then establish a New Church, which would endure forever, for concerning this Church it is said, "His Dominion is a Dominion of an age which shalt not pass away, and His Kingdom which shall not perish," by which is signified the establishment of the New Church, the crown of all Churches; which Church was not to be established, as said above, by a personal coming of the LORD, but by His coming in the literal sense of the Word- That is, by His appearing as the internal sense in this literal sense. Thus the Second Coming of the LORD and the establishment of the New Church, is effected by a revelation of the Internal Sense of the Word, in which the LORD is, and appears, as the Son of Man in His Glorified Human.
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Thus and in no other way has the LORD effected His Second Coming, as may appear from this statement from the Doctrines: "The LORD does not reveal Himself elsewhere than in the Word, nor then otherwise than in the Internal Sense" (A. E. 36), for as elsewhere stated, "it is to be known that after the Word was given, the LORD manifests Himself by it alone, for the Word which is Divine Truth, is the LORD HIMSELF in heaven and the Church: from this it may first be known that the manifestation there predicted (that is, in Daniel) signifies His manifestation in the Word, and His manifestation in the Word was effected by this, that He opened and revealed the internal or spiritual sense of the Word, for in this sense is the Divine Truth, such as it is in heaven, and the Divine Truth in heaven is the LORD there" (A. E. 694 [b.]). Such is the Divine teaching given us concerning the manner in which the LORD was to make His Second Coming, viz., as the opened and revealed Internal Sense of the Word, which is none other than that contained in the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, the servant of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, to whom it was given to explore rationally the mysteries of heaven and earth in order that he might be prepared to receive and give faith to a fallen world the most precious truth from the LORD out of heaven, in order that the world might thereby be saved from evil, and thus that the New Church might be established, and endure for ages of ages.
The LORD'S chosen servant, Emanuel Swedenborg, was then the means or instrument by which He effected His Second Coming, or what is the same, through whom He revealed the internal sense, for the internal sense is the real means by which He effected His Second Coming, and in that sense He is seen and received by those who are of His New Church and not out of it. In and through that sense alone He reigns and governs the Church; for from that sense alone the conscience of the Newchurchman is formed, and by this conscience the LORD governs, and not otherwise, for the government of the New Church is an internal government and not external, except from the internal; which means that the New Church as the Newchurch man is to be governed by an internal conscience formed from the internal sense of the Word, for in this and this alone the LORD can reign and govern His Church, for conscience is nothing but Divine Truths received and acknowledged in the mind of man, and when man is governed by these truths he is said to be governed by conscience, but what is really meant is that he is governed by the LORD, for these truths are from the LORD and are the LORD in man, so that when we speak of a government by conscience, we mean the government of the LORD, and there is no other government of the LORD than a government by conscience. Let us then realize this, that there are two things which contend for dominion over us; the one is called conscience. This is from the LORD, and with the Newchurchman is formed from the internal sense of the Word; the other is called will, and is from self. These two contend for dominion, and in so far as the one gains dominion the other is subordinated, if the will gains power over us, then conscience departs, and the LORD cannot govern us internally. He can only restrain us by external means. But on the other hand, if we are ruled by conscience- That is, by the LORD- Then He governs us internally, and the external restraints with which we were at first bound, are one, by one removed, just in the degree as self will is subdued, until at length we are under no restraints, except those of conscience, which indeed are the most powerful of all because internal, but which are of that quality that they give freedom instead of taking it away. External restraints are of a very different kind, for they invariably take away freedom upon the plane on which they exist; these external restraints are necessary because of the evil who cannot sustain true freedom, which in their hands would become license, hence external restraints or bonds are necessary for them in order to keep them within certain bounds, for they cannot be trusted. With those who are governed by conscience, however, the case is altogether otherwise, with them external restraints are but hindrances, and are to be removed just in proportion as men are able to sustain in integrity the consequent freedom; or, in other words, external restraints are removed from the Spiritual man just in the degree that he is governed and controlled by an internal conscience formed from Divine Truths, this goes on step by step until finally the material body with all its external restraints is removed and the man comes into the other world where he will know no restraint except his conscience formed in the world, then will appear to him the quality of his conscience, whether it was real or spurious, whether the things which he had done were done from an internal conscience or from certain external restraints. If he has acted from conscience he will be saved, if from external restraint only he will be lost. This spiritual conscience then is that by which the LORD governs the man of the Church and is therefore the Church in man- That is, the LORD'S dominion; this it is which He came to establish and until it be established in man the LORD'S Dominion is not yet in bins, and he is not yet prepared to receive his freedom but is amongst the bound.
It was to give this spiritual freedom that the LORD came a second time and established a New Church, which should be a Church under His Dominion- That is, governed by Him through the consciences of men; and this is the burden of His message to us, and it is also the burden of the message which He sent out one hundred and twenty- Two years ago through the universal spiritual world by means of His twelve disciples whom He called together for that purpose on the nineteenth day of June, 1770. He sent them forth to preach this evangel, that the LORD GOD JESUS CHRIST reigns, whose Kingdom shall be into ages of ages according to the prediction in Daniel.
"I was seeing in visions of the night, and behold He was coming with the clouds of heaven as the Son of Man, and He came even to the Ancient of days, and they made Him approach before Him. And to Him was given Dominion, and Glory, and a Kingdom, and all peoples, nations, and tongues shall worship Him. His Dominion is a Dominion of an age which shall not pass away, and His Kingdom which shall not perish."
quality of the joy of heart 1893
The quality of the joy of heart is set forth by the elation of the sound and in it of the words. A. E. 326 [a].
INSINUATION OF THE TRUTHS OF THE CHURCH INTO SCIENTIFICS 1893
GENESIS XLVII.
IN the preceding chapter the conjunction of spiritual Good from the natural with the Internal Celestial was treated of; in this chapter, in the Internal Sense, the insinuation of the truths of the Church into the scientific is treated of. Afterward scientifics are treated of, how they are reduced into order by the Internal Celestial.
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First scientific truths, next the truths of good and the goods of truth, and finally all the natural as to scientifics were reduced under their own general. At the last the. Regeneration of spiritual Good from the natural is treated of.
(1.) The presence of the Internal Celestial in the natural where scientifics are, and influx thence gave the perception of spiritual good in the natural, and the truths of the Church therein, and the interior and exterior goods of truth, and whatever is thence, that they were all from the Church.
(2.) From those truths of the Church there were now some things insinuated into scientifics.
(3.) Whence the scientific had perception concerning the truths of the Church in the Natural as to offices and uses, thus as to goods-namely, that they lead to good, which also they derived from the ancients.
(4.) There was further a continuity of perception in the natural in general, that the truths of the Church sought life in scientifics, for scientifics were hitherto wanting in which were the goods of truth, whence there was a deficiency of such things in the Church, wherefore the truths of the Church desired that they might live in the midst of such scientifics.
It is to be known that all things which are in the spiritual world, and hence all things which are in the natural, seek somewhat further, in which they may be, and act as a cause in effect, to the intent that they may continually produce something; this somewhat further is as it were a body, and what seeks to be in it is as it were a soul; this tendency ceases only in the ultimates of nature, where things inert have place. In the natural world this appears from everything, and also in the spiritual world in this, that good seeks to live in truths, and truths seek to live in scientifics, and scientifics in things of sense, and things of sense in the world.
(5.) The natural where scientifics are, now perceived from the internal that there was an influx of the internal celestial into spiritual good from the natural, and into the truths of the Church therein.
(6.) For the scientifics of the natural mind are under the guidance and control of the Internal Celestial, in order that Spiritual Good from the natural and the truths of the Church therein may live in the inmost of them- That is, the best of them, where the midst is; therein the things more excellent in doctrine, are the primary things of scientifics.
(7.) There was now present general truth from the internal, and the insinuation of it into the general of scientifics, and a sacred wish for conjunction and consequent fructification. Fructification is a consequence of conjunction, inasmuch as when conjunction is effected good increases, and truth multiplies; for there is then a marriage of good and truth, from which such effects are produced; these effects were before impossible, except as from whoredom, but the good produced from this source is spurious, and also the truth; the good having respect to self, and the truth deriving its wisdom from that good.
(8.) The natural wherein are scientifics, perceived an inquiry concerning the general truth of the Church, as to the state of the natural life from the spiritual, (9.) and the, reply was, concerning the successive of that life, that the state and quality of the spiritual life, which the natural at this time had from the spiritual was such that it was full of temptations, and that it was not elevated to the state of celestial and spiritual life.
(10.) Now, notwithstanding a sacred wish for conjunction and consequent fructification, there was separation, as to time, from the natural where scientifics are.
In the foregoing the conjunction of spiritual good from the natural, also of the truths of the Church in the natural, with the internal celestial is treated of; but not as yet conjunction with the natural, only insinuation; but in what now follows that conjunction is treated of from verse 13 to verse 27 of this chapter, wherefore it is here said that there was a separation as to time.
(11.) Spiritual good and the truths of the Church now had life from the Internal Celestial, in the inmost of the natural mind, where scientifics are; yea, in the inmost of the spiritual in the natural mind with the consent of the natural where scientifics are, each according to the quality of the good of innocence.
(12.) The influx from the internal Celestial into spiritual good, and into the truths of the Church in the natural is according to the quality of the good of innocence; for innocence is what from the inmost qualifies every good of charity and of love; for the LORD flows in by innocence into charity, and as much as there is of innocence, so much of charity is received; for innocence is the very essential of charity.
(13.) There now came a state when good no longer appeared; for there was a desolation or deficiency of good and of knowledges, in the natural where scientifics are, and within the Church.
In what here follows the reduction by the internal Celestial of all things in the natural into order, under a general, to the end that the conjunction might be effected with the truths of the Church, and by those truths with good, and by this good with the internal Celestial, is treated of; but because the reduction of scientifics into order under a general cannot be effected otherwise than by vastations of good and desolation of truth, and by subsequent sustentations, therefore both the former and the latter are treated of in what now follows in the Internal Sense. These things, however, seldom take place with man during his life in the world for many reasons; but in the other life they take place with all who are regenerated; and inasmuch as they do not take place with man in the world, it is no wonder if they appear to him as things unknown, and are presented as secrets of which he had never before heard.
(14.) The internal Celestial now called into one-every true and suitable scientific which was in the natural and in the Church, and by it they were sustained, and all the scientific was referred to the general in the natural.
A scientific is said to be true and suitable, which is not darkened by fallacies, which so long as they cannot be dispersed, render the scientific unsuitable; a scientific is also said to be true and suitable, which has not been made perverse by applications to falses and to evils by others, or by one's self; for these, when once impressed on any scientific, remain; the scientific, therefore, which is free from such variations, is a scientific true and suitable. By the Church in this series is meant what is of the Church with man; man is a Church when he is in good and truth, and a collection of such men constitutes the Church in general.
(16.) The state now became such that the true and suitable scientific was no more conspicuous in the natural and within the Church, by reason of the desolation, wherefore the natural made application to the internal and supplication concerning the sustentation of spiritual life; for otherwise, by reason of a deficiency of truth there would be spiritual death.
(16.) The internal made reply that they should offer the goods of truth and should be sustained, if truth were no longer conspicuous to them.
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(17.) The goods of truth were therefore offered, and the internal sustained them as to the spiritual life of scientifics from the intellectual, of the interior and exterior goods of truth, and of the things of service; and by the influx of good from the internal sustained the good of truth during the period of that state.
Scientifics from the intellectual are the scientifics which confirm those things that a man intellectually apprehends and perceives, whether they be evil or good.
(18.) But there was still desolation after the period of this state in the beginning of the following, in which state it was known to the internal that truth was not conspicuous on account of the desolation, and that it was the same with the good of truth; for the receptacles of good and truth were altogether desolated.
(19.) If these receptacles should be desolated there would no longer be spiritual life under the internal, wherefore there was supplication for the appropriation of the receptacles of both good and truth that they might be sustained with good; and a total submission of those receptacles that there might be an influx of the good of charity and the truth of faith, whence they would have spiritual life, and no longer a fear of damnation, and the mind would be cultivated with the scientific of the Church.
(20.) The internal now appropriated to itself the whole natural mind where scientifics were and placed it under general auspices, whence there was an abdication and subjection of all things which were of service to the Church, because there was desolation even to despair, and all were subjected to the natural which was under the auspices of the Internal.
(21.) Scientific truths were now referred to doctrinals throughout the whole natural where scientiflcs were.
(22.) The Internal from the natural procured to itself the faculties of receiving good, because they are from itself- That is, from the LORD; on that account this faculty was disposed in order by the natural, which was under the auspices of the Internal, and the goods did not appropriate to themselves more than according to ordination, wherefore they had no need to abdicate and submit themselves.
(23.) The Internal inflowed into scientific truths and caused them to perceive that it had procured those things to itself, and subjected them to the general in the natural which was under the auspices of the Internal, and that it gave the good of charity and the truth of faith which was to be implanted.
(24.) From this implantation there was produced fruit which was for remains for the general which was under the auspices of the Internal; and those things which were not yet remains were for the nourishment of the mind, that thence the good of truth might be in all and single the things which are of innocence.
(25.) Spiritual life was no otherwise nor from any other source than from the Internal- That is, from the LORD-wherefore scientifics, after all appertaining to them had been abdicated, had the will that thus things might be subjected, and also humiliation, wherefore they renounced their proprium and submitted to the natural which was, under the auspices of the Internal.
(26.) It was therefore concluded from consent to eternity that there should he remains, and that the faculties of receiving goods are immediately from the Internal.
(27.) Spiritual good now lived among the scientifics which were of the Church, in the midst of them given and ordinated thus by the Internal as a station of spiritual life; and it had the consequent goods of charity and truths of faith.
(28.) The truth of the natural was now in scientifics from the beginning of the state of spiritual life in the natural among scientifics to its end, the quality of which in general was a holy state of temptations in which goods were conjoined with truths, even to a full state.
(29.) In the state now arrived at, which was immediately before regeneration, the internal was present in spiritual good, whence there was desire and a holy obligation by that which was of conjugial love from all potency, and supplication in humiliation from the good of love, that regeneration might not be in scientifics; (30) but that there might be life with this Church such as had been with the ancients, thus that there might be an elevation out of scientifics and such regeneration, and it was granted that so it should be done.
The regeneration of the natural is effected by the insinuation of spiritual life from the LORD by the internal man into the scientifics in the natural; but when man is thus regenerated, if he be such that he can be further regenerated, he is elevated thence to the interior natural, which is under the immediate auspices of the Internal; but if man be not such then his spiritual life is the exterior natural. Elevation is effected by a withdrawing from sensuals and scientifics, thus by elevation above and man then comes into a state of interior thought and affection, thus more interiorly into heaven. They who are in the latter state are in the internal Church, but they who are in the former state are in the external Church.
(31.) There was further a desire on the part of the spiritual from the natural that this might be irrevocable, and it was made irrevocable, wherefore the natural truth turned itself to those things which were of the interior natural- That is, was elevated to spiritual good.
Song 1893
Song signifies confession from joy of heart.- A. E. 326.
NOTES ON ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 1893
THE ANCIENT CHURCH.
Its Morning. The Church Noach.
1. THE ANCIENT CHURCH is so called because it possessed genuine truths from the Word (A. E. 617 [b]), and because it existed before the Coming of the LORD into this world. ("Ancient," Antiquus, from ante, before). It is also called "the Silver Age," because the ruling love in this Church was the love of the neighbor, and not, as in the Most Ancient Church, the love of the LORD. In the Word this Church is referred to by various expressions, such as "hills of an age," (Deut. xxxiii, 13-17), and "days of old" (Mal. iii, 2-4, A. C. 349), but it is especially and generally represented by Noach and his descendants, and it is, therefore, in the Writings often called the Noachtic Church.
Specially, however, by the Church Noach is meant the beginning of the Ancient Church.
2. THE SUCCESSIVE STATES of the Ancient Church are described in Genesis v-xi. Its first dawn and formation is represented by the building of the Ark and Noach's salvation in it. The subsequent day and full establishment is represented -by the sons of Noach, and their immediate descendants. Its evening and decline is signified by the building of the tower of Babel, the confusion of tongues, and the dispersion of the nations. Its temporary reformation is represented by Heber, who founded the, Hebrew, or Second Ancient Church.
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Its vastation, consummation, and judgment, are represented by the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrha, the ten plagues upon Egypt, the downfall of Jericho, and other incidents.
3. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NEW CHURCH is always effected before the former Church has entirely passed away, for a new Church is always first established among the few remnants, or "elect" in the vastated Church. But "rarely, if ever," is this new Church established as a whole among those who had been of the former Church, for these have closed their interiors to Divine Truth by long continued confirmations and by hereditary accumulation of falses and evils. But a new Church is always raised up, as a whole, in a fresh, unoccupied ground, among those who previously have been in ignorance and simplicity- That is, among the Gentiles. We learn, thus, that the Ancient Church itself was not, by any immediate influx, established among the utterly perverted descendants of the Most Ancient Church, but among those who for ages, perhaps from the first creation, had remained in an undeveloped, ignorant Gentile state, in the various outlying districts about the land of Canaan, in Asia and Africa.
4. THE CHURCH NOACH.-Degeneration as well as regeneration is an individual matter. In a dying Church all are not simultaneously vastated in the same degree, but there are always some who are in a somewhat better state than the great majority. These are the remnant of the former Church, such as it was in its purer states, and it is to this remnant or to these remains of genuine faith and love that the LORD first or immediately makes His Advent before establishing a new Church among the Gentiles. These remnants are always few at the end of a Church, but these few, when "collected, inaugurated, and instructed," serve as a parent, nucleus, or beginning for the general new Church that will afterward be established. These remnants, such as existed in the last time of the Most Ancient Church, immediately before the Flood, are represented in the Word by Noach, which name itself signifies "to rest," "to remain." They were the only ones, at that time, who were still capable of receiving remains, of being instructed and led by the LORD, and it is hence said of these, that "Noach found grace in the eyes of JEHOVAH". (Gen. vi, 8).
5. NOACH SIMILAR TO THE ANTEDILUVIANS.-Yet the men who constituted this remnant were not of the celestial Church, such as this had existed in the Most Ancient Church itself, but partook to a great extent of the characteristics of the Antediluvians about them. Similarly with these, the will of the Noachites was by heredity and by actual evil entirely destroyed, and filled with all kinds of sensual lusts. Hence it is said that their "ark," or their voluntary proprium, was made of "Gopher-woods," a wood which, because it abounds in sulphur, signifies concupiscences (A. C. 643). They were, therefore, in themselves, merely natural and unregenerate men, and in a widely different state from that of the Pre- Adamites, out of whom was formed the Most Ancient Church, who, though natural, still by creation inclined to the love of the LORD and the neighbor. The Noachites differed from their celestial ancestors especially in this, that they had totally lost the faculty of perception, and with this the privilege of open communication with Heaven. They had become altogether external men, and could be regenerated and saved only by external means, and in a miraculous manner.
6. NOACH DIFFERENT FROM THE ANTEDILUVIANS.-It is said, however, that "Noach was a man just, upright in his generations; with God walked Noach." This does not describe the actual state of Noach either as to disposition or regeneration, "but as to what he was capable of becoming, namely, that by the cognitions of faith he might be gifted with charity, and thus act from charity, and from the good of charity know what was true." "Just" signifies the good of charity; "upright," the truth of charity; "to walk with God," the possession of the Doctrine of faith (A. C. 615).
There was not in the men of this generation any genuine will, or love of good, but only a species of natural good, or of natural integrity, not yet vivified by the trials of temptation, but still remaining as a plane or vessel for the reception of spiritual life.
Nor did they, at first, possess any genuine understanding of spiritual truth, but still there remained with them a certain intellectual faculty, whereby natural rational truth could be received and comprehended. This was "the window" which Noach made in the Ark. The affection of truth, accompanying this intellectual sight, is represented by the door in the side of the Ark (A. C. 651).
7. THEIR DOCTRINALS.- There remained, finally, with them, certain Doctrinals handed down by tradition from the perceptive revelations received by the most ancients, and collected into the book or "code" which was written by those who are represented by Kain and Enoch (A. C. 736, A. E. 670, 728). From this book, which had been hidden from the Antediluvians, but restored to the Noachites, these latter were taught what spiritual things all the objects in nature signify, correspond to, and represent, and from this know ledge they were enabled to learn what was good and true (A. C. 530, 2722). These doctrinals were, therefore, to them the means of Divine Revelation and instruction. This code was their Word, in which they believed with a simple faith. In the beginning they had no other Word (A. C. 1068, 1071, 1409, 2897, 3432).
8. THE SEPARATION OF THE WILL AND THE UNDERSTANDING.-But these Doctrinals of faith would have been of no use to the men of this generation, with whom the faculties of will and understanding were still one, had not the LORD as it were miraculously saved them by means of a new creation, or by a total reorganization of their minds. He changed the Noachites from men of a celestial genius into men of a spiritual genius, and He did this by separating their will-faculty from their faculty of understanding. This separation is described in the Word by "the mansions," and the distinct stories, "lowest, seconds and thirds," which Noach was commanded to make in the ark. The lower ark itself- That is, the will-was shut and pitched with pitch- That is, it was covered up and closed, lest the evil lusts should arise and inundate the intellectual, which was formed into a higher mansion, open by a window to Heaven above.
Lest this miraculous separation should appear to us an act of violent interference or compulsory salvation on the part of the LORD, it is well to remember that the union or oneness of the two faculties in the Most Ancient Church itself, could never have been an absolute, but only a relative oneness. Absolute oneness can be predicated or the LORD alone, with whom infinite things are one, and yet distinctly one. (Compare the Shamayim, the Heavens, or the "two Heavens, which were created in the beginning, and "the Tree of lives" in the Garden of Eden.) Nor was the separation a sudden change; without previous preparation. The first beginning of a separation took place, when Kain killed his brother Abel when the idea first arose of faith separate from charity.
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9. THEIR CONSCIENCE.-We are instructed that the separation itself was effected by the LORD through the miraculous implantation of what is called Conscience between the will and the understanding (A. C. 863). There remained in Noach, as was said, something of the natural rational still unperverted, by means of which he was still able to judge of the ratio between natural things- That is, by means of which he was able to see and judge as to what was naturally just and fair in his relations with other men. This natural rational judgment was formed with him, as with all other men, from early infancy, by direct instruction and by all his observations and sensual impressions throughout life (A. C. 371, 393, 1077, 1914, 2144, 2831). When the natural, civil, moral, and religious truths which had thus formed the rational were not only seen, but also received by the affection of natural integrity and honesty, which also remained intact, conscience began to be formed in Noach- That is, he began to be conscious of, or know with himself, the actual necessity of compelling himself to obey these truths in his life. These truths, then, together with the affection of natural integrity-which had been called into life and preserved at first by fears, the fear of punishments, of spiritual misfortunes, and the fear of acting against the LORD'S Will-were now able to form a barrier against the inundations of the Flood, or of the lusts of the evil will, and the will was thus separated from the understanding, into which the Light of Heaven could flow without interference. Within this protecting wall, above this separating plane or expanse, which is called Conscience, the LORD could now erect His dwelling-place, and operate for man's salvation. Conscience became thus the very life of the man, who had now become of a spiritual genius, because he could be saved by means of truth seen and received by the understanding, apart from the evil will (A. C. 762, 1831, 4299, 5145, 8002, 9122).
10. THE TEMPTATIONS OF NOACH could now begin, for he now possessed the means of conquering in his temptations. These are represented by the Flood of waters upon the earth, and by the fluctuations of the ark upon the waters.
There were with him in the ark pairs of beasts and birds of every kind, both clean and unclean. He had inherited not only traditions of truth and certain natural good inclinations, but also affections of all the falsities and evils which were common to the Antediluvians. These latter were the life of his natural man, to which he inclined, but which he must fight in order to be saved. Like Jews who become Christians, and like Christians who become Newchurchmen, there was with Noach, for a long period, a state of doubtfulness, hesitation, and fluctuation between the new and the old, between truth and falsity, and good and evil. Forty days and nights the ark went to and fro upon the faces of the waters. But "God remembered Noach." Gradually the fountains of the abyss and the cataracts of the sky were closed. A wind was made to pass over the earth. The waters assuaged, and finally the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat. Noach then opened the window in the ark.
As the most external evils of the proprium were gradually subdued by means of his conscience, and the falses of the old-understanding gradually were swept away by the influx or instruction in truths, the intellectual which was open to Heaven could more and more tome into its true use and activity. Though the raven sent out from the ark went to and fro upon the waters, and the dove returned empty to Noach, though falsities still for a time occasioned disturbances, because there was still some belief in his own power of doing good, still after a time the dove returned with an olive leaf in her mouth, as a sign of progress in regeneration. And when at last the dove did not return, Nonch knew that the ground was dry. Self- Confidence had at last been subdued, and the spiritual man had conquered in the combats of temptations. Noach could now in freedom leave his ark of Gopher-wood. He was master over the proprium of his evil will, which before had kept him in the bondage of Hell. He could now build an altar unto JEHOVAH, and offer burnt offering upon it. The LORD'S ancient spiritual Church was now established, and its internal and representative worship could now be instituted.
11. THE DRUNKENNESS OF NOACH, which is subsequently described, exhibits the comparatively external and imperfect state of the Ancient Church, such as it was in its beginning, or as distinguished from the Ancient Church itself, which was afterward established, and which is represented by Shem and Japhet. As with all spiritual men, in the beginning of their regeneration, so with the Noachites, their desire for and pride in the possession of the truths of faith outweighed their love of applying these truths to the shunning of evil and the performance of uses. This produces spiritual intoxication. This, however, was a transitory state. In their great affection and zeal for the truths of faith the Noachites were probably made of great use as evangelizers, in communicating the doctrines of the Ancient Church to the Gentile nations, who afterward constituted that Church Itself.
The Church Noach was represented to Swedenborg by a tall and slender man, clothed in white, and confined in a narrow chamber. This Church was thus represented because it consisted of few members (A. C. 1126).
Beside the Church Noach there were at that time other Churches established among men of a spiritual genius, who afterward probably became of the Ancient Church. Of these were those who are represented by Enosh, the last descendant of Kain (Gen. iv, 25, 26; A. C. 640, 1125).
Every affection 1893
Every affection, because it is of love, when it falls into sound, sounds agreeably to itself.- A. E. 323[b].
SCIENTIFIC THEORIES OF LANGUAGE 1893
IN the articles on Language, published in New Church Life (for January, page 6, February, page 22, and for April, page 55), it has been shown that Language, or Speech, is of Divine origin; that it is for the end of the conjunction of the LORD and man; that it is by the proceeding Divine truth that it is formed; and that, being formed it is a recipient vessel, and transmitting vehicle of the derivative forms of the truth from which it is.
By Language being of Divine origin is not meant that the words of language were once dictated immediately by the LORD, but that it arose from the correspondence established by the LORD between all things in the natural world and all things of the spiritual world. For instance, the sound, or articulation of sounds used by man as the name of a certain object, is, from creation and established order, a correspondent to the same affection and thought, or the same good and truth, in the spiritual world as is the object itself; and it is chosen by man as the name of the object from a perception of this correspondence.
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Having heard a definition of what language is, let us now take a glance at what language is not. In order to find what a thing is not it is needful only to take the scientific theory concerning that thing and we have it- That is, we have it not; for the science of to-day is a dead science which thinks from the eye, a process that closes the understanding, instead of thinking from the understanding, a process that opens the eye. Let us therefore examine the views held by scientific men of the world in regard to the origin of language. These views or theories will be useful to us in two ways. In one, where the theories happen to be true, and the facts genuine, they will be useful as confirmations of the truths deduced from the Doctrines; on the other hand, where the theories are false and the facts spurious, they will be useful to us by way of contrast. Confirmations are useful to us when we are sure we are in the truth, for they strengthen us in the belief in the truths we have learned; and contrasts between the false and the true are useful, in that by them the beautiful hues of truth are made more apparent; as with the painter, a dark or ugly object is put into the background of his picture, in order that the light and beautiful figure in the foreground may stand out more sharply than would be if the picture were made up wholly of beautiful figures in full light. This is, indeed, one of the uses of the false and the evil in this world- That is, that the regenerating man may see from the contrast between the false and the evil, and the good and the true the real beauty of truth and the genuineness of good. There is something of this even in heaven; for, while in heaven contrasts do not exist, yet there are comparisons or relations, not of the false and the truth, nor of evil, and the good, but of what is true with what is less true, and of what is good with what is less good, and this is to the end that the angels may be ever perfected.
Every one in the Church and out of it, who is at all informed in regard to the state of the scientific world at the present time, knows that the prevailing belief concerning creation is that all things are from nature; that nature is its own creator; that all the forms in nature are created from nature by a force inherent in itself; in short, that matter is eternal, uncreatable, indestructible, and that from matter came forth all forms, mineral, vegetable, and animal, by a process of evolution or unfolding.
The scientist of the day, believes that from the whole mass of matter the regular mineral forms came into existence by what he calls natural selection: For instance, the particles which go to make up a diamond, or a piece of gold,-or a rock, come together because they themselves, as it were, desire so to do. He never dreams, nor will he, if told, admit that those particles are brought together by an intelligence apart from themselves and above them. He confirms himself in the belief in natural selection by many and various experiments and observations; as; for example, he sees that if by some process he can dissolve or reduce to a liquid form a crystalline, and afterward leave it to settle and evaporate, the substance again takes its original crystalline form.
Here is a simple experiment that any one may try for himself. Take a mass of rock salt in its native 'state;' and you will find by examining it carefully, that it is made up of small crystals, each one of which, if you could get them apart, would be like a small cube that has had the top of a pyramid pressed into each of its six sides. Now take your mass of salt and dissolve it in hot water, so that the salt and the water together are entirely fluid. After this is done set the salt and water away where it will not be stirred nor shaken, and let the fluid dry away and the salt in it settle again into a solid state. Now the salt will "fall out," as the scientist says, into crystals of exactly the same shape as it was in before you dissolved it. If you should repeat this process a hundred times, with the same salt you used in the first experiment, the results would be the same one hundred times, and so on as long as any salt was left. Now what does such an experiment teach the scientist? In it he seems to himself to see that there is a force inherent I in nature itself, and that the particles of salt take the forms they do, because they, as it were, wish to do so. But what ought it to teach us? It ought to teach us this: that the LORD has impressed upon all things in the universe an endeavor or conatus toward higher forms, and all for the sake of man; or rather it ought to confirm us in a belief in that doctrine from the Writings of the Church.
The scientist believes that dead materials come together in some way of their own accord into a certain kind of slime which he calls protoplasm, and that the heat of the sun or some other purely natural force puts life into it, and it becomes a plant. When this plant is properly developed it becomes another kind of plant, and this another and another, until the whole vegetable kingdom has been created by this little mass of dirty slime.
But some of these plants, thinks the scientist, develop not into other and higher orders of plants, but by some means or other, purely natural, they become endowed with animal life and are animals. These animals propagate their race with a constant tendency either to become more and more perfect or to go entirely out of existence. This development goes on and on, till first one species and then another, and one kind and then another comes from the same original spawn from which plant life first sprung, until, according to the scientist, the most perfect of the lower animals, the ape, has been produced; and then it is only one more step and we have a little higher and more perfect animal-man.
According to the evolutionist, the first men were a superior kind of monkey or ape, whose chief advantage over his simian brethren was that his head was a little larger than theirs, with a little more of cerebral development; and this race was improved into the race, as we now know it, by the same means as the lower animals were so far developed that some of them became the monkey-men just mentioned- That is, by a process the evolutionist calls "The survival of the fittest, or the law of natural selection." This means in regard to animals and primitive men that the stronger males killed the weaker ones and chose the finest of the females for mates; thus the race was continually improved. Now this improved animal called man does many things that the lower animals, as the scientist distinguishes them, do not do How is this? Can any animal do more now than its ancestors ages ago could do? According to our Doctrines, no, according to the theory of the scientist, yes. But we have to do with language. Can animals any more nearly speak now than they could ages ago? As before no and yes. The scientist believes that; like as man was evolved by improvement from animals, so his language was evolved from the grunts, growls, squeaks, squeals, howls, and so forth, of animals. The process was in short this:
Our improved monkey, because he has a larger brain than his fellows-for no other reason-was able to reflect upon- The-fact that this one of his grunts or howls produced a certain effect on some individual of his kind, and another one some other effect.
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Can you not see that language is discovered? The scientist's simian forefather wishes to produce a new effect; why shall he not try to make a sound he has not made before; or combine his already known cries? He has been accustomed to make certain calls to warn his companions of danger. These calls have heretofore conveyed the general impression, "I am afraid. Let every one be afraid" But there are degrees of danger, and one deadly thing is more easily escaped from than another. This man-monkey, or monkey-man; has now a brain large enough to enable him to reflect; why shall he not call in one way to mean; "Look out for the tiger," and in another to mean, "Look out for the serpent." Do you not ace that the words for tiger, and serpent- Have been coined? This the scientist thinks is in general the way in which language comes into existence. You can, see how this would lead to the fully developed language, and all because the top of man's head is proportionally larger than that of any other animal
As in this very general resume of the current scientific belief, the point has now been reached at which language makes its appearance, nothing could be better for the purpose in view than to quote from that head and front of modern scientific theorists, Charles Darwin. This man might almost be called the high-priest of modern nature worship, since he has done so much to confirm the doctrine of Evolution that it is usual to call it Darwinianism or the Darwinian Theory. In his work entitled The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, under the head of Language, Mr. Darwin discourses as follows:
"This faculty [language] has justly been considered as one of the chief distinctions between man and the lower animals. But in an, as a highly competent judge, Archbishop Whately remarks, is not the only animal that can make use of language to express what is passing in his mind, and can understand more or less what is so expressed by another. In Paraguay the Cebus Azare when excited utters at least six distinct sounds, which excite in other monkeys similar emotions. The movement of the features, and gestures of monkeys are understood by us, and they partly understand ours, as Rengger and others declare. It is a more remarkable fact that the dog, since being domesticated, has learned to bark in at least four or five distinct tones. Although barking is a new art, no doubt the wild species, the parents of the dog, expressed their feelings by cries of various kinds. With the domestic dog we have the bark of eagerness as in the chase; that of anger; the yelping or howling bark of despair, as when shut up; that of joy as when starting on a walk with his master; and a very distinct one of demand or supplication, as when wishing for a door or window to be opened." - (The Descent of Man, p. 51.)
Here it may be seen that it is believed that a sort of language has been developed within the hounds of observation. Perhaps it is true; in fact, there is no doubt but that it is true that the dog, in the endless number of varieties under which he is now known, bears only slight resemblance to the wild dog from which he descended, in form, habits, or manner of barking. But it is not true that the wild dog developed into the varieties now known, neither did he ever learn any new barks: it was the domesticated dog, the dog under the training and breeding of men, and in the sphere of men, that has changed and developed so widely, and he never began to change until he was domesticated or came in some way within the sphere of men. The dog did not improve from any power inherent in himself, but all animals, in a domesticated state, change and become very different from the original stock from which they came, by being affected with the sphere of man; for animals are the correspondents of the affections of man, and so long as they are in a free or wild state they will be in only a general and continuous influx from the spiritual world which will not cause change in them, but when domesticated or in bondage they come into the sphere of the particular affections of those who handle; feed, and train them. This being known can any one wonder that the dog no longer looks or barks like his wild progenitor. There are, however, as yet, no signs that he will ever become anything but a dog. Mr. Darwin continues:
"Articulate language is, however, peculiar to man; but he uses in common with the lower animals inarticulate cries to express his meaning aided by gestures and the movements of the muscles of the face. This especially holds good with the more simple and vivid feelings which are but little connected with our higher intelligence. Our cries of pain, fear, surprise, anger, together with their appropriate actions, and the murmur of a mother to her beloved child, are more expressive than any words." (The Descent of Man, p. 52.)
Here again the scientist has produced a number of interesting facts, but the same facts persuade him to a belief in his theory, and confirms us in the faith of our Doctrines; for when we learn from the Doctrines that vowels and their various elevations are the real and only means of expressing affections by the voice, we can see why inarticulate cries especially hold good with the more simple and vivid feeling, which are little connected with our higher intelligence;" then reverse the statement that man uses inarticulate cries in common with animals, and say that animals use inarticulate language in common with man because they are forms of affection, and everything they do must of necessity express affections and correspond thereto. But our scientist
says:
"it is not the mere power of articulation that distinguishes man from other animals, for, as every one knows, parrots can talk; but it is his large power of connecting definite sounds with definite ideas, and this obviously depends on the development of the mental faculties." (The Descent of Man, p. 63.)
In this case the only answer necessary is to echo "obviously."
"With respect to the origin of articulate language, I cannot doubt," says our author, "that language owes its origin to imitation and modification, aided by signs and gestures, of various natural sounds, the voices of other animals, and man's own instinctive cries. When we treat of sexual selection we shall see that primeval man, or rather some early progenitor of man, probably used his voice largely, as does one of the gibbon- Apes at the present day, in producing true musical cadences- That is, in singing; we may conclude from a widely-spread analogy that this power would have been especially exerted during the courtship of the sexes, serving to express various emotions as love, jealousy, triumph, and serving as a challenge to their rivals. The imitation by articulate sounds of musical cries might have given rise to words expressive of various complex emotions. As bearing on the subject of imitation, the strong tendency in our nearest allies, the monkeys, in microcephalous idiots, and in barbarous races of mankind, to imitate whatever they hear, deserves notice. As monkeys certainly understand much that is said to them by man, and as in a state of nature they utter signal- Cries of danger to their fellows, it does not appear altogether -incredible that some unusually wise ape-like animal should have thought of imitating the growls of beasts of prey-so as to indicate to his fellow-monkeys the nature of the expected danger. And this would have been a first step in the formation of a language." (The Descent of Man, p. 54.)
Now that we have a language begun in the mating calls of brutes, and in their cries of warning to their- fellows, how does it proceed on the way to become the complex machine that we know? Simply enough:
"As the voice was used more and more," says Mr. Darwin, "the vocal organs would have been strengthened and perfected through the principle of the inherited effect of use; and this would have reacted on the power of speech.
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But the relation between the continued use of language and the development of the brain has no doubt been far more important. The mental powers in some early progenitor of man must have been more highly developed than in any existing ape, before even the most imperfect form of speech could have come into use; but we may confidently believe that the confirmed use of this power would have reacted on the mind by enabling and encouraging it to carry on long trains of thought. A long and complex train of thought can no more be earned on without the aid of words, whether spoken or silent, than a long calculation without the use of figures or algebra. It appears, also, that even ordinary trains of thought almost require some form of language, for the dumb, deaf, and blind girl, Laura Bridgman, was observed to use her fingers while dreaming. . . The intimate connection between the brain as it is now developed in us, and the faculty of speech, is well shown by those curious cases of brain disease, in which speech is specially affected, as when the power to remember substantives is lost, while other words can be correctly used. There is no more improbability in the effects of the continued use of the vocal and mental organs being inherited than in the ease of handwriting, which depends partly on the structure of the hand and partly on the disposition of the mind; and handwriting is certainly inherited." (The Descent of Man, p. 65.)
If the reader have followed closely the above quotations, he will have noticed that the first ape that spoke did so because his brain was larger than that of any of his fellows; the offspring of this ape had still larger brains because their father spoke and they spoke more than their father because their brains were larger; the offspring of these again had still larger brains than their grandfather or fathers because their fathers spoke more, and they spoke more than their grandfather or fathers because their brains were larger, and so forth, ad libitum, until at last you have the modern scientist. If this thing keeps on, what conversationalists the descendants of the scientist will be! and what heads they will have!
If the reader have followed closely, he will also have noted that our author has made an acknowledgment which is fatal to his theory of development, and which he and all his brethren deeply deplore being obliged to make; that is, the acknowledgment that "the mental powers in some early progenitor of man must have been more highly developed than in any existing ape before even the most imperfect form of speech could have come into use." In other words, there is not known any monkey or ape which is at all capable unaided by man of improving in his manner of communicating with, his fellows, or in his manner of carrying out any other of his instincts; and, what is more, no matter how highly any monkey be trained by man in tricks and acts of apparent intelligence, his offspring, untrained, have the same monkey instincts that his progenitors have had from time immemorial. This wanted intelligent monkey is the "missing link" which the scientist is so longingly seeking, but which, alas, for his theories in the eyes of rational men,- He has not yet found. But the talking animal exists, and ratiocinates, and invents theories, and writes books about them but he became, not by improvement from a lower race, but by deterioration from a higher, and the only reason why he has not been discovered is for lack of introspection on the part of the scientist; for "to look above self is proper to man but to look below self is proper to beasts; hence, it follows that to the extent that man looks below himself or downward, so far he is a beast, and also so far he is an image of hell" (A. C. 7821). Is not created nature below man, who was made a living soul? and does not the scientist, who believes nature and all things of it to have been created from itself, look below man? and does, he not, since he denies God, close heaven to himself, notwithstanding heaven is the end for which he was created a man? If he defeats the end for which he was created a man, does he not cease to be a man? Yea! he becomes a beast in hell, and appears as a beast when seen by the angels.
The above is a general view of what almost all natural-scientists believe about the origin of language. There may be exceptions but they are very rare. The man who has the hardihood to oppose the theory of evolution will never become popular with the present-day students of natural phenomena; nay, more, he will with difficulty obtain even a hearing. But while all, or nearly all, natural-scientists are evolutiobists, and therefore believers in the creation of all things, of course including language, from nature by nature, there are some linguists who are believers in the creation of language from the Divine. But even with these the thought is far from interior; for there is with most an implied denial of God in that there is a denial of the operation of the Divine Providence in the particulars of man's life, as will be seen from the following quotation from a man eminent in letters, and of very sound judgment in many things, Professor Hugh Blair, the Rhetorician. He says in his Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres, under the head of Rise and Progress of Language (Lecture iv), "that God taught our first parents only such language as suited our present occasions, leaving them, as He did in other things, to enlarge and improve it as their future necessities should require."
"It is not false, and as it is called an ens of the reason to say that the Providence of the LORD is universal and not most singular; for to provide and rule in the universal and not in things most singular, is not to provide and rule at all. This is philosophically true, but yet it is wonderful that philosophers themselves conceive otherwise and think otherwise" (A. C. 1919).
Gladness in song 1893
Gladness in song breaks forth as it were from itself into the sonorous.- A. C. 8261.
CUBE 1893
"As the ball signifies good, so the cube signifies truth. Truths are also represented by lines, angles, triangles, and squares."
Again "both good and truth are signified by the cube, the length signifying good, the breadth truth, and the height conjunction of the same." The Holy City, New Jerusalem, was a cube. The Divine reason for this is that the New Church, which was to be formed of Doctrine, was to have all things of it from the good of love.
The Divine Love encloses all things, so the ball encloses the cube.
Good, or Love, is the life of all things, therefore life is contained only in round forms. Truth alone is without life, so all inanimate things have cubical or angular forms.
If the mind of one who maybe so happily situated as to have the care of little children is filled with such truths as the above, they make a plane for influx from the LORD into the minds of the children and will make an internal in their lessons which will be of untold use to them. Children learn many beautiful things which we never teach them; and does this not show that the angels are with them and with us in our work with them as far as we will allow them to be?
As the children progress in their little life, new and different objects are given them, which, while used in play, also serve for instruction. And as the cube signifies progression, it may follow the ball.
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The children hail their new playfellow with delight, and soon find some of the differences between the cube and the ball.
We cannot roll the cube, we can only push it. It has corners, and faces, and edges. It will stand on its edge if we rest it against something, and we can make it stand on one corner if we hold it with our fingers. Its corners are sharp and hard. If we take hold of the corners and press they will make little holes in our fingers. Its edges are sharp, but not as sharp as the corners; and the faces are fiat and smooth. The cube has six faces. They are all of just the same size, and are just as long as they are wide. When a thing is just as long as it is wide, we say it is square. Then our cube has six square faces. It has eight corners, but each corner belongs to three faces. The corners make it firm and strong. If it had no corners it would not, be square.
Can we find anything on the faces of our cube which is not square? You think not? Let us try. Suppose we draw a line from the left upper corner to the right lower one. Now what do you see? Yes, we have two triangles. There are two triangles in every square, and our cube has six squares. That makes twelve triangles. Each triangle has three corners and three sides.
When we have the number three we can think of many things about the LORD. We can think of the three heavens where the angels live, and of the LORD Himself in His Love, Wisdom, and Power. The wall of the Holy City has three gates on each side. Our bodies are divided into three parts, the head, the trunk, and the extremities. There are three parts in our arms and three parts in our fingers. Three means ell. Six is two times three. There are six of us in the class. Last year we were six years old.
The cube has many edges-just twice as many edges as faces. Who can tell the number? Yes, there are just twelve. It has twelve triangles, too. We like to think of the number twelve because it means so many beautiful things. The Holy City, New Jerusalem, which the LORD has built in the heavens has twelve gates, and there are twelve angels, one by each gate. The gates are made of twelve pearls. The city has a great high wall, and the wall has twelve foundations nil of twelve kinds of precious stones, and they have twelve names written on them.
There are many more beautiful things about the number twelve: Twelve is four times three, and two times tin.
Let us tie a string to our cube and whirl it very fast, Oh! it looks just like our own ball, only it seems to be a little larger. The corners of the cube appear like shadows. How wonderful that we can make a ball appear around the cube!
We can build so many pretty things with our little cubes. Here is a chair. It is a big one, and is for grandpapa. He tells us such pretty stories. We will ask him to tell us one, while he sits in his big arm chairs. Now we have two chairs, one for papa, and one for mamma. We will put them near each other. This is the table; papa will be home in a few minutes, and then we will have tea. Now we have built the wall by the garden, and here is a seat where papa and mamma can sit and talk while we gather some flowers for him. This is the garden gate-see the pretty vine which climbs over it! Mamma has one of the roses in her hair. This is a window: we can look through it and see the sky with some rosy clouds sailing across it, and the woods on the hill. We saw a bird's nest in one of the trees, and there were five eggs in it. At the foot of the hill we see a field and some little lambs eating their supper of the fresh sweet grass and clover. One lamb is on the other side of the brook by himself. We will make some steps to put across, and then we will go over and play wit him. Here is a clock. The clock tells us when it is time to get up, when it is time to go to school, when papa is coming home, and many other things. It helps us to be prompt and orderly-mamma says the more orderly we are the nearer the angels can come to us, and the happier they can make us; and that we must learn to be orderly while we are children. Our little cubes are tire or they have been playing with us for a long time. We will put them snugly away in their little box, and let them rest.
We can think of many things which look like cubes. Houses look like cubes sometimes, and so do boxes- mamma's bread-box and tea chest are square, and look almost like cubes. Books have six faces and eight corners, and some very thick books look like cubes. Papa told us that once he saw a copy of the Word which was an almost perfect cube. The Word has this form because it is Divine Truth.
The Holy City, New Jerusalem, whose wall has the twelve foundations and the beautiful gates, is a cube, most perfect. We remember that the LORD says an angel measured the city, and found that "the length and the breadth, and the height of it, are equal." This is because the LORD JESUS CHRIST alone is to be loved and obeyed by all who live in that beautiful city.
All joy 1893
All joy is from affection or love.- A. E. 326 [a].
NEWCHURCHMEN 1893
"NEWCHURCHMEN everywhere are in the Doctrine of the New Church, but they do not come into the truths of that Doctrine until they carry them to Mount Sinai, i.e., until they acknowledge that they are from the LORD, and, therefore, true" (A. E. 870; A. R. 626).
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
A TALE.
XV.
AT THE FEET OF ARIEL.
BEFORE the angel left me I asked a question concerning the LORD. Does the LORD GOD of heaven and earth live as a king among the angels, or is He still in a place or plane above them?-was a question which had many times occurred to me, and I now sought the answer.
"The highest of the angels are infinitely below the LORD," said Ariel; "He dwells infinitely above them, and is perceived by the superior angels as a glorious Sun, and by those respectively inferior as a resplendent Moon. Were He to come down in all His glory to dwell among them, they would be blinded-yea, destroyed. Therefore, even in the heavens, the LORD is still above, and the angels do not worship Him face to face, but in temples similarly as on earth. But there are times when He is pleased to, as it were, recede behind a veil, to descend, and to appear among the angels as a glorious Divine Man, so accommodated to their states as neither to blind nor otherwise do them harm. At such times the whole heavens, from end to end, are glorified; a transcendent light of a wondrously beautiful and varied coloring rests upon everything, and the angels are filed with indescribable happiness."
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"And have you thus seen Him?" I asked, in awe.
"I have thus seen Him, and all my heart went out to Him in love and adoration; I wept tears of joy. Trembling with rapture, we sang the song of thanksgiving; and as He came near, we fell prostrate on our faces before Him. He looked on all; He deigned to look upon each and all as He passed by-even upon me. As I, with a confidence that was given me, met His benignant, loving gaze, I felt that the light of His Divine wisdom penetrated and illumined my mind, and that the warmth of His Divine love vivified my soul. I felt that I was blessed forevermore, for I had looked on the Source of life, and I now lived."
The angel's voice was low and sweet, and full of deepest reverence.
"Tell me how He looked, O my friend," I almost whispered. "The picture before my mind is indistinct, confused. Describe Him- Tell me all that one so unworthy as I may be permitted to know."
"He wore a flowing robe of imperial purple which blazed with light as if from flame, and there was upon His head a crown of what seemed living stars. And His face- How shall I speak of that face clothed in Divine majesty and glory? I could see it, and a gain I could not see it. It was as if all the glory and light and beauty of the universal heaven were centered there as in their fountain head; and yet there was an indescribable I softness over all, and no one was blinded. Truly He was God but at the same time Man- The great Creator in the glorified Human of the LORD the SAVIOUR. I have heard angels who lived as men on earth at- The time that He appeared there clothed in the flesh say that when they saw Him now they recognized Him as the same- The very same."
As I heard this, words from the holy Book given to men on earth arose to view in my memory- These words from the relation of the LORD'S transfiguration on the mount:
"And His face did shine as the sun and His raiment was white as the light."
And these words from the Apocalypse, where John is telling of the revelation of the LORD to him in the island of Patmos:
"And I saw one like unto the Son of Man clothed: with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. And His head and hairs white like white wool, like snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire. And His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace, and His voice like the voice of many waters. And His face like the sun shineth in its power. And when I saw Him I fell at His feet as if dead, and He placed His right hand upon me, saying to me, Fear not; I am the First and the Last: and Who am living, and was made dead, and behold I am living into the ages of ages, Amen; and I have the keys of hell and of death."
XVI.
EASTWARD.
THE angel rose to depart anon, saying that he had been recalled. With a warm clasp of the hand, he turned from one, and in a moment was gone from view.
"Oh, may I, too, see the glorious LORD when He descends among the angels-some day," was my enraptured thought, as I sat still and looked into vacancy. I chide myself for this presumption, but always the thought came back-"Oh, may these eyes behold Him!"
So chiding and so thinking, I rose and left the house wherein we had rested. I turned my back upon that place and set my face toward the east.
For a long, long time I lived a wanderer's life, moving from place to place, from community to community, seeking the things I loved and longed for, and struggling-not always, alas, with full determination- To conquer the evil inclinations of my heart. Mindful of the teaching that well-disposed spirits should not be idle, I sought employment wherever I sojourned, finding happiness in the endeavor to perform my duties faithfully, but regarding always such engagements as temporary, and looking ever forward to the time when I should come into the life-use toward which my thoughts inclined.
For the most part my state was now one of peace, from a willingness to abide in the stream of the Divine Providence whithersoever it might lead; but there were times when a feeling of profound sadness possessed me. The hope of finding those congenial ones with whom I might remain indefinitely seemed so long deferred, and as yet I looked in vain for some permanent place of instruction where the light of angelic wisdom illumined the minds of those who taught. My case was worse than I had feared. It might be I was not fit to sit at the feet of heavenly instructors-my evils being still too active. They were deep-rooted, interior; only long struggles and temptations yet to come could render them quiescent and harmless. How long- How long? At last there came to pass the change which long ago I had been led to expect- The transition from the first state, that of the exteriors, to the second, that of the interiors. The change was so gradual that I was not clearly aware of it at the time, and yet I can recall looking back upon my former state as an awakening man looks back upon a dream. In a sense it was like day after night, but more like freedom after captivity. All restraint was now removed, and no longer was there the desire or the power to conceal. The man- Angel or the man-devil stood confessed. There was no more a divided mind. I spoke henceforth from my inner, not my outer, thought. My quality was written upon my face, and, did I desire, I could not feign.
The case was similar with those about me, and many an evil one was unmasked before his well-disposed and unsuspecting companions. The internal differences between me and those with whom I successively associated myself were, therefore, very quickly manifest. The whole scene was one of disintegration and change, each one moving in the direction of those with whom he could be joined in bonds of genuine friendship, from a unity or similarity of taste, habit, inclination, love.
The history of that time is full of useful reminders, but I must pass forward to what is of greater interest for this record. One day, on quitting a community wherein I had sojourned but a short time, I received information which changed the whole course of my life and brought my wanderings to an end. I had left the town far behind and come into a pleasing open country of rolling hills and clear flowing streams, when all at once-I looked up from the path to behold a man before me- A man whose bright open face and steadfast eye instantly won my confidence, and whose white flowing robe of shining linen proclaimed him a messenger from above.
"It is perceived," said he, after saluting me graciously, "that you seek a place where spirits are prepared by instruction for heaven, and it is now granted you to approach. Go forward between those two hills-(pointing to the northeast), and, you will find what you desire. I trust they will-receive you there." -
"May Heaven bless the bearer of this good message," I said with joy.
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The messenger smiled with gracious friendliness at my words, but bade me forget the human instrument.
And lift my soul in gratitude toward the one Source of every blessing. Listening to the forceful and beautiful expression of a noble sentiment, I was most willing to be detained till he bade me farewell and was gone. Then I turned eagerly and hurried forward in the direction indicated. The trees, plants, and flowers were bending before a gentle breeze and glistened in the sun; their great loveliness seemed unusual, as if they knew my joy and brightened with the knowing. I looked from side to side upon the smiling landscape, and smiled back as I walked. My heart was full of thankfulness.
At length I stood between the two hills, and the college rose before my view. It was a lofty and extended building of noble design, similar in general architectural type to that of the ancient Greeks, and stood upon a hill surrounded by green lawns and gardens and groves. As I drew near, it was seen that the foundation and body of the structure were built of unhewn stones of a curious dark-red color; the towers likewise were of stone, but of a beautiful blue-white, and translucent, shining from afar. A nearer view also discovered the neighboring groves made up of laurels, pines, cedars, and myrtles,-with here and there a stately palm.
"It is not heaven itself, but, God willing, it shall be the stepping-stone thereto," was my exultant thought, as I mounted the broad portico and stood before the double-doors of the great hall, on each of which was carved an eagle with outstretched wings.
A serving-man came in answer to my summons and courteously invited me to enter. "I am glad you have come," he said, with great respect, and with a smile of genuine kindliness. "It always makes me glad for a new one to come."
"How extraordinary!" thought I. "Here is a servant who finds delight in serving." I felt interested in and strongly drawn toward him. He was evidently from the lower classes of the world, but was a comely youth of a pleasing presence.
"You are very good," I said, in answer to him.
"One of our young men left us yesterday," he continued, "and I felt assured that another would come to-day."
"Left you?-where to go?"
"To heaven."
Heaven! I could have shouted with exultation as I followed my guide down the great hall. Ushering me into a reception room on the right, he retired with the words, "I go to announce you to the head-master."
I sat down to wait, with a feeling of peace and security such as I had not before known- A feeling that was deepened when I looked across at the opposite wall and read these words written there in letters of gold
"Behold, how good and how lovely for brethren to dwell together in unity."
As I looked, and thought upon this heavenly sentiment,- The head-master came- A tall, noble-looking man, clothed beautifully in an undergarment of fine, bright linen, bound at the waist with a cord of knitted gold, and an outer robe of blue which shone richly as the light touched it. I rose respectfully at his entrance, and awaited his pleasure. He looked at me keenly as he came forward, but there was friendship in his eyes.
"The college welcomes you, friend," he said, extending his hand.
"I am thankful for its welcome."
He seated himself in a large, richly- Carved chair of red wood; and at his invitation I, too, sat down-in a smaller chair before him. During a few moments he looked at me in' silence, and I felt, with some uneasiness, that be was reading my character to its bottom. At last he spoke:
"First of all, I must ask you whom you worship?"
"I worship the LORD."
"Who is the LORD?"
"The GOD of heaven and earth," I answered in amazement,-"the Creator of all things."
"And who is He who, in the natural of the Divine Word is called JESUS CHRIST?"
"He is the same."
"And what is meant by the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?"
"I know not," I answered with hesitation, yet without fear; "the saying is dark and obscure. Many things in the Divine Word seem dark and obscure to me. But this I know- The LORD JESUS CHRIST is the one only GOD. Of this I have ever felt assured. Did not He Himself say, 'I and the Father are One'?- And lately I have been instructed that angels who lived as men on earth at the time of His sojourn there now recognize Him in the one only GOD of heaven."
There was an intense silence of a moment before the head-master rejoined:
"You have spoken well. I knew before I asked that you would thus speak, but it was better that you should express yourself. Only worshipers of the LORD JESUS CHRIST can be received here; for those who do not worship Him, and Him alone, think of more than one God, which is repugnant to the very atmosphere of heaven and destructive of the heaven-sent delights which are ours here. . . . You are received," be added, after a moment's pause.
"I thank the LORD that it is so," I answered.
"You truly say," he then spoke further, "that many things in the natural sense of the Divine Word are dark and obscure. The natural or literal form of the Word existing in the earth was written according to appearances and in accommodation to the states of simple men; but in the spirit of the Divine Word, which exists within the letter through correspondence, as a soul exists in its body, nothing is dark or obscure. That spiritual Word, which exists here and in the heavens, teaches us that the LORD GOD of heaven Himself descended to the natural plane of life, clothing Himself outwardly in the very substance of the natural world, in order that He might subdue the powers of evil which assaulted man upon that plane, and so make it possible, for him to be regenerated and saved. It teaches us that by the Father is meant the inmost or soul of this incarnate LORD, by the Son the Human assumed, and by the Holy Spirit the Divine proceeding or going forth into operation. Later you will be more fully instructed in these things."
A great light had suddenly burst through the obstructing clouds, and I saw clearly the grand and eternal truth which hitherto had been veiled from my sight. I sat bound as by a spell in my delight, and uttered no word.
"This spiritual Word," the head-master went on, written, as you may suppose, in the universal language of the spiritual world which we now speak. It is the Book of books, and every copy of it, or of parts of it is distinguished by a soft radiance proceeding from its opened pages. You will presently see that the copy set apart among us here, which ever lies open in the chancel of our hall of worship, shines like a great star-so representing the spiritual resplendence and glory of the LORD'S Divine truth contained therein.
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What could be more reasonable, more fitting, more lovely? Had I been disposed to doubt I should still have thought, this may be dreaming fancy, but it is most beautiful, and should be as true.
"This Divine Word," the master continued, after a pause, "is the guide of our lives and the fountain of all angelic wisdom. From it we derive the knowledge which we impart to the students preparing for heaven under our charge, and from it you will henceforth be taught. From it you will learn that the LORD GOD descended to the natural world in order to remove hell from man, and insure the possibility of his salvation, that, as this could be done only by means of the temptations wherewith Re suffered Himself to be assaulted, even to the last and most extreme- The passion of the cross- He, therefore, endured that also; that thus the impending damnation threatening heaven and earth was removed, and that after completing this divine work our LORD returned into His essential Divide, together with and in His glorified Human; that the LORD created the universe, not from nothing, but from Himself-from His Divine Love by His Divine Wisdom- And that the image of the Creator is impressed upon every created thing; that man, in order to be conjoined with this gracious GOD, must subdue his evils, both hereditary and acquired, and live in love and charity to the neighbor; that within the sacred Scripture of the natural world lies concealed a soul or spirit, which is one with the Divine Word of the heavens, and that thus there is communication and conjunction of heaven with earth. . . Our Divine Word will teach you these general truths, and under them myriads of particular truths relating to all things of the universe and solving every mystery of earth or heaven."
"I thank our gracious LORD for His Divine Word, and for His good ministers who will instruct me therefrom," I said deeply moved in the contemplation of the glorious prospect before me.
The head-master now rose, signifying that the interview was at an end.
"Go with him," said he, as the young serving man appeared in the doorway. "He will show you what you are now to do."
The young man led me into the great hall, and presently through a lesser hall, branching at right angles, and finally into a sleeping apartment of ordinary size, appropriately and charmingly furnished.
"This is your place of rest," he said, cheerily. "I hope it pleases you."
"It does please me."
He then opened a closet and showed me several long white robes of a silken texture.
"It is expected that you select one of these and put it on after the bath," he said. "You will find here what undergarments you need," he added, stooping and opening a drawer in the side of the closet, and taking out several articles- All white.
This done, and having taken down one of the robes which I selected, he came out and shut the door. Opening a second closet, he showed me similar silken robes of white, but distinguished by a beautiful cord of gold encircling the waist.
"These are for the banquets on festal days," he said. "Do you know," this intelligent servant continued, looking at me intently; "I have been told that in heaven, although there is a putting on and off at will, the garments themselves change in appearance and color according to the angel's change of state. Is it not beautiful?"
"Beautiful, indeed."
"Our students work in the morning- That is, they study and are taught," the young man proceeded. "At noon they dine, and afterward take indoor and outdoor recreation, playing games, taking walks, or riding their horses, as it may please them. If it be a festal day, they dine with the masters in the great banqueting hall, clothed in this robe with the golden cord. The feast that is spread is plentiful and varied, but even at that hour the food for the body is secondary to the food for the soul. There is always conversation, led by the masters-sometimes addresses- And these are full of instruction. Often my duties take me where I can listen, and I am always thankful that there is much that I can understand."
A third door was now opened, and I was shown my bath, a small, marble-paved apartment, in the centre of which a pool of clear water was seen. My attendant left me musing on the blessed fortune which had brought me to this place. How full of happiness would my life be here- And how little was it deserved!
I came out of the bath greatly refreshed and invigorated, and, as I put on my new clothing, the thought occurred to me: "Surely this bath in pure water is typical of purification from evil. With my former garments I leave behind my former state and now enter upon a new. The LORD grant that, in some measure, imperfection and evil are left behind also."
Returning to the sleeping apartment I was assisted by my kind servitor in donning the silken robe, which was found to be only a lower or undergarment, the himation or upper robe being absent.
"The himation will be given you later," was the answer to my inquiring look.
Wondering, I followed the attendant back to the reception room, and after a few moments the head-master joined me there.
"Now, come with me," he said, and, as I moved to obey, the sound of a deep- Toned but musical bell reverberated through the building.
I followed him out through the great ball, and thence into a long, lofty and beautiful room which was at once recognized as the hall of worship; for at the far end on a repository in the centre of the chancel lay an open book which blazed with light- As if in very truth a star had fallen from heaven and rested there. And as my eyes fell upon it, I was moved with profound humility and awe; I felt that I stood in the presence of GOD.
At the same time I observed that eleven men, whose apparel was similar to that of the head-master, had preceded us there and stood on either side as I was led in. As soon as we had passed between them, all kneeled with faces toward the chancel-which was in the east- And repeated in unison these words: "O LORD most High, we pray that our minds may ever be illumined by the light of thy Divine Truth!"
Then, after we had risen, one of the eleven men came forward with the himation belonging to my robe. Receiving it from him, the head-master solemnly placed it upon me, repeating these words:
"In the presence of the LORD I put upon you the garments appropriate to your state and receive you among us."
Full of deep happiness and deeper reverence, I kneeled before him, and listened with indescribable emotions, as the head-master invoked the Divine blessing upon me and prayed that I might in due time be prepared for a life of happy usefulness in the LORD'S heavenly kingdom.
(To be continued.)
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Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
WORK OF THE AMERICAN SWEDENBORG PRINTING AND PUBLISHING SOCIETY 1893
THE accompanying communication from the American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society is worthy the earnest consideration of all who have at heart the establishment of the New Church. Such frequent mention has been made in these columns of the eminent use which the Society performs in the reprinting of the Latin edition of the Writings, that more need not be said at this time. All that can be done should be done to further the work of publishing the Writings in Latin, and in translations, though the special Latin-English edition, referred to in the communication, desirable as it is, is not so urgently needed.-EDITOR.
THE American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society has been engaged for several years on three undertakings, all of which are of great importance and value to the Church.
The first is a reprint of the original editions of the Writings in the Latin. This is, in a sense, the foundation work of the Church. Of the original editions published by Swedenborg only a few copies are in existence, compared with the demand, and these are held at a price that is beyond the reach of most students. The reprints that were edited and published by Dr. Tafel are also becoming rare. There can be no general work of the Church more important than to make accessible to all who wish to study them the Writings of the Church as Swedenborg wrote them, all translations of which must necessarily be more or less defective. All careful and exhaustive study of the Doctrines of the Church must rest on the Writings in their original form, and unless these are within the reach of all students of the Doctrines, the teaching of the Church must rest on a defective foundation.
The manner in which our Society has been doing this work is familiar to all students of the Writings; and no one has complained that it has not been well done. Twelve volumes have been issued, and two volumes more are nearly ready for the press, and a good deal of editorial work has been done on the rest of the theological writings. The published works have been edited with great care, and the matter has been arranged and put in type with a view to facilitating the work of the student. This, even with the strictest economy, has been an expensive undertaking. The Society has expended nearly $25,000 on this work alone. But we do not believe that any one who has any proper understanding of the work will feel that it has been an unwise expenditure. Unless the plates should be destroyed, it is mainly a permanent investment for the Church; and the works so published will always be accessible at a reasonable price.
But thus for the Society has been left to do this work with almost no direct help or return from the Church at large. Of the works published, only sixteen volumes have been sold during the past year, and no contributions have been received for this purpose. Other undertakings of a more popular and attractive and transient character receive liberal support from the Church at large, but for this not a. penny has been contributed for several years. But the Society, realizing the importance I of the work, has gone on with it in the hope that it I would receive recognition and support until all its available funds have been exhausted, and it has been compelled to order the work stopped.
The Society's second important undertaking is a new I translation and edition of The Apocalypse Explained. Of this work, which in its expositions of the spiritual sense of the Word is perhaps the most important of all the Writings, there is no American edition; and the greater part of the translation of the English edition is very defective. The work covers about three thousand octavo pages, and of these, two thousand five hundred have been translated, and nearly the whole of this has been electrotyped. Four of the six volumes are ready for the press, and the fifth is nearly completed.
The third undertaking is a combination of the two previous ones. It is an edition of the Writings with the Latin text and the English text on opposite pages. The plates of the new translations have been made to match the Latin plates as closely as possible, so that the reader can easily compare, as he reads, the translation with the original. Next to the publication of the original text, this is believed to be the most important help to a careful study of the Writings that has been provided. The existing translations, except those recently made, are very imperfect renderings of Swedenborg's language. There are very few in the Church who confine their study of the Writings to the Latin text. There are very many who have enough knowledge of Latin to enable them to compare the translations with the original text, when they are thus placed side by side; and all such, by constant reference to the Latin in their reading, would be constantly getting closer to Swedenborg's forms of thought and expression.
Of this Latin-English edition three volumes have been published, namely, the Divine Love and Wisdom, and two volumes of The Apocalypse Explained. Six additional volumes of The Apocalypse Explained are ready for publication, and will be published as soon as funds can be obtained for the purpose.
The Society will have completed in a few weeks the plates for eleven-new volumes, namely, of the Latin, the Vera Christiana Religio, two volumes; of the English, three more volumes of The Apocalypse Explained; and of the Latin-English, six volumes of The Apocalypse Explained. But the Society has no funds available for issuing these volumes. It would be disastrous to close up its printing-once in which the plates are manufactured, and the income from investments will permit the work on The Apocalypse Explained to go on slowly, but all other work must stop until other resources are found. During the next twelve months the Society can use an additional sum of $3,000 more profitably it believes, than that sum could be spent for any other general Church work. Its plant and employees are all ready for carrying on the work; and as a consequence, the additional work would be done with comparatively little extra expense. We ask all members of the Church to consider whether the LORD'S funds that have been intrusted to them can be employed more usefully in any other way than in the work our Society is doing. Every dollar contributed can be applied at once to the work, and will mean just so much more useful and Permanent work done for the Church. If more particular information is desired, it will be gladly given. Contributions may be sent to Mr. Frank Curtis, Treasurer, 66 Exchange Place, New York City, or to the Manager, Mr. H. W. Guernsey, 20 Cooper Union.
96
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
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PHILADELPHIA, JUNE, 1893=124.
CONTENTS.
Editorial Notes, p. 81 -Government by Conscience (a nineteenth of June sermon), p. 82.-Insinuation of the Truths of Church into Scientifics (Genesis xlvii). p. 84.-Notes on Ecclesiastical History, X. The Church Noach. p. 85.- Scientific Theories of Language, p. 87.- The Cube, p. 90.
The Wedding Garment xv (continued), xvi, p. 91.- The Work of the American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society, p. 95.
News Gleanings, p. 96.-Birth, Deaths, p. 96.- Academy Book Room, p. 96.
AT HOME.
Pennsylvania.- THE Academy of the New Church has decided to remove Its Philadelphia schools, its Library, its Publication office and Book-Room, and some of its general offices, from Philadelphia to a place en the country situated about eighteen miles from the present location in the city. To this movement the Academy has looked forward for some time past, but the spot for the new buildings was finally decided upon only within the past month. It is near the "Second Street turnpike," about a mile and a half above the point where this high way is crossed by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad (Bethayres Station). Four buildings are to be erected: a university building, which will accommodate the various uses of the Academy, a residence for the Chancellor, and two houses for non-resident students, one for each sex. Some of the families connected with the Academy and its uses intend to settle in the vicinity of the University. How soon building operations will be begun cannot as yet be determined; but it is hoped that ground will be broken before the summer has passed. The nearest post-office to the site is Huntingdon Valley, Montgomery County, Pa.
Bishop Benade expects to sail for England on the steamer "Ravel," on the sixth day of June.
Worship is conducted every Sunday in Renovo by Dr. Ellis I. Kirk. By an error, this Society was omitted in the May issue of the Life from the Directory of Places of Worship of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD.
MR. Schreck will remove from Philadelphia and requests his friends to address him at Huntingdon Valley P. O., Montgomery County, Pa., after June 10th.
THE Rev. E. C. Bostock, of London, England, is about to visit Philadelphia.
THE Philadelphia Schools of the Academy will close on June 12th, 13th, and 14th.
Canada.- THE Toronto Society celebrated its twenty-ninth anniversary on April 4th.
Illinois.- THE Rev. Frank Sewall has been appointed a member of the Advisory Council of the Parliament of Religions, and will read before the Parliament, on September 16th, a paper on the "Nature and Extent of the Inspiration of the Christian Scriptures."
New York.- A MEETING has been called for May 20th of all the women of the New York Association, in order that they may form themselves into an organization.
THE Rev. F. Goewitz, of Switzerland, and the Rev. A. Th. Boyesen, of Sweden, have visited the United states to attend the General Convention.
Ohio.- AT the annual meeting of the Cincinnati Society held on May 1st four women were appointed to represent the Society at the Women's Congress.
THE bust of Swedenborg, by Powers, was sent to Chicago for the New Church Exhibit.
Minnesota.- THE Rev. J. S. David has left Minneapolis.
Washington, D. C.- THE contributions for the building of a "national temple" in Washington amount to $29,259.41. A debt of $3,800 still remains on the land.
ABROAD.
France.- THE Rev. J. Presland, of London, conducted services in the Rue Ruhmkorff on April 9th. There was an attendance of twenty-six. He baptized three children, and administered the Holy Supper. It is intended to hold services on the second and fourth Sundays in each month, for a short time, and if sufficient interest is manifested they will become permanent. Mr. T. H. Elliott, late Secretary of the Swedenborg Society, will conduct these.
Great Britain.-ON March 27th and 28th a debate took place in Glasgow, between the Rev. Joseph Means and Mr. Charles Watts (Secularist). The latter affirmed the proposition that "Secularism, as a philosophy of life, is adequate to satisfy the needs of mankind."
THE Rev. A. E. Beilby, Minister of the Blackpool Society, is carrying on a controversy in a local newspaper with a Church of England minister, the subject being the "Flood."
A SERVICE in celebration of the Glorification of the LORD was held in London on Easter Sunday, the Rev. E. C. Bostock and the Rev. R. J. Tilson officiating. The Holy Supper was afterward administered.
ACADEMY BOOK ROOM 1893
AMONG the many valuable books, on sale at the Book-Room we wish to keep some prominent before the readers of The Life:
THE WORD IN GREEK AND HEBREW According to the New Church Canon. Especially bound for us in Europe. Scarlet, highly polished Levant, red under gold edges.
Price, $12.00. The most suitable book for Church or Family Repository.
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE; OR THE WORD OF THE LORD. Oxford octavo Edition, according to the New Church Canon. Handsomely bound in full cochineal morocco, gilt edges. Price, $5.00.
The same very neatly bound in red cloth, gilt edge. Price, $2.50.
CONJUGIAL LOVE New English Edition. Especially bound for us in Europe. Hard grain, Cochineal morocco. Red under gold edges. Price, $5.00; same in cloth, price, $1.00; postage 15 cents.
A complete list of all the Writings on sale will be found in our catalogue, mailed free on application.
THE SWEDENBORG CONCORDANCE. A complete work of references to the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.
Of this valuable work three volumes are now ready, bound in half morocco. Price, $4.50 a volume.
Any one not familiar with this work may order a sample part-price, 15 cents. Parts Nos. 62 and 63, issued during the last and this month, contain full extracts about The Last Judgment from all the Writings, and are particularly interesting numbers.
NEW PUBLICATIONS 1893
SCRIPTURA SACRA, SEU VERBUM DOMINI. Ezekiel, Daniel and Minor Prophets. Compilation in Latin by La Boys des Guays and Harle. Price, in paper, $1.75. Bound in half morocco, $2.50.
LESSONS IN ANATOMY FOR CHILDREN OF THE NEW CHURCH.
Part 1. The Eye.
Part 2. The Ear and the Nose.
Each part 25 cents, postage 2 cents.
JOURNAL OF THE TEACHERS' MEETINGS, the general contents of which will be found in Life, of October, 1892, 155 pages. Price, 50 cents.
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
BOUND copies of New Church Life for 1892 and previous years, except the first year (1881), on sale at $1.25 a volume, postage 20 cents. To non-subscribers $1.50. Old sets in good condition taken in exchange at 50 cents a set.
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THE NEW CHURCH STANDARD (8 pages). Price, one penny. Annual subscriptions, 1/6, post free. Published monthly, in Colchester, England. Devoted to the continual warfare against the false of evil. Subscriptions received through Mr. E. W. Misson, 20 Paulet Road, Camberwell, London, S. E. Price in America, 50 cents per annum. Sample copies free.
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97
destruction of the world 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII, No. 7. PHILADELPHIA, JULY, 1893=124. Whole No. 153.
The destruction of the world is not meant by the day of the Last Judgment.-L. J. 1.
Title Unspecified 1893
FROM most ancient times, one of the principal and most attractive forms in which the Revelations of God to man have been clothed was the narrative. In the Word of God which instructed the ancient inhabitants of Canaan, Syria, Mesopotamia, Arabia, Assyria, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt about God and life eternal, the historical portion was called "The Wars of JEHOVAH." In the Word of the Old Testament, the historical narrative is contained mostly in' the books preceding the Psalms; and in the Word of the New Testament, in the Gospels and also in the Apocalypse. In the Revelation which constitutes the Second Ad vent of the LORD the historical style has similarly been used to clothe the Word of Truth, and it is found for the most part in the Mirabilia and Memorabilia inserted between the chapters of the Arcana Coelestia/The Apocalypse Revealed, The True Christian Religion, and in such books as the Spiritual the Earths in the Universe, the Last Judgment, and Diary, Continuation to the same.
The Divine reason for the existence of the historicals in former Revelations, "in order that infants and children may thereby be initiated into the reading of the Word, for they are delightful, and seat themselves in their mind, whereby is given them communication with the Heavens," applies also to the Memorable Relations in the Writings, as those who have had experience with the young in this respect can testify. Not only those who are infants and children as to the years of existence- To those likewise of more mature age, but who are of a childlike, a simple, and trusting disposition toward the LORD'S Revelations- The accounts of "things seen and heard" are delightful. They seat themselves in their minds, and establish communication with the Heavens.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE reader of Parts 62 and 63 of the Concordance, in which the impressive and sublime accounts of the Last Judgment are quoted extensively, is especially reminded of the Doctrine concerning the Divine historicals. Here are narrations of awe-inspiring events that took place in the Spiritual World in the year 1757, more appalling and portentous than the destruction of Jerusalem, the burning of Rome, or the burial of Herculaneum and Pompeii. The destruction of single cities in the Natural World sinks almost into insignificance when compared with the utter demolition of great tracts in the Spiritual World, with millions upon millions of inhabitants, that had lived in fancied security for centuries. Though simply told, the descriptions of the Last Judgment fill the mind with' an awed sense of the LORD'S Power. While the rolling together of the extensive spurious heavens, and their rolling into hell impress the mind with the fearful lot of the evil and their utter impotence before the Divine Power- The separation from them of the good, and ordination of these into a New and perfect- Heaven cause the heart to exult over the same Divine Power that has redeemed mankind from the bonds of Satan, and restored spiritual liberty, so that man can, if he will, receive and understand the Truth, and conform his life- His ends, intentions, thoughts and determinations- To it. Prompted by the heart, the lips break forth into the song of the angels, "Now is come the salvation and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ," and again "Alleluia for the LORD God Omnipotent reigneth."
Title Unspecified 1893
FILLED with a holy veneration for the Mercy of the Divine Love, from which was the LORD'S Power when He accomplished the Last Judgment, how can the New- churchman, how can the New Church Evangelist, keep still? How can he refrain from publishing abroad the Gospel concerning this most important event?
Redemption cannot be preached, the LORD the REDEEMER cannot be acknowledged, unless the Last Judgment form the subject of the preaching, and at least its salient features be known. For "Redemption was the subjugation of the hells, the establishment of order in the Heavens, and thereby the preparation for a New Spiritual Church." "The LORD is at this day effecting a Redemption, which He commenced in the year 1757, together with the Last Judgment, which was then effected" (T. C. R. 115, et al.).
When the Twelve Disciples were sent forth throughout the Universal Spiritual World, on the ever-memorable 19th day of June, in the year 1770, to preach the Gospel that the LORD GOD JESUS CHRIST reigneth, their preaching must likewise have embraced the Last Judgment, by which the reign of the LORD was secured forever. For it ought not escape notice that the information concerning their mission in the Spiritual World is given at the close of the Chapter on the LORD the Redeemer, and again after the Chapter on the Consummation of the Age, the Coming of the LORD, and the New Heaven and the New Church, in The True Christian Religion.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE fear of exciting animosity or ridicule by the preaching of the judgment passed upon the Catholic and Protestant Religions in the Spiritual World is inspired by the devil, not by God, and it is inspired for the purpose of thwarting the effort of the New Heavens to establish the reign of the LORD on earth. Such a fear and apprehension should be cast aside as unworthy the man who would be a Newchurchman. It is necessary to know that the Old Church was adjudged and cast into hell. It "must be revealed for the sake of faith in the Word." Only after such a judgment can "the marriage of the LAMB" take place. For, only after falses and their evils are recognized and cast out can the truth and its good find an abiding-place. The proclamation of the Last Judgment involves teaching what doctrinal falses and what evils have destroyed and consummated the Christian Church, and with what specious and truth-pretending arguments these are veiled from the sight of the upright. It will lead to a more discriminating and a firmer establishment of the New Church, and to a state of greater joy and happiness in her, and in the Heavens with which she is to make one.
98
MIXED GARMENT Rev. R. J. TILSON 1893
"Thou shalt not put on a mixed garment, of wool and linen together."- Deuteronomy xxii, 11.
THE statement of the LORD to Nicodemus, as recorded in the third chapter of John, is apparently a very simple one, even as it is written "Amen, Amen, I say unto thee, except a man be born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God." It is a simple statement, for the Truths of the letter of the Divine Word are accommodated to the simple minded. But the statement is a' Divine one and therefore is full of infinite wisdom, for all Divine Truth is within it, as the Divine is the same in least things as in greatest. In the sense of all that the Infinite mind can see in it, it is not possible that the whole of the Divine Word can ever be given either to the Angels of the Heavens or to men on earth. It is thus declared in the letter of the Word that "even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written "if the whole of the Divine words which the LORD spake, and the Divine things which He did, all of which ware the Divine Truth, should have been written. It is also declared in the Spiritual Sense of the Word ma revealed in the Writings that but a fraction of the internal sense of the Word has been there given (John xxi, 25, and A. C. 64 and 166). True, indeed, are these statements, as applied to the whole of the Divine Truth in Its Infinity, but in the sense that Divine Truth, or the LORD, who is the Truth, is the same in things least as in things greatest, and that the LORD is everywhere in space without space, all Divine Truth is present even in the least word or syllable or letter of Divine Revelation. Hence, then, the LORD with His Infinite Truth is within the simple statement "Ye must be born again."
From the surface of these words the Truth is taught that in order that man may gain entrance into Heaven, when the journey of earthly life is ended, he must become regenerated. The necessity for this is easily appreciated by the reflecting mind, for but little thought reveals the fact that human nature is very wicked and evil, that all man's hereditary dispositions are selfish, and, if unchecked, would lead to the very opposite of peace and happiness. For there is nothing in man of himself which could possibly produce Heaven, but everything in him which would produce hell. Thus the need for regeneration. A great subject for careful thought, however, is introduced by the question, What is regeneration, and how is the process to be carried out? To the simple minded the answer is given in the LORD'S reply to the question of the one who asked Him, "Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?" for the LORD said, "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments" (Matt. xix, 16 and 17). To the question, What is regeneration, then, the simple answer is, that it is the keeping of the commandments. And by this those who are simple minded understand that the commandments, as given in the letter of the Decalogue, are to be kept and done. But the spiritually minded seek a deeper understanding of these words, for they accept the teaching of the Spiritual Sense of the Word that all the truths which the LORD has revealed are commandments from Him which are to be done, and that all things of Divine Order are a perpetual command from God.
The command, "Ye must be born again," has thus a very wide meaning, for it embraces the whole of the process of regeneration, and that process contains so much that man can never exhaust that which is involved in it. It is written in the Arcana Coelestia, "The process of regeneration which contains things ineffable, constitutes much of the angelic wisdom, and is such that it cannot be fully exhausted by any angel to eternity; hence it is that in the internal sense of the Word that process is principally treated of" (n. 5354).
Few indeed are they who know as yet much about the process of regeneration, though many admit the necessity of it, and the reason why but few know much about the process of regeneration is that but few are able to distinguish between Truth and Good, and to know their mutual relation, as also to really know what Good and Evil are. By the majority of those who profess to be followers of the LORD and who have given up the heresy of Faith alone, the idea of regeneration is undoubtedly confined to the thought that evils are not to be done, but are to be shunned as sins against God. So far right and good, but then how is a man to shun evil and thus become regenerated?
Many reply to this by saying that man is to follow the promptings of his better nature, and thus they rely on mere sentiment to effect the change from the darkness of evil to the light of Truth. This always proves a rot- ten reed, and is found to be no real support for advance in the true regenerate life. Others, who are more truly intelligent, and more loyal to that which is revealed, assert that man can shun evils ma sins against God only so far as, by learning the Truths of Divine Revelation, he sees what evils are, and learns how to shun them. Thus they rely not upon supposed good nature, not upon sickly sentiment, but upon the LORD'S Truth for purification from evils, and thus for being born again. This position receives Divine support in the Work on the Divine Love and Wisdom in which it is written, "All the purification of a man is effected through the Truths which are of wisdom "(n. 420).
Also, in the Work entitled the Apocalypse Explained as follows: "Man is reformed and regenerated by Truths" (n. 721). Again, in the same Work, "Truths from the Word are the means by which man is reformed and regenerated." And, also, in the Work entitled the Apocalypse Revealed where it is written, "Evils are not removed except by Truths and by a life according to them" (n. 213). Hence the position that regeneration can be accomplished only by learning and living the Truths which the LORD has revealed is based upon the direct teaching of the Word of the LORD, both in Its Spirit and in Its Letter, for in the Letter the teaching of the spiritual sense receives abundant confirmation in the statement of the LORD, as contained in the eighth chapter of John and 32d verse, where it is written, "Ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make you free." And, again, in the fifteenth chapter of the same Gospel, "Now ye are clean through the Word which I have spoken unto you" (verse 3).
But even when this solid foundation of the process of regeneration is realized, there are many things to be known before the mind can intelligently grasp even little of the fullness of the course of regeneration. And above all, after the foundation is laid in the mind that regeneration is accomplished by Divine Truths, there is need for the greatest care to be taken lest the states of Good and of Truth be mixed in the mind, for, if they are mixed, there will inevitably he confusion in the mind. It is against the mixing, in the thoughts of the mind, of the two states of Truth and of Good that the text warns the member of the Church, however little such a lesson appears to be contained in these words upon their surface, or from their letter, "Thou shalt not put on a mixed garment of wool and linen together."
99
By a garment is signified specifically Truths, for Truths clothe Good, as garments clothe the body. But a garment signifies more than this, for it signifies whatever clothes that which is more interior; thus, a garment signifies man's natural life, man's life of action and doing, for the actions and deeds of men are the clothing of man's love and thought. They are the effects of which his love and thought are the end and the cause. Hence a garment signifies the life of man, as it is the clothing of his will and understanding, or of his desires and thoughts (A. E. 195).
Wool, when mentioned in the Divine Word, represents Good, and Linen Truth. Or, put in another way, Wool denotes truth from a Celestial origin, which in itself is good, and with this meaning is used in Daniel vii, 9, where it is written, "I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of Days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool."
Linen signifies Truth of a spiritual character, which in the Truth of the good of faith, and because of this correspondence Linen was appointed to be the material of the Garments of the Priests in the Jewish dispensation. The command that the Jews should not put on a garment of mixed cloth, of wool and linen together, therefore was the expression in a merely representative dispensation of the spiritual law which holds good eternally, namely, that man, in his regeneration, should take every care that he mingles not the distinct states of Good and of Truth. In the Writings, of the Church it is thus definitely stated, "Linen signifies spiritual truth which is the truth of the good of faith, but wool celestial truth, which is the truth of the good of love; and since they who are in the latter truth cannot be in the former, for they differ as the light of the sun and the light of the stars, therefore it was ordered that no garment should be worn of mingled stuff, wool and linen together" (A. C. 9470).
And again, it is written, in explanation of the words of the text, "These words involve that the states of good and truth ought not to be confounded" (A. C. 10,669).
And still again, that they should not "Put on a mixed garment of wool and of linen together, signifies that they should not be in two states at the same time, namely, in good and thence look toward truth, and at the same time in truth and thence look toward good" (A. C. 7601).
Such, then, is the teaching of the Spiritual Sense of this portion of the Word. It certainly is very plainly stated, but it is not easy at once to grasp the meaning of that which is declared. It is the LORD'S teaching, therefore it is infallibly true, and, in the full affirmative spirit, the loyal member of the Church will seek to understand it.
Let that be the end to which the mind is now directed. And, in the first place, let it be distinctly remembered that in the process of regeneration there are mainly two states, namely, the state of Truth, and the state of Good. Not only' is this so in the process of regeneration as a whole, but it is also so in every distinct step of the regeneration.
In the process of conquering each separate evil which comes up in the pathway of the sincere Christian, there are these two states, the state of Truth and the state of Good. The less is involved in the greater, and this should be distinctly understood as the whole process of regeneration is considered. The first state of regeneration is the learning of Truths from Divine Revelation, and the acting according to them from a sense of duty and under the direct guidance of truth. Thus, in the first step, man is led by Truth to Good. This step must inevitably be the first one, for by Truths man is regenerated.
The second state of regeneration is the willing and loving the Truths which are known, and the doing of them, not merely from a sense of duty and under the direct guidance of Truths, but the doing of them from the affection of them, the doing of them from love and simply because they are the will of the LORD. It will be seen that these two states, although they necessarily follow each other in order, are really the inverse of each other, and, in a certain manner of speaking, they are the opposite of each other (A. C. 7601). The first state is that in which Truth predominates; man discusses- Argues, reflects, doubts, and hesitates, and then acts some, what from himself; and in the light somewhat of human prudence. The second state is that in which Good predominates, man no longer hesitates, discusses, or argues, but he does the Truth spontaneously, as it were, by impulse, and thus more directly from the LORD and less from himself. In the first state man goes to Good through Truth, inasmuch as the Good he obtains is the result of the Truths being lived, for when Truths are lived they become Good. In the second state man sees Truth from Good, he perceives it, for he has already learnt it and lived it, and therefore he no longer needs to argue ma to whether it be true or not, for he perceives that it is true, ma he is in the Good which is the result of living the Truth which he now regards from above.
To firmly establish this most important matter in the mind let the explicit teaching of the Writings be now heard. In the Arcana Coelestia it is written as follows: "That there are two states with the man who is being regenerated, and who is becoming a Church, has hitherto been unknown, especially for this cause that the member of the Church did not distinguish between truth and good, and consequently not between faith and charity; and, again, that he had no is met perception of the two faculties of man, which are understanding and will. For the same reason also that the first state of the man who is being regenerated is learning truths, and seeing them, and the second state, willing and loving them, and that the things which man has learned and seen are not appropriated to him until he wills and loves them; for the will is the man himself, and the understanding is his servant. . . . The first state of the man who is being regenerated consists in his being led through truths to good, and the second state in his being led through good; and when he is in this latter state, the order is inverted, and he is then led by the LORD. . . That these two states are separate and distinct is also implied in these words in Moses (Deuter. xxii, 8-11), . . . 'Thou shalt not put on a garment of wool and flax together.' By these commands is signified that he who is in the state of truth- That is, in the first state, cannot be in the state of good- That is, in the second state, nor conversely. The cause is that the one state is an inversion of the other; for in the first state the man looks from the world to heaven, but in the second state he looks from heaven upon the world. In the first state, indeed, truths from the world enter through the intellectual part into the will; and there become goods, because matters of love; but in the second state the goods thus produced go forth from Heaven through the will into the understanding, and there appear in the form of faith" (n. 9274.)
Similar teaching to that given in the Spiritual Sense of the peculiar words of the text, is what is taught in the strange words spoken by the LORD, in reference to the Consummation of the Age, when He said:
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"When ye shall see the abomination of desolation, let him that is upon the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house, and let him who is in the field not turn back to take his clothes" (Matt. xxiv, 15, 17, 18). The Field denotes the mind of man in which Good is implanted by the means of Truth. And the Housetop denotes the will of man ma the seat of the Good in him, which is the inmost of his being, even as the roof is the highest part of the house. That which is highest is, in the spiritual sense, equivalent to that which is inmost. In the Arcana Coelestia these words of the LORD, as recorded in the xxivth chapter of Matthew, are explained in a manner which will greatly assist in the proper understanding of the words of the text. In that which is now to be quoted the first state of regeneration is spoken of as being "before regeneration," though it is actually a part, the first part, of regeneration itself. It is written "A man before regeneration acts from truth, and by it acquires good; but truth then becomes good with him, when it is of the will, and thus of the life; but after regeneration he acts from good, and by it acquires truths. That, this may be better understood, man, before regeneration, acts from obedience, but after regeneration from affection; these two states are the inverse of each other, for in the former state truth dominates; but in the latter good dominates, or in the former state the man looks downward or backward, but in the latter upward or forward. When a man is in the latter state- That is, when he acts from affection, he is no longer allowed to look back, and to do good from truth; for then the LORD inflows into the good, and by that leads him; if then he were to look back, or to do good from truth, he would act from himself, for whoever, acts from Truth leads himself, but he who acts from good, is led by the LORD. These things are what are to be understood by the words of the LORD with Matthew xxiv, 15, 17, 18" (n. 8505).
Thus, then, the teaching very plainly is that in regeneration there are two main stages, or states, the first which is a state of Truth, in which man learns Truths and does them from a sense of duty, and is obedient; the second being a state of Good, in which man perceives Truths and does them from affection, from the love of them, and of the LORD. This being understood there will not be much difficulty in understanding the lessons of the text, when spiritually understood, and also in seeing the great importance of those lessons. This teaching is that man must not mix the two states of regeneration together: Having passed from a state in which Truth was prior, or in which it predominated, he is not to return to that state. Let an illustration be given. Take for example the man who is shinning the evil of adultery. He is tempted to be an adulterer, or perhaps is an adulterer. But he desires to get rid of his evil and to shun it as a sin against God. First he must learn the Truths about adultery, from which he will see that it is a heinous sin, and also will learn how he is to shun it. In this state he will doubtless discuss within himself as to whether under the circumstances it is net allowable; or excusable for him to commit adultery. But looking to the LORD for help, he at length conquers the evil and becomes reformed. He has then been regenerated that far. He has arrived at a state of good, the second state of that portion of his regeneration, in which not merely from a sense of duty he will refrain from adultery, but from an affection of chastity and because he loves to obey the will of the LORD. How then will he be in danger of going back from the second state into the first, and thus of mixing the two states? In this way, when he becomes again tempted to commit adultery, as he most likely will be, if he hesitates one moment to reject the very idea or thought of it- To reject the idea or thought of it from impulse and affection, and begins once more to argue with himself whether it is not permissible just this once, under very exceptional circumstances, if he lingers one instant in such a state of mind, having once risen above that state, he descends from the second state into the first, and commits profanation, breaking the spiritual teaching of the command, thou shalt not put on a mixed garment, of wool and linen together. Thus is it in the combat with any evil. Having once passed, in the combat with any sin, from the state in which he resisted from a sense of duty under the guidance of Truth, into the state in which he resists it from an affection of good, without waiting to examine it again in the light of Truth- Having passed into this state, man must not go back to consider the sin in the light of Truth, but, directly it suggests itself to him, he must spontaneously resist it, casting it on one side with a loathing of it, and from an affection for its opposite. If he hesitates he is lost, or at least he descends, and does injury to his soul, for he descends from a state of Good, into a state of Truth and thus leaves the LORD in a great measure and trusts more to himself.
And in doing this, not only does a man commit profanation, but he does serious injury to his soul, in that he utterly confuses those spirits who attend upon him, and desire to help him in his regeneration, inasmuch as he then seeks to have communication with two distinct kinds of spirits in the other world at the same time, which is impossible. Indeed because of this, the teaching of the text is associated with the literal idea of a Garment, for by his Garments man has communication with the societies of Heaven. This is distinctly taught in the Work on the Apocalypse Explained, in which it is written, in explanation of the words of the text, "The reason of this was that woolen signifies good and linen truth, and because man by his garments also has communication with the societies of Heaven, and there are societies which are in good, and there are societies which are in truth, and man must not have communication with different societies at the same time, for hence is confusion" (n. 951).
Man is continually in the company of spirits and angels. Without them he could by no means exist, for unless spirits were adjoined to him man would not be capable of the least thought. Man's spiritual life therefore depends entirely upon his association with spirits (H. H. 302). Now, the spirits who are with man, both the good and the bad, are in the World of Spirits, in which is also every man as to his spirit, even while as to his body he lives in the world. And, in the World of Spirits, the spirits attendant upon man are in connection with either Heaven or Hell to which they belong. Both Heaven and Hell are distinguished into distinct societies, innumerable in number, and every spirit belongs to some particular society, acts in unity with' it, and draws his life from it. All the societies in Heaven and in Hell are distinct according to the affections prevailing in them, and man has communication with distinct societies in the other life according to the particular affection which prevails in him (H. H. 294).
Hence, whilst man is in the first state of his regeneration, in which he acts chiefly from truth, he is in connection with quite a different society in Heaven than that with which he is in connection when he is in the second state of his regeneration, in which state he acts mainly from good; and to recede from the one to the other is really to be in both states, mingling the one with the other; which must inevitably produce confusion in his spiritual association, and must he greatly injurious to his spiritual interests.
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Against this was the literally strange command given, "Thou shalt not put on a mixed garment, of wool and linen together." (See A. C. 10,184.)
In conclusion and briefly let it be observed that the warning of the text grows out of the fact that the Celestial and Spiritual Kingdoms of the LORD are perfectly distinct, and that they who are in the one cannot possibly hem the other. Indeed it is thus stated in the Arcana Coelestia as follows: "In a state of good are all they who are in the LORD'S Celestial Kingdom; but in a state of truth are they who are in His Spiritual Kingdom;' he who is in the one cannot be in the other" (n. 10,669). The great difference between the Celestial and the Spiritual is thus given, "The Celestial are in the affection of good, the Spiritual in the affection of Truth; the Celestial have perception, but the spiritual a dictate of conscience" (A. C. 2708).
It is further written in the same Work, the Arcana Coelestia, "Those who are in the affection of Truth, think, investigate, and discuss, whether a thing be true or whether it be so, and when they are confirmed that it is true, or that it is so, they further think, investigate, and discuss what it is; thus they stick in the first threshold and cannot be admitted into wisdom until they are without doubt. But those who are in the affection of good, by virtue of the good itself in which they are, know and perceive that it is so, and thus they do not stick in the first threshold, but are in the inner chamber, being admitted into wisdom" (A. C. 2718). (Illustrations are given in this paragraph.)
Such is the great distinction between the Celestial and the Spiritual.
In the LORD'S New Church there will be both these classes, yea, both are represented in each sincere and genuine member of that Church in the two states of the regenerative life which have been before described. The "all important thing, which is the lesson of the text, is that these two states shall not be mixed together, but that they shall ever be held distinct. And this must be done in all things of the regenerate life, both things mental and moral, or things which chiefly affect the intellect, and things which apply more directly to the life. When a doctrinal matter is presented to the attention of the member of the Church, and after thinking about it, investigating it, and discussing it, the member of the Church comes into the knowledge and perception of it and sees that it is so, he must carefully guard against permitting himself to lapse into the course of again discussing it in his mind, for if he does so then in that particular matter he descends from the first state into a second and mixes the two states, to the serious injury of his mind, for he breaks the commandment of the text.
And yet this is not an uncommon thing, indeed, it is a very frequent temptation with many, especially those who are so prone to weigh everything as to its least detail, and are not content to assent to anything unless they see in greatest detail its every bearing, and are very suspicious that there may be something behind it which they have not yet seen. Reasonable "care should of course be taken before assent is given to a doctrinal matter, but when once the truth is perceived, then the man of the Church ought to shun as an evil the disposition to return to the former state of mere discussion, which finds expression in the formula, "well, after all, is it so?" He should strive rather to say, "it is so, and I will now seek for confirmation from the Letter of the Word and in nature!"
Following this course, the member of the Church will increase' in wisdom, because he will be in order, and therefore will be led on by the LORD, but by going back continually upon positions which have once been acknowledged, which is a continual temptation of hell, simply forbids any advance in real wisdom, and yields no satisfactory results, because it is of disorder, and therefore of hell, however much it may assume the guise of that delusion which is "called independent thought. This much for the mental temptation of continually going back from positions in doctrinal matters which have been seen and recognized. The same lesson applies to the various stages of the moral life of man, as has been before shown, and which need not be again repeated.
In its letter, the command of the text has no definite teaching which appears worthy of a place in Divine Revelation, but in its spirit it is full of infinite wisdom, and bears for the man of the Church lessons of the greatest importance. It expresses the interesting fact that man, by the very garments he wears, has communication with the societies of Heaven. Indeed, the instrument of the Second Advent of the LORD was caused to see the meaning of the text from the changing of his own garments, inasmuch as when he laid aside a linen garment, they who were in the Truths in the spiritual world complained that they could not be present with him (A. E. 951.) From this fact, the man of the Church may learn, even ma to the very garments he wears, that any garment which in its weaving, or texture is a mixture of wool and linen, or cotton, has a bad correspondence, and therefore cannot assist in bringing about him spirits of order; and, above these more external things, the text, when spiritually understood, has the all-important warning "That the states of good and truth ought not to be confounded" (A. C. 10,669), and it instructs that, when, under the guidance of truth, a man, by the help of the LORD, has been enabled to shun any evil as sin against God, from a sense of duty, and thus has arrived at a position when the truth, by being lived, has become good, he must by no means permit himself to descend from that higher state of good to the lower state of truth, in which, when again tempted in the same manner, he would for the least moment allow himself to begin to ask if it were allowable; but, from the affection of the opposite of that evil, and from a sincere love of the LORD, he must say, Get thee behind me, Satan, and must resolutely, and with firm determination, refuse even to think about that to which he finds himself again tempted.
May the LORD assist us all to this determination of character, to this abiding in Him as the result of evil shunned and abhorred, so shall we grow in wisdom and in real spiritual strength, and shall realize all the blessings which flow from the observance of the Divine commend, full of infinite wisdom, "Thou shalt not put on a mixed garment of wool and linen to get her."- AMEN.
Last Judgment 1893
When the Last Judgment takes place it must be revealed for the sake of faith in the Word.- C. L. J. 5.
INTELLECTUAL AND THE VOLUNTARY OF THE CHURCH 1893
GENESIS XLVIII.
IN this chapter, in the Internal Sense, the Intellectual of the Church, which is from Truth, and its Voluntary, which is from Good, are treated of. In the Church the truth of faith which is of the Intellectual is apparently in the first place, and the good of charity which is of the Voluntary is apparently in the second place.
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(1.) The things which are now treated of are the things which follow from those treated of in the foregoing chapters.
There was now eminent perception with truth from the natural from the internal celestial concerning the successive of regeneration, wherefore there was now a new voluntary and a new intellectual of the Church, born from the internal. The intellectual of the Church is to perceive from the Word what the truth of faith is, and what the good of charity. The voluntary or the good of the Church is the good of charity which is insinuated from the LORD into the man of the Church by the truths of faith; for these together with the good of charity are what inflow into the intellectual, and illustrate it and cause that the intellectual and the voluntary constitute one mind Both the intellectual and the voluntary are born from the internal; for every affection of good and truth, by which is illustration, inflows from no other source, consequently is born from no other source than from the internal- That is, by the internal from the LORD.
(2.) Truth from the natural now apperceived the presence of the internal, whence the truth of the natural received new strength by spiritual good, and turned itself to the natural.
(3.) The truth of the natural communicated with the internal concerning the Divine appearing in the natural, where was the truth of the spiritual Church, and concerning the prediction of vivification.
(4.) This vivification was by the good of faith and the truth of faith to indefinite increase, and the LORD'S kingdom is to those who are in this good and truth.
That is called indefinite which cannot be defined and comprehended by numbers; but yet what ii indefinite is finite in respect to what is infinite, and so finite that there is no proportion between them. Truths and goods have their capacity of growing to what is indefinite from this that they proceed from the LORD, Who is Infinite.
(5.) The good and truth in the natural from the internal were before the truth of the natural wan in scientifics, and were in the LORD'S Divine Natural, whence they constitute the intellectual and the voluntary of the Church, and they became truth and the good of truth.
(6.) It was now predicted that interior truths and goods, which should come afterward, should be in the natural, which is in the internal, and that they should be of the quality of the truths and goods of the Church, and together among them.
(7.) In passing from a state of knowledges of truth and good there came an end of the former affection of interior truth, in what was intermediate to the spiritual of the celestial in a former state, which was rejected, and in its place there arose a state of new affection of truth and good.
In the Internal Sense, in this verse, the rejection of a former affection of truth and the reception of a new affection are treated of. The former affection of truth prevails during man's regeneration, but the latter, which is the new affection, prevails when he is regenerated. In the former state man is affected with truth for the sake of the end that he may become intelligent, but in the latter state that he may become wise, or, what is the same thing, in the former state he is affected with truth for the sake of doctrine, but in the latter for the sake of life; when for the sake of doctrine he then looks at good from truth, but when for the sake of life he' looks at truth from good; thus the latter state is the inverse of the former; wherefore the former state is rejected during man's regeneration, and the latter which is a new state is received. The former state also, in respect to the latter new one, is impure; for when man is affected with truth for the sake of doctrine that he may become intelligent, he is affected at the same time with honor and glory. This affection cannot then but be present, and it is also permitted, as an introductory means, because such is the quality of the man; but when he is affected with truth for the sake of life he then rejects glory and reputation as ends, and embraces the good of life and charity toward the neighbor.
(8.) There was now present with spiritual good from the natural an appreciation concerning the intellectual and the voluntary of the Church, and concerning their origin.
(9.) There was a reply from the interior, that they were from the internal in the natural, and it was perceived that they should accede to spiritual good; there was also a prediction concerning the good and truth of the Church- That is, concerning the voluntary and the intellectual of the Church.
(10.) Spiritual good in the natural was now in a state of obscure apperception, because in the end of representation, and in a state of non-observance; nevertheless, it desired the presence of the voluntary and of the intellectual of the Church, and conjoined itself with them from the affection of truth, and from the affection of good.
(11.) Whence there was an elevation of the spiritual good of the natural to the internal, although it had not been in the hope concerning the influx of its love, nevertheless not only the influx of love was apperceived but also the good and truth thence.
(12.) The internal celestial removed the good of the voluntary and the truth of the intellectual from spiritual good- That is, from the affection of love thereof, and humiliated them before the LORD. The good of the voluntary, and the truth of the intellectual in the natural cannot humble themselves before the LORD, but from the eternal by influx; inasmuch as with influx by the internal into the natural there is nothing of will and understanding therein, and not even anything of life, for the internal is the medium by which there is life from the LORD therein.
(13.) The internal celestial now arranged that the truth of the intellectual should be in the second place, and the good of the voluntary in the first place, and adjoined them to spiritual good from the natural.
(14.) But spiritual good regarded the truth of the intellectual as in the first place, although it be in the second, and the good of the voluntary as in the second, thus not according to order, if indeed goad is in the prior place.
(16.) It was now predicted that the truth of the intellectual, and the good of the voluntary would have life from the internal- That is, from the Divine, from which internal good and internal truth had life, which same Divine vivified the good of spiritual truth from the natural continually;
(16.) It is the LORD'S Divine Human from which is deliverance from hell, and which gives truth and good to the intellectual and the voluntary of the Church, so that they may have in them the quality of the good of spiritual truth from the natural, and the quality of internal good and truth, whence they might have extension from the inmost.
(17.) The internal celestial apperceived that the good of spiritual truth in the natural regarded truth in the first place, and was displeased thereat, wherefore it inflowed into the ability of obscure apperception with spiritual good, in order to turn it away from error.
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(18.) Whence spiritual good received perceptible influx concerning good that it has the priority, and that thus it should be in the first place.
(19.) But there was non- Consent, for though it is acknowledged that it is so, still it appears otherwise, for truth- from good ought also to be increased; nevertheless good from truth will take more of increase, and the truth which is of faith should reign.
(20.) All this is from foresight and providence, that spiritual truth may be in the truth of the intellectual, and the good of the voluntary, wherefore truth was regarded in the first place.
(21.) Spiritual good now perceived, from the internal celestial new life and the end of representations; such was the Divine Providence of the LORD, each Church that has been might be brought back to the state of each Ancient Church- That is, to the state of the Ancient, and to the state of the Most Ancient Church-in each of which were true representatives.
(22.) The truth of the intellectual and the good of the voluntary should have more in the Church herein treated of, from its victory over evil, from doctrine.
After the Last Judgment 1893
After the Last Judgment had been accomplished, and not before, Revelations were made for the New Church- C. L. J. 12.
UNITY OF GOD 1893
(Delivered by Mr. George G. Starkey, A. B., Th. B., on the occasion of his receiving the diploma of Bachelor of Theology.)
In the Canons of the New Church we are taught "that the Supreme and Inmost of all the doctrinals of the Church, and hence the most universal of them all, is the cognition and acknowledgment that God Is One."
To grasp the universality of this doctrine the mind must be elevated above the natural idea of One, that it is merely a unit of number: this belongs to time and space, being used to measure them. In more interior light a One is a thing, a whole; something which is. Oneness involves being, and "being" is a mystery which can never be understood; it can and must be accepted without demonstration. Yet "being," although hidden, manifests itself, and does so in things which are from itself, in which it appears as in a mirror.
That which is or has "being," is known as substance; being involves activity, in quality according to the nature of the substance. The universe consists of created things which are substances, and each of these has its own quality, which it manifests in its form; substance cannot exist except in form, by which it puts forth its activity and thence operates. The operation is from and according to the nature of the form, and the form is from and according to the nature of' the substance. Substance is not known except from its form, nor then until by form it proceeds into operation, which is its reason for being. Hence, of substance is predicated the term "esse," "to be;" of Form is predicated the term: "existere," "to stand forth," for in Form the Substance appears; of the operation of substance in form, is predicated "Procedere," or "Proceeding." Of substance the essential nature is in its inherent activity, its quality is in and by its form, and both together are in the operation. In every created thing there is an end, which is its esse. This operates by means which are one with the form, and are the cause by which is produced the third of the series-i.e.; the effect. Thus while every substance in origin and essential nature may be called a one, its essence is dual, for substance must be in form; but essence alone is abstract, thus nothing unless it operates, therefore in its operation everything is a trine; and yet it is not three things, but a complete one. This trine of substance, form, and operation may be expressed more abstractly as end, cause, and effect; or, as above said, as esse, existere, and proceeding. The first term of the series is the all in all of the other two, for they are from it; and the last contains and involves the others (the first and the middle term), for it completes them.
Of whatever we can predicate substance, we say that it is; but since the being of all things is from a First, their Creator, without Whom they would cease to be, He alone really Is of Himself-Esse Itself; Substance Itself; thus One. This, as It is in Itself, cannot be received by another, because It cannot be imparted; else there would be another esse itself; and there can be but one. But the Divine Esse proceeding in Its own Form, created substances which It formed into receptacles into which It could flow in Its Own coverings. By mean's of this Divine accommodation man can think of the Divine Esse as the First from which all things are; as Infinitely Active, because it is the Creator; that It is the End of Ends, because all Ends whatsoever proceed from It and refer to It; - That It is Infinite, for Being Itself is unlimited; Eternal, because being the Beginning and the End of all things, Itself has no beginning nor end; that It is Substance Itself; since It is the Very Real; and we can think of It only as One, because It is Infinite, and things which have number are finite, they can be multiplied or divided; and no amount of multiplication or division of finite things can take anything from the Infinite or add anything to It, they are from It but not in It; It is Infinitely One.
All this we can see by means of the Divine accommodating Itself, which is of the Divine Operation, thus of the Divine Trinity from the Divine Unity. In or by the Trinity we can see a certain image of the Divine Unity, for substance can be seen and known in its form and operation but not without them.
We are permitted to know further concerning the Divine Esse, the One Substance, from which all things are, that It is Love Itself; and that the Divine Existere is Wisdom, which is the form of love, thus Wisdom Itself. That love is substance could never be known except from revelation, but being known it may be confirmed in countless ways. What else is the life of all things but love? What else in the universe is creative, self-existent, and real, what else is life-giving and sustaining than love? What else is the stupendous work of Creation than Infinite Love manifested in infinite Wisdom? Does not the activity of love constitute the delight of life, thus its all? For when love and its delight ceases, life diminishes and finally ceases. Many men and animals have died from grief; which is only the destruction of love and its delight. And is it not life which holds all things together? What else could do this but Substance Itself? Since in creation love is life, life in its origin must be Love Itself.
It is the nature of love to love others outside of itself; to will to be one with them, and to make them happy from Itself. Since happiness is the activity of love, Infinite Love is Infinite Happiness or Joy, and this it wills to impart to others. Infinite joy is not possible except in Infinite Being; but men, who are receptacles of life, (not life itself) are created in the appearance of having life in themselves as of their own,-of being in themselves. From this appearance man can-in freedom- Act from and with the Divine Source of Life and not from the mere appearance, whence he becomes one with his Creator.
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Love cannot proceed from the Divine except in Wisdom, for the unclothed Divine Fire would consume any finite receptacle; thus although the Divine Life Itself is One, it is received as Two-Love and Wisdom, or Love in Wisdom. Hence in man there are two receptacles of Life, the will for the reception of love, and the understanding for the reception of wisdom, and two faculties, liberty and rationality, by which he is able to feel the love of his will as his own and to provide means for carrying out its ends and thus to act as of himself. In action the whole man is present, just as in the Divine Operation the whole of the Divine Trine is present, and when man in freedom rationally acknowledges God and conforms to Divine Order, the Divine Love and Wisdom flowing into his interiors meet with his co-operation in ultimates, and man becomes a trinal image of the Divine Trinity, in which is the Divine Unity; thus he becomes a finite one, a complete man. Thus life, which in its origin is one, in man becomes dual, constituting the life of his will- His ease or love, and the life of his understanding, his existere or wisdom; but to be anything these must be conjoined in a third or last, which is operation or use; for every created thing derives from its Creator a trinal form in which is unity from the One and Only.
This marriage of love and wisdom and their resultant use, prefiguring the Divine, can be seen in everything of creation. To the natural mind the natural life of man in its trinal form of love, wisdom, and operation in the individual man, with its external of body, shape, and operation, presents the most perfect type of unity in trinity. But the spiritual sight sees that love has its most perfect, because most distinct form in man (vii)-wisdom, in woman; and use, in the united spiritual life of the two, performing spiritual uses. Thus the conjugial is at once the' highest type of human life and its most complete ultimation; an ultimation which must take place, either in this world or the next, with every one who will enter the sphere of oneness of the Divine End.
When we see that man, who is an image of the Divine, is a trinal being-whose ease is love, his existere wisdom, and his proceeding life, use, we can see what revelation teaches- That the Divine Esse is Very Man, that the Divine Existere is Divinely Human, and that the Divine Proceeding thence is Essential Human Life, or Use.
God is now seen to be not a mere abstract idea, but a Man, with Whom conjunction alone is possible, and that this conjunction must be reciprocal and free. Man can be conjoined only with man; love can be conjoined only with love; therefore, in order that finite man, in all the freedom of love received and felt as his own, might seek conjunction with Life Itself- The Divine Love, by Divine Wisdom, reveals Itself to all as Very Man, to each according to his ability to conceive of what constitutes humanity. Thus in order to reach even those who think of it only from the human body, He assumed a body on earth, glorified it, put off everything earthly, and in place thereof appeared in His own Essential Divine which could thus reach even the lowest states of affection and thought and give them freedom to know and choose Him as their God. Thus He appears to every one who from love suffers Him to be born in the earth of a finite mind, to glorify The natural body which He assumes there- The gross and earthly thoughts and affections which form the first idea of the LORD'S Human; thus He descends as Divine Love, in its own Human Form, to bless and to make' man wholly His own.
This conjunction is the Very Divine End which enters every operation of the Divine Providence and makes all one; for the Divine Love is One in Lasts as in Firsts. To this One End conspire all the forms and uses of the spiritual and natural worlds: not the least variation of state in man, not the growing of the smallest blade of grass, but derived its first origin from that end, and in its measure contributes to its fulfillment. But though things of time and space serve it, in itself it regards only the Eternal, and all things whatsoever are enduring in proportion as they subserve it.
When man in all things regards only that which makes for conjunction with God, when he establishes in the ultimates of his life, love in uses, ordered with regard to their subservience to eternal life, he then makes his ends one with the Divine End. Then the Divine Being endows him with being, with love, with life and the delight and happiness of living. Then he worships the One God. Then he is one with God.
Notes and Reviews 1893
THE Rev. C. Giles has written another book, entitled Consolation, which has just been published.
THE report of the National Missionary Institution of the New Church shows a balance in hand of L67 14s. 9d.
THE Rev. A. T. Boyesen of Sweden, is making a Norwegian translation of Dr. Ellis's work, Skepticism and Divine Revelation.
THE Journal of the 126th meeting of the Massachusetts Association is printed at the end of the June number of the New Jerusalem Magazine.
THE editorials of the New Church Standard for June deal with the subject of the Second Advent of the LORD. The article on the State of the Christian world in this number treats of the Rise of Councils in the Apostolic Church. The subject of the Hebrew language is also continued.
THE June issue of the Concordance to the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg (Part 64) contains a number of entries, not the least interesting being the single one about the scientist Leenwenhoek, which contains an invaluable lesson to all who are engaged in the pursuit of knowledge. The references to "Life" begin in this number, of which they fill nearly half; and to judge from the fact that these are only from the first half of the Arcana Coelestia, at least an additional Part will be devoted to this wonderful subject.
PROFESSOR Loreto Scocia, of Florence, Italy, who is well known as the translator of a number of New Church works into his native tongue, was appointed as representative of Italy on the New Church Committee of the Congress of Religions. "The Mission of the New Church in respect to Art" was the subject referred to him. He has written a pamphlet in Italian on this theme: La Missione della Nuova Chiesa rispetto all' Arte in which he treats of the origin of Art from the influx from the Spiritual World, and that, as influx is according to reception, pure Art will be restored only as the conception of Truth is restored, and the sensual, which now prevails, is removed. This is the mission of the New Church, since she is the instrument in the hands of the LORD for the regeneration of mankind. The essay is divided into four heads, as follows: "What is Art?" "Natural Beauty," "Artificial Beauty," and "The Mission of the New Church in respect to Art." It contains several quotations from the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, and numerous references to them.
THE Rev. James Reed has published a little volume of seven discourses based on Scripture testimony concerning the Other World, the subjects of the several discourses being, "The Other World Near and Real," "Passing into the Other World," "The Entrance- Hall into the Other World," "Heaven," "Hell," "The Judgment," "Heavenly Happiness."
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It appeals to every simple- Hearted reader of the Sacred Scripture, and we hope, will be instrumental in bringing light to many minds. It is possible, that the author considered the imprint of the Philadelphia "American New- Church Tract and Publication Society" sufficient to apprise his readers of the Source of his intelligence concerning the other World, as he makes no mention of the Writings which are the LORD'S Second Coming. But it is doubtful whether that is enough. To present the truths of the New Church without a distinct and affirmative declaration concerning the Writings is parallel to the proclamation in the First Christian Church, of some of the fundamental truths of Christianity, without referring to the LORD JESUS CHRIST, or at least to the Word of the New Testament.
THE "New Church Book Association" of Sweden has lately published, in a pamphlet of forty- Two pages, a lecture by Pastor Albert Bjorck, of Stockholm, on Emanuel Swedenborg's significance to the Future (Emanuel Swedenborg's Betydelse for Framtiden), which he delivered at a meeting in Stockholm, in commemoration of Swedenborg's birthday, on January 29th, 1893. The lecture is well written, but is penetrated by the false notion that the Christian Church, by an intrinsic evolution of philosophy and religion, is gradually coming to a recognition of the fundamental teachings which were long ago presented by Emanuel Swedenborg, or that his doctrines will secretly mold the future theology of the world. At the close of the lecture, which was attended by a number of prominent public men, Dr. Carl von Bergen, a learned and popular philosopher and lecturer, paid homage to Swedenborg's greatness and to his fundamental teaching that God is love. He could not, however, reconcile this teaching with Swedenborg's oft repeated declaration that hell is everlasting. After a statement of the usual universalist arguments in support of the idea of a "universal restoration," he requested Pastor Bjorck to explain further this doctrine of the New Church. In his reply Pastor Bjorck dwelt in a general manner upon the individuality of human existence and freedom of choice between good and evil, but did not, by any means present the Doctrine of the New Church upon this subject with great clearness and fullness.
The Magnificat is the title of a new volume of hymns, prepared by a Committee of the General Convention, consisting of the Rev. Messrs. Sewall John Worcester, Warren, John Goddard, and Smyth, and published by the Yew Church Board of Publication, No. 20 Cooper Union, New York City. The title is taken from the Latin version of the opening words of Mary's song, "Magnificat anima mea Dominum" ("My soul doth magnify the LORD"). The reason for the choice of this title is given in these words by the compilers of the volume: "These words declare the distinctive doctrine of the New Church, that JESUS CHRIST in His Divine Humanity is the One Lord, God, and Saviour of mankind; and this volume is designed for the use of those who in this faith desire to magnify and rejoice in Him." Most of the 804 hymns and chants contained in the volume are necessarily derived from the existing religious songs of the Old Church, care being taken to select such as do not contain false doctrines, although the Committee has not been entirely successful in this endeavor.
But there is a respectable number of hymns and tunes by New Church authors and composers; and it is interesting to note, in running through the book, how, as a rule, one can pick out the songs that have been written by Newchurchmen, the carefully prepared index in the back of the book enabling one to verify his judgment of the class of authors. Mr. Proud's hymns, a number of which are found in this collection, have not only their distinctive Newchurchmanship to distinguish them, but the author's individuality is likewise stamped upon them.
While The Magnificat is a very valuable storehouse of religious' songs and melodies, and will be of undoubted use "in public worship, in smaller religious gatherings, in homes, and in the social circle," for which it has been designed, a cursory examination of it convinces one that much, even of what has been contributed by Newchurchmen, lacks the spirit of the distinctive New Church. Such hymns as here presented have place in the First Christian Church, before the LORD has been divided into three and His Human into two, and where the letter of the Word is reverently received; but little of the acknowledgment of the Second Coming of the LORD in the Revelation of the Spiritual Sense of the Word, and little of what the spiritual sense teaches is incorporated in this Book of Sacred Song. Still, the best that can be obtained at the present time is probably to be found here.
The price of the volume is $1.00. Introductory price until January, 1894, for not less than five copies, 75 cents.
HISTORY OF THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION 1893
ON the last page of the work on Conjugial Love, published in Amsterdam in the year 1768, Swedenborg made the following announcement: "Within the space of two years you will see in its fullness the Doctrine of the New Church predicted by the LORD in the Apocalypse, chapters xxi and lxii." This promised work was again referred to in the Preface to The Summary Exposition of the Doctrine of the New Church, which was published in the following year. He says, there: "After having, during the course of some years, published several works, larger and smaller, concerning the New Jerusalem, by which is understood a New Church about to be instituted by the LORD, and after the Apocalypse had been revealed, I resolved to issue, by the press, the Doctrine of that Church in its fullness, and, thus, in its entirety. As this, however, is the work of a few years, I deemed it useful to publish, meanwhile, a sort of outline of it, in order that a general idea of that Church and of its Doctrine may be obtained; for when the generals precede, all the particulars as they exist in their whole breadth, are able to appear in light; since they enter into the generals, as homogeneous things into their receptacles. The present summary, however, is not submitted for critical examination, as its contents will be demonstrated in full in the promised work; it is only issued as a preliminary notice." In No. 16 of The Summary Exposition he published, further, an outline of the general contents of this intended work.
An anecdote relates that Swedenborg, when visiting Paris in the spring of 1769, after The Summary Exposition had been published, asked permission to have The True Christian Religion published there, but that this was refused him after the book had been examined by the royal censor, M. Chevreuil. This, however, is probably a mistake, as the first draft of this work was finished in June of the following year (Documents, II, p. 700).
From Paris, Swedenborg traveled to London, where he seemed to have spent the summer in further preliminary or preparatory work for The True Christian Religion. He wrote here The Canons of the New Church, to which work he also gave the title: "The Entire Theology of the New Church." From this period, it seems, dates also the little work called Dicta Probantia, or, "Corroborating Passages from the Old and New Testaments," from which Swedenborg drew largely in confirming the doctrinal teachings in The. True Christian Religion.
In October, 1769, Swedenborg returned to Stockholm, where he seems to have begun the greater work itself. On April 30th, 1770, he wrote to his friend, Dr. Beyer:
"Next June I will travel to Amsterdam, where I intend to publish The Universal Theology of the New Church."
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The work itself was brought to a close on the ever-memorable nineteenth day of June, in the year 1770, of which we read:
"After this work had been finished, the LORD called together His disciples, who had followed Him in the world, and the following day He sent out all into the Universal Spiritual World to preach the Gospel, that the LORD GOD JESUS CHRIST reigneth, Whose Kingdom shall be unto ages of ages, according to the prediction by Daniel, chapter vii, v. 13, 14, and in the Apocalypse, chapter xi, v. 9, and that Blessed are they, who come to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. This was done in the month of June, on the nineteenth day, in the year 1770" (T. C. R. 791).
In a letter to Dr. Beyer, dated July 23d, 1770, he says, "In a few days I shall depart for Amsterdam in order to publish there The Universal Theology of the New Church, the foundation of which is the worship of the LORD our Saviour, on which foundation if no temple be now built, brothels will be erected."
In Amsterdam he spent a whole year in preparing for the press a clean copy of his manuscript, and in superintending the printing. What became of the original draft is not known, though it would be extremely interesting to compare it with the published work. Certain fragments have been found of the former, from which it is evident that it was not in all respects similar to the second draft.
"Swedenborg's acquaintance, Mynheer J. C. Cuno, visited him frequently during this his last sojourn in Amsterdam, and gives the following interesting sketch of the inspired author while at work on The True Christian Religion.
"He is now indefatigably at work; yea, I must say that he labors in a most astonishing and superhuman manner at his flew work. Sixteen sheets with types twice as small as those used in his former works are already printed. Only think! for every printed sheet he has to fill four sheets in manuscript. He now has two sheets printed every week. These he corrects himself and consequently he has to write eight sheets every week. And what appears altogether incomprehensible, he has never a single line in reserve. [?] His work is to consist, as he says himself, of eighty printed sheets; he has thus calculated already that it cannot be finished before Michaelmas. I will also tell you the title of the work he has in hand, it is as follows: True Christian Religion, containing the Universal Theology of the New Church, etc., by Emanuel Swedenborg, Servant of the LORD JESUS CHRIST could not, in my open manner, conceal my astonishment that he should declare himself on the title-page the servant of the LORD JESUS CHRIST. But he replied, 'I have asked and have received not only permission, but even an express command!'" (Doc. Vol. II, p. 1016).
To this he adds, in a subsequent letter-"He says, That his angel dictates to him and that he can write fast enough." On April 30th, 1771, Swedenborg wrote to Dr. Beyer: "My Universa Theologia Novi Coeli et Novae Ecclesiae will leave the press toward the close of June. . . After the appearance of that book, the LORD our Saviour will operate both mediately and immediately toward the establishment throughout the whole of Christendom of a New Church based upon this Theology. The New Heaven, out of which the New Jerusalem will descend, will very soon be completed."
The work itself left the press at the close of June, in the year 1771, almost exactly a year after the original manuscript had been completed. It was published in a quarto volume of 541 pages, and bore the title Vera Christiana Religio, continens Universam Theologiam Novae Ecclesiae, a Domino apud Danielem, Cap. VII, 13, 14, et in Apocalypsi Cap, XXI, 1, 2, praedictae, ab Emanuele Swedenborg Domini Jesu Christi Servo.
At the end of July, Swedenborg left Amsterdam for London, where he occupied his remaining days of life in this world in writing certain works as corollaries to the True Christian Religion. These works are: "Summary of a Coronis or Appendix to The True Christian Religion," "Coronis or Appendix to the True Christian Religion," and "Concerning the Consummation of the Age, the Second Advent of the LORD, and the New Church; to which is added an Invitation to the whole Christian world to that Church." Of this last work he says: "If this little Work is not added to the former, the Church cannot be healed. It would be like a palliative cure only, a wound in which the corruption remains and eats away the neighboring parts-orthodoxy is this corrupt matter; and the doctrine of the New Church does indeed apply a remedy, but only externally" (Inv. 95).
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
A TALE.
(Copyrighted.)
XVII.
FRIENDSHIP.
THE prayer ended, the head-master and the eleven filed one after another out of the hall of worship, and last of all I followed. In an outer apartment I was then presented to the eleven who, it now appeared, together with the head-master, were the twelve teachers of the institution. Each welcomed me with kindly smiles and wise words.
"You must now be introduced to the students, and I shall leave you with them for the present," said the head-master. "Many of them by this time are out walking or riding, but we shall no doubt find some on the south terrace."
"He then led me out through the great hall to a lofty portico facing the south, below which was a broad terrace overlooking a wide and beautiful valley. Roads wound through this valley and up the hillsides, and I saw at a distance many young men on horses, others taking the air on foot, still others sitting in garden chairs under the laurels and myrtles of the neighboring groves. On the paved and flower-rimmed terrace about a dozen students, in dress similar to my own, were strolling back and forth in pairs or groups of three or four and conversing. As soon as the nearer ones observed the headmaster they came forward to meet him.
"I bring you a new companion. Give him your welcome," he said to them, glancing from one to another with every evidence of perfect friendship.
"You make us glad and we thank you, kind father," the foremost responded, and all returned his look of affection.
"They are glad," I thought, with wonder and relief, for I had not approached them without certain misgivings. "Then they do not regard me in any sense as a possible rival, or view me with that cold, ungenerous criticism, the offspring of jealousy, so all-pervading in the world "
They were glad. They gathered about me and, as the head master left us, greeted me with the kindest and most genuine expression of good-will. I was so moved by it that I stood among them with a stammering tongue and eyes full of starting tears. "They really seem to care as much for my welfare as for their own," I thought. "God help me to return this love."'
Not all of their faces could be called perfectly handsome in outline, according to the standard carried in my mind, but assuredly there was something tender and beautiful in the countenance of each and all.
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"We have been discussing friendship," one of them said to me, after all had warmly grasped my hand," and we unanimously take the position, with some variety of application, that the truly good man can be in genuine friendship only to the good. For to befriend a wicked man is to increase his power of doing evil, and no good man can consent to increase a wicked man's power of doing evil"
"That is a new idea to me," I said, "but I accept it as true."
"And we take the position," another continued, "that true friendship or charity requires of us to care more for the welfare of our friends, or those among whom we dwell, than we do for our own. Above all else, the LORD is our Friend, and therefore we should have greater concern to do those things which are pleasing to Him than to indulge ourselves in selfish vanities. Secondarily, all the angels and all good men are our friends, and we should desire more to promote their happiness than our own.
"This is what friendship means among the angels," continued a third, "and it is our earnest aim to give it that meaning here; but in the natural world it too often means a selfish regard for those who have been of use to us, or who by flattery and other arts have made themselves agreeable. The average man of the earth says in his heart that the command to love others as we love ourselves is a mere poetical sentiment, and that to love others more than ourselves is preposterous; granting such a love to be possible, those who cultivated it would be mere servants, deprived of all freedom and having no pleasure in life. Immersed in such gross thoughts, the man of the earth can have no conception of the delight of such love; he little dreams of the ineffable happiness that reigns in the heavenly community where every one loves his neighbor more than himself and where, consequently, no one is ever harmed in thought or deed."
"And do you love each other here more than you love yourselves?" I asked.
"No; only the angels are in that blessed state. But when we are in good states we love each other equally well with ourselves."
"And is not your state always good?"
"Ah, no-not yet. Our evil inclinations are not yet entirely subdued, and there are times when we are let down, as it were, into our former selves for the sake of temptation and humiliation."
"And we have agreed that after the LORD and the Church, the prince is in the highest sense our friend and neighbor," spoke another who till now had been silent.
"The 'prince'?" I repeated, wondering.
"The prince of the heavenly society with which our college is in connection."
"Are there princes in heaven?" I asked, eagerly.
"We have been instructed that there is one for every society or province there."
"And do they live in state-in palaces- As do princes on earth?"
"Why not? "Dignity and honor belong to those who are in superior goodness and wisdom. Our masters have taught us that there are governments in the heavens, and consequently various ranks and orders, with distinctions of dignity, eminence, power, and authority. Those of the highest rank have courts and live in palaces, and they are given such positions from no other cause than superior fitness. They are princes because they are the wisest and best. Their chiefest delight is in promoting the public good, and they are only externally pleased with the distinction of dignity for the sake of order and subordination. The houses of all the angels are beautiful, but those of the princes are most beautiful, being resplendent from afar with gold and precious stones, and distinguished by magnificence such as no palace of earth can remotely suggest."
This was truly as it should be. The lovely picture of heavenly royalty stirred in me none but pleasing emotions. I was never a democrat at bottom, and if the prince or the king can be also an angel of heaven, then, with all my heart, "long live the king!"
As they thus spoke with me, I presently became aware that another student was approaching our group from a distant part of the terrace, and as he joined us I looked up and recognized Alaric Mortimer.
"You here!" I cried, stirred with new and great happiness.
There was a change in him. He was the same handsome man, with the same winning way, but in the expression of his face and eyes I thought I saw less of the earth and more of heaven.
"I knew you would come, my friend-my dear friend," he said as I hastened to meet him, and our bands were clasped. There was a glad look in his eye as he threw his left arm over my shoulder- Almost about my neck-in the old way.
"Then you were here before me? You have been here long?" I asked in wonder.
"Yea. It seems to me sometimes that I have always been here."
Seeing how it was with us, the others drew away, pursuing their conversation on true friendship.
"And your two friends at the college of the 'wise'?" I asked, and saw an expression of pain start up and die out quickly in Alaric's face.
"That was my last and most serious temptation there below," he answered. "I was led to this place soon after."
His words smote upon me painfully, for I vividly recalled our parting on that memorable night, our conversation, his seeming weakness, and the fact that I then believed my state to be greatly in advance of his.
Moving to a seat not far away, we talked a long while-glancing now and then toward the young men riding in the valley and on the bills, but looking most into each other's eyes. Marie told all the story of his struggles after our parting, his endeavors to save his two friends, their determined downward course and final separation from him, his removal to his present place and happy life there. And I told him my story.
"I am rebuked for my presumption," I said, with humility. "I find you here before me, long established-you whom I thought weaker and less wise than I."
Gently ignoring this, he answered: "I knew always that you would come; I felt that we were too much in sympathy to be long separated."
So we talked on and on, till the twilight began to fall. Then Alaric went with me to my room, where we sat down and still talked on and on; for of a truth we two were friends, deeply in sympathy, the one with the other.
As he rose and bade me good night, I threw open my' window and looked out calling on him then to observe that the night was not night at all but only a gray twilight. "Real night has no place here on the confines of heaven," was his comment.
I had barely risen and dressed the next morning, when, in answer to a rap I opened the door and admitted Alaric.
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"I want to see much of you while I may," he said in explanation of his early visit. "A feeling or presentiment that I might be removed ere long has been with me a good deal of late."
"Do you mean that we are to be separated again?" I asked, in concern.
"You will come after me," was his answer.
A sudden light broke in upon my mind. "You are to be elevated into heaven!" I said, solemnly, a certain awe upon me.
"It may be. For days I have been conscious of a new feeling which seems to tell me so."
"Then, how can I feel regret? It fills me with happiness to think of it," I said; nevertheless my feelings were somewhat mixed as we sat there together and discussed the glorious prospect.
Alaric rose to go anon, saying there were certain duties which he must perform before the students met for instruction that morning. As he halted at the door, my eyes fell upon this inscription, in beautiful gold letters upon the south wall of my room:
He who is not punctual despoils his neighbor of time.
"Look there," I said, amazed. Then, in a lower key: "It was not there yesterday."
"No; and it will not be there to-morrow. Every day there will be a new one, adapted to your needs. To-day it is well for you to begin your work here with the idea prominently in mind that it is your duty ever to be punctual."
"Who writes these inscriptions- The head-master?"
"No; not even the head-master knows what inscriptions will appear each day. In the chamber of each student they come and go as if by magic. Need we ask what Influence controls and directs them?"
"Ah, this is heaven," I whispered, awestruck, yet filled with happiness.
"Not heaven, but a heavenly training-school, where the all-seeing Eye is ever upon us, looking to our good."
XVIII.
THE WEDDING GARMENT.
HALF an hour later, at the first stroke of the great bell, I opened my door and joined the procession moving toward the chapel. Here masters and students all assembled and reverently kneeled with faces toward the opened Word in the East, still enveloped in that wondrous star-like halo, while the head-master prayed to the LORD that the light of His Divine Truth might illumine all minds; that the masters might ever be led to think rightly from truth and to conclude justly according to reason, and that the minds of the students might be opened more and more to the reception of heavenly instruction.
The head-master than approached the repository in the centre of the chancel where lay the opened Word, and, standing there with its radiating light full upon him, read aloud a beautiful selection. This done, he came down to a pulpit on the left and delivered a short address, after which the assembly stood waiting till he walked down the aisle and out of the chapel. The other masters then filed out, and lastly the students, some two hundred in number. And so came to an end the initial act of the morning's instruction.
The attempt will not he made to give a commensurate idea of the instruction received in the various classrooms that morning, and during all the mornings following; to do so would result in a thousand volumes instead of one. Let it suffice to say that, beside the laws of heavenly order, of love to God and man, of right thinking and right doing, every mystery of heaven and earth was solved. The universe became as it were an open book, as all phenomena, spiritual and natural, were explained and made clear under light from the Divine Word in its spirit, the very sun of truth. In that light man was seen to be a creature utterly dead of himself, being given life from the creating Divine, every day and hour and moment of time; in that light the natural universe was seen to be but an out-birth or covering of the spiritual, from which it derives all its life. In that light it was made manifest that in every seed of the natural world, animal or vegetable, there is a soul or spiritual germ which, while it clothes itself in matter, during every instant of time derives its life through heaven from the Creator and Preserver. Thus the LORD enters into the inmosts of everything in nature, giving to it existence and perpetual subsistence; and were He to withdraw one instant this vitalizing inward force flowing down from Him, the whole natural universe would become as nothing.
Let it be added that instruction here differed from that received on earth in this, that truths were not committed to the memory, but to the life; they were indeed learned, but only that they might be done, the affection of truth being continually inspired for the sake of and from the uses of life.
At noon of that day-my first to sit at the feet of angelic instructors- The students were dismissed as usual, and retired to change their robes, an hour later all gathering in the peat banqueting hall. For it was a feast day. The table was so built as to shape three sides of a long hollow rectangle, the interior of which was left vacant in order that the view from one of the parallel sides to the other might be unobstructed. The head-master occupied the place of honor, his associates on either hand, and down the long sides of the rectangle were ranged the students. The masters faced the east end of the hall, wherein there was a rostrum and a speaker's desk in full view from every part of the banqueting board.
The students wore the white festal robes already described; the masters appeared in undergarments of a golden or silvery color with himations of blue; the headmaster wearing in addition a cap of rich red, the front of which gleamed radiantly with a combination of most precious and varied stones shaping an eagle with outstretched wings. In this I recognized the crest of the college arms which was to be seen at almost every turn, either carved on the doors or emblazoned on the walls-in the latter case with this inscription beneath:
Thou renewest like the eagle thy childhood.
Beautiful and fit seemed these words, in the light of the truth that the inhabitants of heaven renew their youth to eternity. Most fitting, too, it was, thought I, that an eagle should have been chosen for the crest of the arms borne by this college which instructed young men-in truth, for I recalled how Ariel had taught me that birds which soared through the air signified intellectual things.
The festal board was beautiful with decorations of living flowers and vessels of silver and gold. There were many fruits, as grapes, olives, figs, pomegranates, etc., besides delicious breads and wines. But before any one was seated, and as all stood still around the board, the head-master solemnly prayed that in eating and drinking at this feast we might be the more joined together in mutual love, and thus be drawn nearer to the LORD, eating and drinking being representative of the reception of good and truth from Him.
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During the feast the students were attentive to conversation among the masters, devoted to a subject selected for the occasion, which was "the LORD'S Church in the Heavens and in the Earths." Never before had it been made clear to me how small and contemptible, relatively, was a single man; and yet this single man was a wonderful little world in himself, proclaiming the glory of his Creator. In the earths meant in all the planets attached to the millions of suns or fixed stars of the natural universe, and in the heavens all the heavens formed from these earths during countless ages. It was shown, too, how small in number, relatively, were those without as compared with those within the Church- That is, those in evil as compared with those' in good. Fully one- Third the human race die in infancy and childhood, and are saved, and these, added to those regenerated in adult life through the teachings of the Divine Word, or, as among the heathen, through a life of innocence and charity, make the members of the LORD'S Church in number so vast that the devils in the hells and the evil upon the earths form in comparison but an unimportant minority.
There had been much conversation on this and similar subjects, and we had been seated a long time- A time of continuing delight for all-when the head-master announced that we would now listen to one of the senior students who had expressed a desire to speak. In pleased surprise I saw Alaric rise, walk forward and mount the rostrum in the east end of the hall. Facing us, he bowed reverently to the masters, saluted the students, and began to speak. Never before had he appeared so handsome, and his countenance wore an expression of happiness and peace that was restful to look upon. Would that I could reproduce entire that beautiful speech! I give only the outline as it now lives in my memory.
"Beloved father, revered teachers, and my dear brothers," he began, thus addressing the head-master, his associates, and the students. "You all know that while our gracious LORD walked upon the earth below He spoke on a time in the ears of simple men a simple story. There was a certain king, He told them, who made a marriage for his son, and when the king came in among the guests in the festal hall he saw there, a man who was not clothed in a wedding garment, and he said to him, 'Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment?' And the man was speechless. And the king said to his servants, 'Bind him hand and foot and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness.'
"Such was the story spoken by the LORD, simple in its literal form but containing within it wonderful arcana of wisdom. From the Divine Word in spirit we learn that by the marriage feast the Lord represented heaven, where is the marriage of good and truth in every angel, and by the man without a wedding garment those who enter the spiritual world destitute, of the spiritual clothing necessary to fit them for heaven. Let us examine and see what it really means to be without a wedding garment.
"At this day man is born into all the evil tendencies of his parents for generations back, and is of himself, through this heredity and through evils acquired, nothing but corruption. Both his understanding and will are distorted; he understands nothing of real truth and wills nothing of genuine good, what he himself calls good and true being in reality evil and false. For example, in his heart he says it is good and true to love himself better than others, to desire what belongs to another, to be concerned about himself and not about others, except for the sake of himself to commit each and every sin which in any way may appear to benefit or give him pleasure. And if any one endeavors to injure or restrict him as to these evil loves which he secretly calls good, he hates such a person and burns with thoughts of revenge, taking delight in meditating his ruin. Such is man's state as of himself before he is reformed. If he be never reformed, if he successively and continuously turns a deaf ear when the LORD knocks at the door of his mind and heart, and goes onward confirming himself in these evil tendencies, excusing them and thus calling them good, he further perverts his naturally perverted nature and constantly immerses himself deeper and deeper in the love of what is infernal, no matter how good he may appear to be outwardly as to moral and civil life.
"Such an one, on coming into the spiritual life, has the same evil desires, the essential nature acquired in the world remaining with him, a part of him; for what a man loves is his very life. These evil desires dominate him altogether, yea, affect the very structure of his soul, and he is recognized at sight as an infernal. There are, indeed, some who from long habit in the life of the body have become such forms of deceit- Concealing their interiors and composing their exteriors- That they can feign themselves angels of light and even insinuate themselves into the lower heavenly societies. But such cannot long continue there, for not only are they soon recognized but begin to be inwardly troubled and tormented, suffering thus from the contrariety of the heavenly aura flowing in and operating. In a heavenly society every one wishes better to others than to himself. The wicked man among angels, therefore, is as a wolf among lambs. He has not on the wedding garment, he is naked as to the goods and truths which it was his blessed privilege to acquire, or put on, as garments, and he must of necessity be cast into 'outer darkness,' hell, where are his like.
"Our Heavenly Father has mercifully provided that this hereditary evil nature may be extirpated during man's life in the body, and all acquired evil subdued, if man will but co-operate with Him. This wonderful work is accomplished by regeneration from the LORD, which is the receiving of a new will and a new understanding. It cannot be done in a moment; it is the struggle of a lifetime. Man must first of all learn from Divine revelation what is evil and false and what is good and true; for without such knowledge he can make no progress, since of himself he believes nothing to be good but what is evil.
"In the Divine mercy it is so ordered that he first acquires such apparent truths as, that all love begins from self; that self is first to be regarded, and then others; that good is to be done to the poor, to widows and orphans, whatsoever may be their quality or character; through these the LORD may insinuate the beginnings of a regenerated will. This is the state of infancy and childhood as to the new life. The state of its youth and after growth succeeds when gradually regard is no longer had to any one's person, such as he appears externally, but only to his quality as to good, first in civil, then in moral and finally in spiritual life. At this stage of the regeneration of his understanding and will, man begins to give priority to good, loving it and from it only loving the person in whom it is. He now sees what it really is to love the LORD and the neighbor, and to take delight therein He understands that really to love the LORD is to will to do the Divine law; he sees that, while there is to be kindliness and good-will toward all, he is to study to do good only to the man or men in whom good is seen to reside, for none others are in the true sense the neighbor.
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"So he goes forward, rejecting the false and learning the true, shunning the evil and doing the good, while looking ever to the LORD, until-when he casts off his natural body, and enters the spiritual world- He is as to the very substance and structure of his soul, a new creature. He is spiritually clothed; he has put on the wedding garment. He comes to the wedding feast of eternity spread for him by the LORD fully prepared, because in himself good and truth have been joined in an everlasting marriage."
Such in outline was the speech delivered by Alaric Mortimer on that memorable day. At its close, as he halted silent for one instant, crowned by the full approval of the masters, who smiled upon him tenderly, and by the manifest admiration of every student-in that instant, ere he moved to descend from the rostrum and take his seat, a great light suddenly enveloped the place where he stood, and an angel, clothed in beautiful shining garments, was seen near him, holding out to him a wreath of leaves like the laurel.
I could have shouted for joy. But when the angel, having placed the wreath upon his head, took his hand and led him from the rostrum, and out through a door in the east wall of the room, I was conscious of almost a sin king of the heart, and looked toward the head-master in mute appeal, not realizing that I thought of my own happiness and not of my friend's.
As I looked toward him, the head-master was in the act of rising to his feet, and from his expression I concluded that the coming of the angel had not been anticipated. "It has come sooner than I had expected," his look seemed to say.
The other masters also rose and followed their head down the banqueting- Hall and into that mysterious apartment beyond the east wall of the room which I knew not of, and into which my friend and brother had disappeared. What was to be done there? The students looked into each other's faces significantly, but no one asked this question. It was clear that Alaric was now to be elevated into heaven. By this time I had checked all selfish feeling, and felt thoroughly glad for his sake; but still my joy was tempered with a certain vague misgiving as regards myself. Would I surely follow him?
The students retained their seats in awed silence, and the great banqueting- Hall seemed strangely still. But presently the door in the east wall was opened and Alaric himself came forth, attended by several of the masters. His eyes glowed like stars, and his face wore an indescribable expression of joy. We whose eyes were now riveted upon him, though observant of these signs, little dreamed what happiness was his. He stood upon the platform and said a few words of farewell, which I scarcely heeded, such was my excitement.
When he had finished, at a sign from one of the masters the students rose and quietly filed past him, grasping his hand in farewell. I hung back and approached him last of all. Smiling, he drew me up upon the rostrum, holding my hand in a long clasp; and all my heart went out to him in friendship and love.
"You will come after me- To the same society of heaven," he said. "I feel it."
"God grant it." I answered. Then he put his left arm round my neck- This angel-youth- And silently kissed me on the forehead. And in another moment he was gone.
Dismissed, the other students left the banqueting- Hall and wandered out on the terrace, there breaking into groups to discuss the great event. But I lingered in the still, deserted place a long, long time-even until at last the masters returned through that mysterious door. Then I ran toward them, asking:
"Has he gone with the angel- To heaven?"
"He has gone."
XIX.
THE MAIDEN AND THE DOVE.
THE next day my thoughts were more engaged with Alaric, my angel friend, than with my masters and what they taught me; but after still another day this pre-occupation had subsided and I rested in a contented calm. What was a temporary separation that I should so dwell upon it in thought? The LORD ruled in all things, and every event of my life was most assuredly ordered with a view to my eternal welfare. Then let me preserve an even mind and strive to place myself with glad willingness in the stream of the Divine Providence, meanwhile doing the work that must be done ere the time was ripe for the heavenly gate to open.
For some days I pursued my studies, calm and happy in these thoughts; but perfect peace does not abide without the walls of heaven. Came the time anon, when a storm- Cloud threatened in my horizon; even so it could seem to one so unworthy as I, whose trust and confidence might yet be shaken. It came in this wise. One day, after a happy feast whereat the instruction of the preceding days was, as it were, crowned and made complete, I walked forth alone.
Later on I rarely, if ever, sought solitude, for the society of my student companions became in every way so agreeable that I loved nothing better, unless it were to be among my masters; the association in the one case was as the pleasantness of a grove of varied trees; in the other as the delight in a lovely and well-ordered garden. For the students were in intelligence and the masters in wisdom.
But on this day, while the others took the air in groups, on their horses, or afoot, I felt strongly impelled to wander off alone, choosing a path which led southward through the valley, and finally up a hillside to the southeast. The stately groves which succeeded on either side of the winding path in ever- Continuing variety, lifted my mind among serious but cheerful thoughts, and suffused me with an atmosphere of quiet happiness.
At the top of the hill I beheld with pleasure another beautiful valley beyond, and within its limits on a rising slope a building similar to our college, but with distinctive features of its own, there being a slenderness and grace about its glistening turrets and towers which contrasted with our more massive structure. Strongly attracted, I made my way downward over the forest- clothed hillside into the valley. But it so chanced- That I was diverted from my object, and did not draw near and view the beautiful building.
I had left behind the pines, the firs, and the cedars, and come where myrtles stood in whispering groups-for the soft wind stirred their green, ovate leaves, and pale, delicate flowers-where graceful palms looked down on blossoming almond- Trees, and where a scarlet flower, unknown on earth, lay grouped upon the ground like sheeted flame. In this rare spot I saw a sight which stayed my hurrying feet.
"A fair young maid-myrtles to the right of her, almonds to the left of her, tall palms behind her, the rich red flowers at her feet.
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She sat on a garden bench bending over a piece of embroidery, in which the artful intertwining of crimson with snow-white silken threads was an unconscious echo of the beautiful mingling of the red and the white of her cheek. At her side, on the arm of the bench, was perched a dove, all white, except for a purple ring about its neck. And neither the maiden nor her bird had marked the advancing intruder, who stopped short and held his very breath in wonder and almost in fear.
The tableau was too fair; I wondered if I dreamed. A twig cracked under my foot, and I was answered straight. The bird flew up with a note of alarm, and the young maid started to her feet-looking at me searchingly for a moment with some sign of apprehension, then with returning serenity. The ages will come and go, but never shall I forget the look of those eyes as they pierced straight to my soul. They were large and lovely eyes of the darkest blue. And that face! The springs of my heart were let loose as I looked upon it, and the conviction came over me in a tremulous flood of joy that all beauty, all gentleness, all nobility, all goodness dwelt there.
"Do not be alarmed," I said, in a voice somewhat shaken, drawing nearer and observing now that she wore a silken garment of a pale sky-blue, which seemed to blend with faint rose tints as she moved.
Be not alarmed," I repeated with only half-suppressed ardor. Then, beside myself, "I would not harm you for a million worlds."
"You would not be allowed to harm me," she made answer, and the music of her voice was a wonder and delight.
There was no cause for fear; I could not harm her if I would. As she made known this fact, full confidence in unseen protection was written upon her face, but still her smile was not unfriendly.
"I am troubled," she frankly avowed, "because I am doubtful if it be well for me to speak with you here."
She looked, as she spoke, toward her dove, which, after a short upward flight, had descended and settled on the back of the back of the bench Turning again to me, she asked:
"How did you pass the guards?"
"Guards? I saw none."
"They must have seen you."
"Perhaps," I spoke impetuously, after a moment-"perhaps this time no harm was apprehended, and the intruder was allowed to pass without question."
Again her eyes sought the bird, as though in inquiry. Turning to me, she said, half-musingly, "I have heard that sometimes it is so ordered. It is made known to the guards by an inward dictate or sign when they need not arrest the intruder at the boundary."
The dove now returned to its former perch, and, after a few moments of seeming hesitation, the young maid resumed her seat.
"You are a student from the neighboring college, are you not?" she asked.
I answered, making bold to draw nearer as I spoke; and then she gently invited me to sit beside her on the bench.
And you, will you not tell me who you are?" My manner was wistful, almost ardent, but profoundly respectful.
"I belong to our college for young women," she answered simply, her lovely eyes lifted from her embroidery and full upon me.
And you are there preparing for heaven," I said, no question in my tone, so sure was I and so pleased to find that there was a college for young girls similar to our own.
"Yes," she said; "we are always taught to look forward to heaven, which seems more and more near to us as our schoolmates, one after another, finish their time and are removed there."
"And have you been in this college long?" I went on to ask, eager for particulars.
"About three years," was her unhesitating reply. "Before that I lived in another school for five years."
"You have lived in the spiritual world much longer than I."
"I can scarcely recall the natural world," she rejoined. "I was only a little girl of ten when I came away. On my arrival here an angel mother took me in charge and placed me in a school with other little girls. She was one of the teachers there, and she was so beautiful and good that I loved her tenderly from the beginning, although I was often a very bad little girl."
"Tell me more," I begged, as she paused.
"You are wondering if I was punished,"-with a low, gentle laugh. "I was often, and justly. I wore simple little white gowns always, except on festal days, and when I did wrong, dark, ugly spots would appear on them, and the angel mother would rebuke me by the sorrowful look in her beautiful eyes. I would then run away and weep, and when I had truly repented the spots would fade away, and the dear mother would smile again. Sometimes," she added, "my punishment would consist in the loss of the best-loved of my festal gowns, which would vanish or be taken away and I knew not how. At other times I would rejoice to find a new garment in my room, for this was a sign that I had acted well."
She showed a reserve and hesitation in speaking of herself, and would often pause, looking toward her dove as if to see whether she might go on; but question followed question, and she was forced to speak.
Thus she told me that after a few years she rarely did wrong in outward act, but was sometimes jealous of her companions and accused them of evil in her heart; and when this was so the punishments described above would recur, or the roses in her garden would hang their heads and wear a withered look. For it was one of her duties to care for the flowers in a little garden on which her chamber opened. Led by this sign to recognize her evil state, she would then be affected with deep sorrow, and when her repentance was full and true, the roses would lift their heads, renewing their freshness and youth.
"How lovely!"
She added that sometimes, on going out, she would find the whole aspect of her garden changed, not merely the withering, but something like weeds springing up. She would then know that she had done evil, and not until she had examined herself and performed the work of repentance, would the former appearance of things return. At other times she would rejoice to find her garden more lovely than ever, with new flowers growing there, for this indicated that she had done well.
"The signs which the LORD sends you in your school," I said, "are addressed to the affections, but those he sends us are addressed to the rational." I then told her what had appeared written on the wall of my room the first day of my arrival, and something of what I saw there later on.
"The LORD leads us in innumerable ways," she said. "I have before heard report of those wonderful scriptures on the wall."
(To be continued.)
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NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
FOUR SHILLINGS IN GREAT BRITAIN.
THE EDITOR'S address in Huntingdon Valley P. O., Montgomery Co., Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
PHILADELPHIA, JULY, 1893=124.
CONTENTS.
Editorial Notes, p. 97.- The Mixed Garment (a sermon), p. 98.- The Intellectual and the Voluntary of the Church (Genesis, xlviii), p. 101.- The Unity of God, p. 103
Notes and Reviews, p. 104.- History of the True Christian Religion, p. 105.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale), xvii, xviii, xix, p. 106.
News Gleaning., p. 112.-Births and Deaths, p. 112.- Country Board, p. 112.
AT HOME.
Pennsylvania.-ON June 4th, in the Hall of Worship, on North Street, Philadelphia, Candidates T. F. Robinson and Alfred Acton, both of England, were ordained into the first degree of the priesthood of the New Church, and accepted as priests in that degree, in the Church of the Academy, and in the General Church of the Advent of the LORD. The ceremony was performed by the Rev. W. H. Benade, Chancellor of the Academy, and acting. Bishop in the General Church. The services before and after the rite were administered by Bishop Pendleton and the Rev. E. J. B. Schreck.
THE closing exercises of the Philadelphia Schools of the Academy were held on June 12th and 13th. On the 12th, Messrs. D. H. Klein, Ernest J. Stebbing, of Class I, and Messrs. B. H. Keep, Harvey Farrington, and Charles B. Doering, of the graduating class of the College, as also the Rev. John B. Bowers, who has been in attendance on the Theological School read appropriate essays. On the 13th, Mr. Joseph H. Boyesen, the Rev. Alfred Acton, A. B., and Mr. George G. Starkey, A. B., read essays. The Rev. T. F. Robinson was also mentioned on the programme, but he had delivered his sermon on a previous Sunday. Several pupils of the Boys' School received honorable mention for honoring, during the past year, the "red" or the "white," or both of the school colors, by consistent good behavior during the year, and by proficiency and progress in their studies. The degree of Bachelor of Theology was conferred upon Messrs. George G. Starkey, A. B., Alfred Acton, A. B., and T. F. Robinson, and the degree of Bachelor of Arts was conferred on Messrs. Joseph E. Boyesen, Charles E. Doering, Harvey Farrington, Richard H. Keep, and John Stephenson.
ON June 14th, the annual closing school dinner was held.
SEVERAL of the young ladies in attendance on the Philadelphia Girls' School received suitable tokens at the close of their school year, on June 5th.
THE Philadelphia School of the Academy will reopen on the first Monday in October.
BISHOP Benade postponed the day of his departure for England, and sailed on June 20th on the steamer "Spree."
Oregon.- THE Rev. F. L. Hikgins is ministering to the Portland Society for three months; but if circumstances are favorable he will become the permanent Pastor.
Massachusetts.- THE class which the Rev. J. A. Hayes has been conducting in Lynn for some months past, for the study of the Word has been discontinued for the present.
Ohio.- THE first of a course of lectures on the University Extension plan was given in the temple of the Cleveland Society on May 29th the subject being "The Brain and Nervous System."
THE New- Church people in Cleveland have organized "The Cleveland New- Church Evidence Society," for the dissemination of the Doctrines through the press and by other means; also for the distribution of books and pamphlets. New York.- At the annual meeting of the Alumni Association of the Convention's Theological School, the Rev. A. T. Boyesen was chosen an honorary member.
THE Council of the Ministers of the General Convention met in the house of worship of the Brooklyn Society on May 23d. Between twenty-five and thirty ministers were present. The Chair was requested to appoint a committee to consider the question, "Should paid choirs, composed of persons not interested in the New Church, be employed by our Societies?"
THE seventy- Third annual session of the General Convention was held on May 30th and three following days. Forty- Three ministers and fifty-eight delegates took part in the proceedings. One association sent a woman delegate. The President, owing to ill- Health, was unable to be present. The endowment fund of the Theological School was reported as being $59,487.O7, and the real estate fund $19,616.34. At present six students are attending the school. The Rev. Warren Goddard having entered upon the practice of the law, has requested that his name be removed from the list of ministers.- The Magazine will be called a Review after the 1st of January. The Rev. F. E. Goerwitz and the Rev. Frank Sewall were invested with the office of General Pastor. The Committees in England and America on photo-lithographing the Manuscripts of Swedenborg have agreed to publish first the small work on the Prophets and Psalms. During the meeting of Convention $2,706.50 was subscribed toward the erection of the National Temple at Washington. At the request of the Rev. John Whitehead, his name has been replaced upon the list of ministers of the General Convention, the greater spiritual freedom which he believes to exist in that body being the reason for this step.
THE Woman's Branch of the New- Church Congress held a meeting on May 27th, when it was the unanimous sense of the meeting "that it is the duty and privilege of women to present to the New- Church Congress woman's uses from a New- Church standpoint." According to resolution of this assembly, a meeting of men and women was held on May 30th, at which the relation of men and women and their respective duties were discussed.
Indiana.- THE Rev. T. F. Houts has resigned his pastorate of the Laporte Society.
San Francisco.- THE O'Farrell Street Society held its re-opening services on May 21st.
THE Sutter Street Society and its Pastor, the Rev. Joseph Worcester, have taken a vacation for the summer.
ABROAD.
Australia.- THE April number of The New Age appeals for pecuniary aid in order that the continuance of that journal may be secured.
Great Britain.- THE Rev. Isaiah Tansley, of Preston, has accepted a call to become the Pastor of the Heywood Society.
THE seventy-second anniversary of the Missionary and Tract Society was held at the Camden Road Church, on May 24th. Seventeen missionaries have been employed during the past year, 47,211 tract and 2,826 books were issued.
A DRAWING-ROOM meeting was held at Ealing on May 31st, consisting of New- Church women, to consider the communications from America, received from the Woman's Branch of the World's Congress Auxiliary. A paper was read on "Woman's Uses," and also an "Appeal to New- Church Women."
THE New- Church Sunday- School Union held its fifty-fourth Annual Conference on May 31st.
THE Rev. Henry Cameron will leave the Society of Lower Broughton in a few weeks.
THE Annual Meeting of the New- Church College, Islington, was held on June 7th.
Austria- Hungary.-ON the 3d day of May, the New Church Society in Budapest celebrated their 24th anniversary, and the third anniversary of the opening their place of worship. This was done an public with the approval of the authorities. The programme, which was quite elaborate, is published in the German New Church periodicals. The exercises were partly in German and partly in Hungarian.
"THE members of the Vienna Society of the New Church have decided to come together four times in a year to partake of a common meal, in agreement with the teachings in the Arcana Coelestia, n. 7996 and 8362. The first meal was held on Easter Sunday after services. They read the passages above referred to, sang hymns, and conversed together. Prayer began and ended the meal which seems to have given them interior delight.
Holland.-ON his way to America, the Rev. Fedor Goerwitz stopped at the Hague, and delivered a German discourse on the Doctrines of the New Church.
Denmark.- A FEW New- Church people at Holstebro in the northwestern part of Jutland, meet together several times a week to discuss the Doctrines.
COUNTRY BOARD 1893
Country board is offered by a New Church couple, who have taken a house near the Huntingdon Valley post-office, and who will be ready to receive guests about July 3d. For particulars address Mr. William B. Astken, Sr., Huntingdon Valley, Montgomery Co., Pa.
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Advent of the Lord 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII, No. 8. PHILADELPHIA, AUGUST 1893=124. Whole No. 154.
The Advent of the Lord involves two things: the Last Judgment, and after it the New Church.- A. R. 626.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE question of woman's work is being discussed in many places among professed receivers of the Doctrines of the New Church. The women connected with the General Convention in America, and with the General Conference in England, have had meetings to talk it over; letters and treatises have appeared in some of the periodicals; the Rev. James Reed has published an essay; and other evidences betoken widespread interest in this subject. The first important ventilation of it was in the New York Association, with the report made by the special Committee at which, the readers of this Journal are somewhat familiar. Probably the culmination of the agitation will occur at the forthcoming Woman's Congress to be held in connection with the World's Fair.
Title Unspecified 1893
One of the arguments of those who advocate that women should enter careers that have hitherto been closed to them is as follows:
"We have new doctrines concerning charity and its classifications. We are taught that there are progressions in the love of the neighbor, from the love of the individual to the love of the community, to the love of the nation, to that of the human race, of the Church, of the LORD'S kingdom, to the love of the LORD Himself. Man (homo, which includes woman) is regenerated according to the quality of the charity by which he is moved. But there must he a function by means of which each form of charity is exercised that it may be made one's own. If women are to progress equally with men in the regeneration, they must have the opportunity to enter into the performance of functions in life in which these various grades of the love of the neighbor will be able to express themselves, and thus to be developed. But household duties as commonly understood do not present a field requiring the exercise of these general charities, these grades of love for the greater neighbor; and we hold that other fields must therefore he opened to women for that purpose" (Report of the Committee of the New York Association, etc, p. 6).
"We read there are household affairs in heaven. . . As household duties, as we understand Them, do not exist in heaven, we must understand that there is such a thing as a spiritual use (all heavenly uses being spiritual) which yet maybe called a household use"(Report, p. 7).
The parenthetical admission spoils the argument. For, accordingly, what is stated about household duties likewise applies to most of the occupations in which men are engaged. If in heaven food is not prepared by cooks, and houses are not swept by chambermaids, neither are fields tilled by husbandmen, buildings erected by masons and carpenters, utensils manufactured by artisans, books made by printers, etc., etc. We who still live on earth can have but a very crude and obscure notion of the manner in which the uses, to which all these correspond, are performed by angels. Yet, by: the faithful and religious doing of such external works on earth is the man fitted for the corresponding spiritual uses Yea, more. Even while in this world his mind is interiorly affected with these spiritual uses. And so with woman. The more lovingly and devoutly she engages in the ordering of the home, even such external details us kitchen, bed- Chamber and drawing-room demand, the more thoroughly is her mind being fitted for the performance of the corresponding spiritual uses, unknown to her as yet, which will, and do, unite her more closely to her husband.
Title Unspecified 1893
WOMEN'S domestic uses are not a whit more debasing or externalizing than those of men. If there are relatively more or less eminent forensic duties for men, so are there corresponding duties in the home for women. Advancement to higher uses does not come by trenching upon the duties of the other sex. The girl who exchanges mop and dust-brush for a stool in a factory, or who prefers the typewriter and the counting- House ledger to the mental and bodily care of young children; the woman who would rather extract and fill teeth, or practice medicine, than govern a household, either her own-or that of some other woman who may require her services; the wife who preaches in the pulpit, instead of limiting her usefulness to the loving support of her husband, and letting the sphere of her love which comes from the LORD through her be received in the masculine mind of her husband, to be united with his intelligence, and thus to come forth in words of wisdom for the elevation of mankind to the LORD does not rise to a superior kind of work; and while she may flatter herself on being in a position of greater dignity, she in reality leaves uses which afford the best opportunity for developing the modesty, gentleness, sweetness and loveliness; which are the main characteristics of woman, and her crowning honor and beauty.
Title Unspecified 1893
WOMAN performs uses of charity toward the neighbor, in the more extended and higher senses, by her affectionate disposition and her consequent influence upon man, by exciting him to a life of devotion and usefulness,-rather than by uses directly affecting society, larger or smaller. What greater use or the Church and the Nation than that of a woman who instills into the mind of her young charges the fervent and self-sacrificing love for those neighbors, or who encourages an older generation by her warm- Hearted, womanly intelligence in the loyal performance of uses for them?
A woman advances the cause of justice vastly better by helping her husband and her brothers to overcome their love of self and the pride of their own intelligence,-so that, if judges, they will judge, not from the love of reputation or whatever lies in the gift of man, but from the love of truth-or, if litigants, they will be animated, not by the spirit of gaining their cause, but by the love of justice and equity- Than if, with the credentials of a lawyer, she appear publicly before the bar, where her ingenuity and grace may exert a more persuasive influence than the merits of the case which she espouses.
A wife, even though she have competent servants to relieve her of the drudgery and the immediate care of the house-work, if she be at all a zealous wife, will find sufficient to occupy her mind and her time in helping her husband by keeping his home filled with a sphere of love, peace, and tranquillity, where his mind relaxes from the cares of the day and expands under gentle influences.
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If, as is admitted on all sides, this is the central idea, then let all women, even those that are not wives, regard it in the first place, and they will find many occupations for the exercise of the highest and deepest and most far-reaching feminine affections; let them help those that are wives to attain this glorious object; let them prepare themselves, either in high or low degree, to set and keep in order the house, or those interior things of which the house is an image: the minds of the children and of the servants of the house.
Man has no such keen and quick perception of the states of mind of others as woman. It is written that there is scarcely an hour in the day in which the intuitive thought of the wife is removed from the husband that she knows every state of the animus of the man, but that it is not given to the man to know any state of the mind of his wife (C. L. 208, 294, et al.). This perception women have from the intense conjugial sphere of which they are the first recipients; and, while undoubtedly this is mostly developed with those who are wives, yet there is something of it with the unmarried also if they are open to the influence of the conjugial sphere. Such a perception makes them invaluable as educators of children, and as the latter need constant oversight the field for women is unlimited. If the world is waking up to a realization that children need far more attention and more intelligent care than have ever been accorded to them, how much greater should be the realization of Newchurchmen, to whom the Word of the LORD is nothing but a revelation concerning the formation and development of the human mind for conjunction with the LORD! No higher use can possibly be imagined.
Last Judgment 1893
That the Last judgment was effected in the Spiritual World in the year 1757. . . I testify because I saw it with my eyes, in full wakefulness.- T. C. R. 772.
MINISTRY OF FEAR Rev. C. TH. ODHNER 1893
TEXT: Genesis xlv, 1-8.
THE chapter of the Word from which our text is taken, describes the regeneration of the natural man, by means of his conjunction with the internal man, which is the presence of the LORD within him. Joseph is the internal man, who rules over the sensual or Egypt, but who still is a stranger in the land. It is not yet his true home, until the Church is established in ultimates, until Israel comes to dwell in the land of Goshen. Israel is the natural man, who has begun to be reformed by compelling himself to shun evils in obedience to the general truths of faith which he has learned, and who thus has come into the first state of good, the good of truth. The sons of Israel, or Jacob, are these general truths of faith which, indeed, have taught him that evils must be shunned, but who have betrayed and rejected Joseph by not permitting amongst them this supreme truth, that evils can be shunned and good can be done, not by man's own power, but by the power of the LORD alone. This state is like the third day of the Creation, when nothing but herbs of seed and trees of fruit had yet appeared on the face of the ground. It is an inanimate state, in which the love of self has not yet been subdued in the natural man, who, therefore, cannot yet be conjoined with the LORD in the internal man. A spiritual famine hence arises in man, who seems to himself to make no further progress in regeneration, and in this self- Confident state he vainly imagines that he can gain his salvation by going to Egypt to buy provision, by enriching his mind through an abundance of doctrinal scientifics. But, as, in this pursuit, he still carries his self-love with him, as he approaches these
Doctrinals merely as things intellectual and not for the sake of life and in humble recognition of the Divine in them, his labor is mostly in vain. The sons of Jacob are apparently treated harshly by Joseph, and are subjected to numerous tribulations, until finally, in despair, they bring with them their brother Benjamin, and humbly offer themselves as servants to Joseph. As the man from his own imagined power continues his struggles against the evils of his love, temptations arise, and become more and more severe. He suffers defeats that become more and more humiliating, as again and again he finds his self-respect, his pride, and boasted strength laid broken in the dust at the realization of the overwhelming power of his lusts. If then in shame, fear, and despair he cries to the LORD for help, if then he comes in humility to the Doctrines, not as to scientific theology, to be studied for the sake of gain, but as to the living Word of God, for the sake of help and salvation, he then comes to Joseph in the acceptable company of Benjamin, a new and saving light then dawns upon him the celestial truth that he himself is nothing, but that salvation is of the LORD alone. This truth, which is the truth of good, or new and interior truth, then becomes the medium or channel, with which the LORD in the internal man can immediately conjoin himself, and through which he can inflow into and vivify with celestial light the other general truths of faith in the rational mind of the natural man.
It is at this point that our present chapter takes up the narrative, describing the preparation for the final conjunction of the internal and the external man. Joseph has made himself known to his brethren, who recognize him with fear, but who afterward are kissed by him and speak with him. After temptation the LORD is recognized in His Divine Truth by the general truths of the external man, but the end is not yet come. The conjunction is as yet only upon the intellectual plane, and will not become real and effective until Israel himself comes to Joseph in Egypt, until the internal man is conjoined also to spiritual good, from the natural, or, what is the same, until the man who had tried to shun evils from his own power, but who had finally come to a realization of his own impotence and the LORD'S omnipotence, now arises out of his despair, and with full confidence in the merciful assistance of the LORD, begins his combats against evil anew and as of himself. Only then will he find himself victorious. Only then will the power of self-love he broken, and the entire natural man reduced to submission and harmony with the internal man. Egypt can then gladly receive Israel and his sons, who now can make their home in the richest region of the land. The Church, with its goods and truths, can then be established in ultimates with man.
Our present chapter treats, as was said, of the preparation or this final conjunction; and the beginning of this preparation is represented in the words of our text, by Joseph's revealing himself before his brethren, who, at first, stood speechless and terrified at his presence. Fear was the first affection aroused by the recognition of Joseph. Fear is the affection introducing the conjunction of the internal man with the truths of the external natural man.
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We will consider, particularly, to-day, the origin, character, and uses of the affection called fear.
THE ORIGIN 0F FEAR.
Fear, terror, and similar feelings are all affections of the lower or natural mind or animus. It can never invade the interiors of the mind, where freedom and reason are enthroned, even as atmospheric disturbances affect only the surface of the sea and the lower strata of the atmospheres. Below and above, serene peace reigns undisturbed.
This natural animus of man is nothing but a great store- House of cells, or vessels, called scientifics and natural truths, which serve as containing forms for the interior truths and goods of the superior mind, or mens, of man. These vessels, which may be compared with the little sacks in the pulp of an orange, or, still better, with the wonderful system of glands and fibres of the human brain, are arranged and cohere in the manner of fascides or little bundles, connected according to their various affinities. These fascicular forms are thus arranged solely by the loves of man, which are his only active forces. As the love is, such is the arrangement and disposition of these forms, which are infernal forms, if the love is infernal, but heavenly forms, if the love is of Heaven. By heredity these forms in our natural mind are in the disorder of hell, for our native love is the love of self. Regeneration, therefore, means the subjection of this infernal love, and the rearrangement of the scientifics and natural truths in our animus according to the order of Heaven.
It is the nature of love to preserve and protect the arrangement in the mind that is in harmony with itself. At every assault upon itself, at every vindication of a threatened change, the ruling love is aroused into increased activity. Disturbance and commotion take place among the vessels in the mind. It is this commotion that is called fear, and it is experienced whenever a change of state is impending, whenever the danger arises of a deprivation of the delight enjoyed in the former state (A. C. 5881; Rational Psych. 241; C. L. 318; A. E. 696; D. P. 139).
Fear, being an affection of the lower mind, is immediately communicated to the external body, where a similar disturbance and commotion take place.
"The strength and life of the whole body lie in the arteries and their blood. So far as the blood is contained in the arteries, and only a just proportion is transmitted into the veins, so far we live. But so far as the blood is poured out unrestrictedly into the veins, so far we approach the state of death. Thus, when we are dying alt the blood flies from the arteries into the veins" (Econ. An. K. I, 231).
"Fear causes the blood to run away from the arteries into the veins" (Ib. 236).
The animal spirit, which corresponds to the love of man, flees from the fibre, and withdraws for safety into its inmost recesses (A. C. 9154). The fibre becomes loose and flaccid, and is deprived of its control over the arteries, which without restraint expel the blood into the veins. The sensorial organs lose their perceptive ability, the muscles their motive and resisting power. The limbs grow weak, the heart palpitates from the violent return of the blood. Pallor and chilliness overspread the face and the body; the stomach is effected with a sinking, sickening sensation; cold sweat breaks out upon the brow; trembling seizes the limbs. The image of death is seen in the body (Rat'l Psych. 241; Econ. An. K I, 236; A. C. 5178).
This picture of natural fear corresponds exactly to mental fear. For fear is the opposite of life, or of heavenly love. It is the supreme law of Hell, the kingdom of death, and all the fear that is experienced by man is induced from Hell. Divine Good, which is life, and which is gentle and merciful, never induces fear. But Hell is not under the rule of the Divine Good, but under the rule of Divine Truth, which app ears to judge and punish the evil and the false. Divine Truth means the Law to the devils. It means the deprivation of the delights of their lives, and they are hence in mortal terror at its approach. Their chief delight is to tempt man to do evil or to think falsity; but when, in this attempt, they meet the opposing force of Divine Truth, which resides in the conscience of man, they experience aversion, fear, and dread. This fear and terror are felt by man as his own, when he undergoes temptation (A. C. 986).
THE FEAR OF THE EVIL.
The love of self is the supreme origin of fear, for it is the life of the natural man, the only thing which is absolutely his own, and the only thing of which he can be deprived. All the devils in hell, and all the evil in the world, are ruled by this love, and are, consequently, ruled by fear of losing the delights of this love. They have no conscience, they can be governed by no infernal bonds, they scoff at the loss of the good and truth which they do not possess. While in this world they do, indeed, pretend to have conscience, and to act according to it, and are here governed by the fear of losing this appearance, the fear of having their real character exposed. They are thus governed by the fear of the world, by the fear of losing their fair name and reputation, their position in society, their wealth, liberty, and life. Without this fear there would be no protection for the good, no order, no human society, no in is world possible. In the other life, however, where externals are laid aside, and deception is impossible, these social and moral restraints are thrown off, and the evil rush headlong into the insane and bestial drivings of their lusts. But lest in their violence and fury they should utterly destroy themselves, each other, and mankind, restraints of the most ultimate kind are put upon them, imprisonment and punishments of the most direful kinds. Through fear of these punishments, which they delight in imposing upon one another, they gradually come into fear of doing evil, and at last into fear of the Divine. This fear, however, remains to eternity merely external fear, devoid of any will to desist from doing evil from an affection of good, and full within of lurking hatred- to God and their fellows (H. H. 543; A. C. 7280). Thus, in never-ending death they spend their days "their morning is the heat of cupidities, their noon is the itch of falsities, their evening is anxiety, and their night is torment" (A. C. 6110).
FEAR WITH THE GOOD.
As fear is the law of Hell, so love is the law of Heaven. No care of the world, no dread of exposure, no restless solicitude, no anxiety of mind enter into that kingdom of peace, for those who are there have voluntarily lost the life of their proprium; they have no fear, for they have nothing more of selfhood to lose, but they rest content and confident in the protecting arms of their Heavenly Father. And yet, unconsciously, there is fear with them, but a fear of an entirely different nature, the holy fear of God, which in its essence is love. Fear is thus the common bond of both the good and the evil; with the latter it is fear lest their self-love be hurt, but with the former it is fear lest their love of the neighbor and of the LORD be in any way injured.
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Without this fear love would not be genuine, but only imaginary. It would be insipid and superficial, like food without salt (A. C. 3718). How can there be any true love between two married partners which is not founded upon a mutual respect and aieneration, or which is without the fear of injuring conjugial love by saying or doing anything which might diminish that respect? And thus has every heavenly love its own corresponding fear, which is aroused at the danger of injury to the love.
As Heavenly love is two fold, the love of the neighbor and the love of the LORD, even so is Heavenly fear of two kinds (A. C. 2826). With the spiritual, who are in charity toward the neighbor, there is fear from the good of faith, fear lest by false thoughts The holy of faith should be injured in their minds and in the Church, and fear lest by evils of life they should violate the dictates of their conscience and bring injury upon the neighbor whom they love. This fear is the internal bond by which the spiritual are kept in their love and faith, and is thus the internal protecting boundary of holy love and holy faith. It is therefore called "Holy Fear."
But the celestial, who are in love to the LORD, are in loving "fear of the LORD," thus in fear from the love of good, fear lest they should in any manner turn away from the Divine Love, and thus Injure this in themselves. This fear then becomes such as that of little children toward the parents whom they love, a fear without dread, an implicit confidence, full of holy reverence and humble adoration. In the LORD alone, however, there is absolutely no fear, but love only.
Thus, we see the image of fear grow fainter as we approach the more perfect love. In the words of John, in his Epistle,-"perfect love casteth out fear, because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love" (I John iv, 18); or, in the words of the Writings, "The more fear there is the less faith there is, and still less love. But the more faith there is, and, still more, the more love there is, the less fear there is" (A. C. 2826).
Courage is the absence of fear and is the presence of confidence- That is, of faith and love. The self- Confident- That is, the lovers of self-may appear brave and courageous, but they have a false courage. Take away the hope of their gaining their selfish ends, and their courage vanishes. The miser will fight like a tiger for his lucre, yet he is the most cowardly of all men. But those who believe in the LORD and love Him fear no evil. They are the best patriots, the bravest soldiers, the most willing martyrs in the cause of the truth. Confidence in the LORD gives courage and strength. The glance of an angel can disperse a myriad of devils. A thousand nameless terrors of the night are dissipated in a moment by a single ray of light. The LORD, the Hero of heroes, fought single- Handed and victorious the innumerable hordes of Hell.
THE USES 0F FEAR.
Regeneration, as has been said, consists in a complete change of state, a complete inversion of the love and order of a man's life. It may be seen, therefore, that fear must needs be the first affection experienced by the natural mind whets this change is impending, when temptations begin.
For truths and goods cannot possibly he received until evil and falses be removed, and the new state of regeneration cannot possibly be established until the old state be broken up. Storms and rains and floods must precede the advent of spring, and the frozen, lifeless state of winter be broken up, in order that the increasing heat and light of the sun may freely operate in nature. Such, also, is the use of fear in the work of regeneration. Joseph reveals himself to his brethren; speechless terror is their first feeling. They remember the evil they have done against him, and, fearful, they await their punishment. They see before them nothing but the impending loss of liberty or life. The disturbance and commotion in their minds permit no words. But Joseph comes to them not as the triumphant avenger, but as their forgiving and longing brother, who speaks kind words with them, reminds them of their common father, and dispels their fears with loving kisses. And then they speak with Joseph. Even so it is with the man who, in the course of his regeneration, has finally come to see that of himself he has no power to shun what is evil, that of himself he has no discernment of spiritual truth. What is his state of mind when he sees before him this celestial truth, not only as a cold, intellectual doctrinal, but in the bitter realization of humiliated self-love? When he realizes that his evil loves are just as strong and just as beloved as ever? When he stands face to face with the LORD, Whom he has derided and rejected, practically, if not doctrinally, throughout his life, by the blind, conceited pride in his own prudence and guidance? When the hope of salvation has disappeared, and eternal damnation, death, and hell stare him in the face?
Fear, dread, and terror then take possession of the mind. His past life comes as a panorama before his eyes with all its cherished, most carefully concealed evils. These must be torn away from his heart or he will die. And yet he loves them so dearly that life seems not worth living without them. Will he ever get rid of them? He has tried so often without result. Hope vanishes, and fear grows into despair. He sees nothing but hell within him, and grows faint from the combat, the raging conflict, and commotion in his mind.
But in the midst of this commotion, which breaks up his old persuasive self- Confidence and pride; and also seems to break down and unsettle the whole former structure of his mind, the LORD is present inmostly like the centre of peace in a raging whirlwind. When the old state has been broken up, and broken down, the LORD can effect a new arrangement of the scientifics and truths of the mind, a new and more heavenly order of the fascicular vessels in the animus, and into these He can now secretly insinuate heavenly good and holy fear, or horror at the terrible nature and consequences of the life of self.
The fear and commotion here described are but an instance of the series of constantly recurring fears by which man is lead before and during his regeneration. As a child and youth he is led at first by the fear of external punishment, then by the fear of the evil which brings punishment, and finally by the fear of displeasing those who love him. Afterward, when an adult, he is led at first by the fear of social punishments, such as the loss of honor, gain, liberty, and life, and then, if he have any religion, by the fear of moral and mental punishments, such as fear of hell, fear of the evil that leads to hell, fear of the tortures of conscience fear of the evils and falses that cause tortures of conscience. And finally, when regenerate, he is led by the holy fear of acting against good and truth, because they are good and truth, and by the celestial fear of injuring his love to the LORD. Thus, step by step, and little by little, the LORD in His mercy draws man out of Hell by means of fears.
Beside this use of breaking up old states and introducing new ones, fears perform the important use of road signs in our spiritual life by pointing out to us the character of our leading loves. Such as the fear is, such is the love.
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If you would know whither you are tending, examine your inmost thoughts and intentions, and find what you would do if your fears of punishments were removed. Consider, for instance, what you would do if you knew there was no hell or life after this; if you knew that society and the laws would not punish the evil. Would you then still continue in the path of self- Abnegation and virtue for virtue's own sake, or would you freely indulge in your sensual pleasures, in your love of gain, in your pride and contempt of others, in your love of domineering over all? Which of these loves would you prefer, were you free to choose, and which would you most fear to be deprived of?
Evil is delightful to man, and yet how unhappy it makes him, how lonely, how care-worn, how cowardly, how fearful! Despising and hating every one else, and knowing or imagining that every one returns his contempt and hatred, how suspicious does he not become! Danger and death lurk on every side. In daytime mankind pursue him; at night the furies. No one cares for him, no one protects him. He rejects and scorns the thought of a Divine Providence as an intolerable interference with his freedom. He leans on his own prudence and cunning for his only protection, but finds himself continually over-reached, exposed, and punished. And yet he will not be amended.
Good is undelightful to man at first, and yet how happy it makes him, how rich in the friendship of angels and of men, how free from care, how strong and courageous! He looks at the good and bright side of everything, excuses the shortcomings of his fellows, and is consequently excused by them. He fears no evil, for his conscience is clear, and he does the best that he can. He knows above everything that in every moment of his life he is under the loving protection of the Divine Providence of the LORD Who freely gives him whatever, is good for him, and in all things regards his eternal welfare. He has no fear but the holy fear of the LORD.
"The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the LORD." (Ps. cxi, 10).
"The fear of the LORD is to hate evil" (Prov. viii, 13).
"Behold, the fear of the LORD, that it is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding" (Job xxviii, 28).
"The Lord is my light and my salvation: whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" (Ps. xxvii, 1).
"Yea, though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear me no evil, for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they console me" (Ps. xxiii, 4).
"Who shall not fear Thee, O LORD, and glorify Thy name, for Thou alone art holy" (Rev. xv, 4).
"Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in His commandments" (Ps. cxii, 1). AMEN.
state of the world 1893
The state of the world and of the Church before the Last Judgment was like evening and night, but after, it like morning and day.- C. L. J. 12.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE light of the world differs from the light of the Church, although both depend upon favorable conditions in the spiritual world. The progress of the world, in matters relating to material comforts and conveniences, and to greater discernment in merely natural and civil affairs therefore, should not be confounded with the reception, on earth, of heavenly truths and goods. Natural enlightenment may-serve evil as well as good ends, but by itself, it cannot determine either.
TRUTHS OF FAITH AND THE GOODS OF LOVE 1893
GENESIS xlix, 1-15.
IN this chapter in the Internal Sense the Truths of Faith and the Goods of Love are treated of: First, Faith separate from Charity, which is altogether rejected; next the Celestial Church, and, in the Supreme Sense, the LORD'S Divine Human; then the state of good and truth represented in verses 13 to 21, and lastly the Celestial Church of the Spiritual, and also in the Supreme Sense the LORD'S Divine Human.
All things recorded in this chapter are such that every one may know that something is in them which is known in Heaven, and which cannot be discovered to man except from thence. Hence it manifestly appears that the Word has an Internal Sense.
(1.) In the state about to be described there is an arrangement of the truths of faith and the goods of love in the natural, all of them in general, according to the state of the Church in that order in which it then was. As to this arrangement of truths of faith and the goods of love, it is to be known that, in general, all truths and goods are represented in one complex, thus all the truths and goods which proceed from the LORD, consequently which are in Heaven, and of which Heaven consists; and because all in general are represented, single truths and goods are specifically represented also, for generals contain in them species, as common things contain parts. According to goods and the truths thence the lights in Heaven are varied, and according to the lights the states of intelligence and wisdom are varied.
(2.) These truths and goods arrange themselves- That is, the universal which proceeds from the LORD does this inasmuch as that universal contains in it all and single things even to the most single; these together constitute the universal, which reduces into order all things in the heavens. When the universal performs this, it appears as if the goods and truths themselves arrange themselves, and as if they flow spontaneously into order. This is the case with the universal Heaven, which is in order, and is continually kept in order by a universal influx from the LORD. The truths and goods which should arrange themselves are those in the natural, concerning which there is prediction from spiritual good, which in the Supreme Sense is the LORD'S Foresight. The prediction is that those who are of the Church should hear the LORD- That is, Him in the Word-what He there teaches concerning the goods of love, and what He predicts concerning those who are in such truths and goods, as what He teaches about those who are in faith separate from charity; and about those who are in celestial good; also what about those who are in spiritual good; so also about those who are in such things as are signified by the rest.
(3.) By faith in the understanding, which is apparently in the prior place, good has power, and by it truth has first power; hence is glory and power. The power of thinking and willing, of perceiving, of doing good, of believing, of dissipating falses and evils, is all from good by truth; good is the principal, and truth is only the instrumental. All power in the spiritual world is from good by truth; without good truth can do nothing at all, for truth is as a body, And good is as the soul of that body; in order that the soul may effect anything it must be by the body: whence it is evident that truth without good has no power at all, as the body without the soul has no power at all, for the body is then a carcass, so also truth without good.
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When the faith of the truth by good is first born, then power appears in truth; this power is what is called the first power in truth by faith. The glory spoken of refers itself to the truth which is of faith, and the power [potestas] to the good which is of charity; wherefore it is said that thence is glory and power- That is, from the truth of faith and the good of charity.
(4.) But faith alone or separate from charity has not such things- That is, has not glory and power-because, separate from the good which is of charity, it has a filthy conjunction if it be conjoined with evil which is profane, for thus it would contaminate spiritual good in the natural; for faith in doctrine or the understanding, if it be not initiated into good or conjoined with it, is either dissipated and becomes none, or it is initiated into and conjoined with evil and the false, which is a filthy conjunction, for then it becomes profane; that it is thus, may appear from this that faith can have no habitation elsewhere than in good, and if it have not its habitation therein, it of necessity either becomes none, or is conjoined with evil.
(5) When faith in the will and charity are contrary, because the faith is separate from charity, then doctrinals serve to destroy the works of charity, thus charity itself. The doctrinals of those who are in faith alone, whereby they destroy the works of charity, are principally those that teach that man is saved by faith alone without the works of charity, and that these latter are not necessary, and that man is saved by faith alone even to the last hour of death, howsoever he had lived through the whole course of his life.
(6.) But spiritual good ii not willing to know the evils which are of the will with those who are in faith alone, neither is spiritual good willing to know the falses of thought thence derived, for they altogether avert themselves and in aversion extinguish faith, and from their depraved will they altogether weaken the external good which is of charity.
(7.) This is a grevious aversion from good, and damnation results, it is also aversion from the truth derived from good, wherefore faith alone ought to be exterminated from the natural man and from the spiritual man.
(8.) The Celestial Church, and in the Supreme Sense the LORD as to the Divine Celestial, is now treated of; this Church is eminent above the rest, and the infernal and diabolical crew will flee away at its presence, and truths will of themselves submit themselves. The infernal and diabolical crew flee away at its presence because when any of the infernal crew comes near to any angel from the LORD'S Celestial Kingdom, he flees away at His presence, not being able to endure it, because he is not able to endure the sphere of celestial love, which is that of love to the LORD; this sphere is to him as a burning and tormenting fire. Truths will of themselves submit themselves, because celestial love, when it inflows into spiritual truths, arranges them into order and thus submits them to the LORD; for the celestial has this efficacy by influx into spiritual things, or good by influx into truth.
(9) The Celestial Church has innocence with strength; it has inborn strength because the celestial of love is in the voluntary part; for man is born into those things which are of the voluntary part; hence they who were of the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial, were born into the good of love in the degree in which they had good in their voluntary. The LORD by the celestial liberated many from Hell; by the goad of love and the truth thence in their power the celestial man is safe among all in Hell, because love to the LORD and love toward the neighbor are attended by this, for they who are in that love are joined most closely to the LORD, and are in the LORD, because they are in the Divine which proceeds from Him; hence nothing of evil can reach them.
(10.) Power shall not depart from the Celestial Kingdom, nor the truths which are from that Kingdom in lower things, until the advent of the LORD, and the accompanying tranquillity of peace, when from His Divine shall proceed truth which can be received.
That power should depart from the Celestial Kingdom when the LORD should come, is a secret which none can know except from revelation. The reason is that before the LORD came into the world, there was an influx of life with men and with spirits from JEHOVAH or the LORD by the Celestial Kingdom- That is, by the angels who were in that Kingdom-whence they then had power; but when the LORD came into the world, and thereby made the Human in Himself Divine, He put on that itself which was with the angels of the Celestial Kingdom, thus He put on that power; for the Divine transflux by Heaven had been hitherto the Divine Human; it was also the Divine Man which was presented when JEHOVAH so appeared; but this Divine Human ceased when the LORD Himself made the Divine Human in Himself Divine. Now indeed the angels of that Kingdom have great power, but in the degree in which they are in the Divine Human of the LORD by love to Him.
(11.) The LORD is conjoined by truth in the natural with the External Church, and by truth from the rational with the Internal Church; His natural is Divine Truth from His Divine Good, His Intellectual is Divine Good from His Divine Love.
(12.) His Intellectual or Internal Human is nothing but Good, and His Divine natural is nothing but the Good of Truth.
(13.) With those who do not elevate themselves from scientifics there is a cohabitation of good and truth in the life wherein is conclusion of truth from scientifics, where are doctrinals from the Word, and an extension of the knowledges of good and truth on one side.
Doctrinals are what are from the Word, knowledges are what are from those doctrinals on one side, and from scientifics on the other, but scientifics are what are of experience from self and from others.
(14.) The desire of being recompensed on account of works, while in the appearance of mutual love- That is, of charity toward the neighbor is the lowest thing of service in an obscure life among works.
(15.) But the works of good without recompense are full of happiness, and in that happiness are they who are in the LORD'S Kingdom; but they who are in the desire of recompense a or with all endeavor to do works for the sake of meriting; this is to be subject and to serve.
After the Last Judgment 1893
After the Last Judgment had been accomplished, there was joy in Heaven, and also light in the world of Spirits, such as there had not been before.- C. L. J. 30.
DEVELOPMENT OF CONJUGIAL LOVE IN USE 1893
(Delivered by the Rev. Alfred Acton, A. B., Th. B., on the occasion of his receiving the diploma of Bachelor of Theology.)
IN the Work on Conjugial Love, n. 137, are recorded these words of an angelic pair to Swedenborg:
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"We have been consorts now for ages, and have been continually in the flower of age in which thou now seest us; and our first state was as the first state of a virgin and a youth when they consociate themselves in marriage; and we then believed that that slate was the very blessedness of our life, but we heard from others in our Heaven, and afterward we ourselves perceived that that state was the state of heat not tempered with tight, and that it is successively tempered, as the husband is perfected in wisdom and the wife loves that wisdom in her husband, and that this takes place by the uses, and according to them, which each, by mutual aid, performs in society."
In these words we have the teaching concerning the successive states of Conjugial Love, and the means by Conjugial Love is the love of one man for one woman, which the are attained.
Conjugial Love is the love of one man for one woman, which with its ineffable delights is the most precious jewel of human life; a jewel bright and shining in Most Ancient times, but which became more and more obscured in the eyes of man as those eyes were more and more thickly covered with the evils of the loves of self and of the world, until at last men at this day are not only ignorant of its quality, but they scarcely know that it is (C. L. 58). It has become thus lost, because its origin, which is the marriage of genuine love and genuine wisdom no longer exists in the minds of men. Men no longer seek after true wisdom, nor do they love it when found, but rather do they hoard up the worthless dross of an empty science, and in that place the whole of their love and life.
But now that the LORD has Himself become immediately present with the men of His Church, from His own Infinite Union with that Church, as the Union of a bridegroom with his bride, He has again raised up Conjugial Love as the most precious jewel, the end and goal of life to those who will be of that Church. The infesting hells are dispersed, the LORD Himself revealed as the Very Divine Good appearing as the Very Divine True, and now every man who will turn to Him in His Opened Word can receive Love and Wisdom from Him, which conjoined, constitute that marriage from which Love truly Conjugial has its origin (C. L. 81).
Everything in the universe which is according to Divine Order refers itself to good and true, and their conjunction, that anything may be produced and exist; and so in the crowning work of creation; man was created male and female in order that in these two and in their conjunction might be represented and effected the conjunction of good and true, and eternal fructification and multiplication hence.
Man is created truth and woman good. So far then as each becomes receptive of that influx from the LORD, for which they were created, thus so far as man by the reception of intelligence and wisdom becomes truly a man, and woman by the reception of the affection of truth and the love of wisdom becomes truly a woman, so far can they be conjoined as truth and its, good, thus according to Divine Order in the eternal bonds of Love truly Conjugial.
The essential masculine and the essential feminine reside in the spiritual mind of man, for truth constitutes the masculine, the good of truth the feminine, and these reside in that mind. In the natural mind and in the body man and woman are indeed different, but there the difference is one of form and not of essence. Hence it is that in the spiritual mind resides chaste Conjugial Love, which is the love of good for its true and true for its good, thus the love of one man for one woman; but in the natural mind reside all the concupiscences of adultery and lasciviousness- That is, the love of pleasure from mere form, and hence the lust after variety (C. L. 305). In order, therefore, that man may become truly a man, woman truly a woman, that thus the Conjugial may be established with them, the spiritual mind must be opened; and this is opened by regeneration. But although Conjugial Love thus depends on regeneration for its existence, regeneration also depends on Conjugial Love for its progression. The two go hand in hand; for the end of all regeneration is marriage, and the end enters into and forms all successives which are means to itself. Thus we read in The Apocalypse Explained, "Man cannot become the love, which is an image or likeness of God, except by the marriage of good and true these must be united in the angel of Heaven, and in the man of the Church. THIS UNION IS BY NO MEANS POSSIBLE EXCEPT BY THE MARRIAGE OF TWO MINDS INTO ONE" (n. 984). And in the same number, "Man's evil love cannot be converted and changed into spiritual love except by the marriage of good and true from the LORD, and NOT IN FULLNESS, EXCEPT BY THE MARRIAGE OF TWO MINDS AND TWO BODIES."
When the youth and virgin, between whom Conjugial Love will grow to eternity, first consociate themselves in marriage, neither can be more than in the end and way of regeneration; both are full of evils; he is not truly a man, nor is she truly a woman, except indeed in their end of becoming such. Their love is relatively external. They must he regenerated together, and it is only together that they can be regenerated, and made truly and eternally one. It is in this that we see most clearly the Wonderful and Infinite Mercy of the LORD'S Divine Providence, that Providence which is most singular, and most universal concerning marriages and in marriages (C. L. 229, 316) for while a youth and a virgin, when they are first conjoined in marriage, are unregenerated, nevertheless the LORD, from Infinite Love, foresees who are they who will come into true wisdom and the love of wisdom, and hence into Love truly Conjugial, and for these He provides Conjugial Love (C. L. 98, 816).
Every good and orderly state must begin with innocence and peace, for by these, evils being then quiescent, the first plane is formed by which the LORD and Heaven maybe present and assist in the future combat. And so in love and marriage, the first state is a state of innocence and peace. Evils are quiescent, and in the sweet friendship and guileless confidence of first love the very celestial heavens themselves appear to be present, and indeed they are present so far as there is tender and faithful love. "The primitive love of marriage emulates Love truly Conjugial, and presents it to tight in a certain image; this takes place, because then love of the sex which is unchaste is cast out, and the love of one of the sex, which is Love truly Conjugial and chaste, dwells implanted in its place. Who then does not regard other women with an unloving nod, but his own only one, with look-s filled with love?" (C. L. 58.) - In this state the consorts believe that their love and its delights are the very blessedness of their life, but from revelation they may know, and the knowledge will strengthen them for future combat, and afterward they themselves may perceive, that their state is the state of heat untempered with light, and which must be successively tempered. The Celestial Heavens are indeed present in their love, but they are present externally as with infants, and not internally as with the regenerate; the innocence is indeed celestial innocence, but the consorts do not make it their own except by a life of regeneration, by the acquisition of wisdom, and thereby the elevation of love. But in the LORD'S Mercy this trusting innocence of their so sweet and tender primitive love is indrawn; as with the cares and trials of life, evils come to be manifested, and it is stored up that it may be a means of strength in the future combat, and as the victory is gained, may be more and more interiorly present with the consorts, as the innocence of wisdom of Conjugial Love.
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Thus far Conjugial Love appears to be the same with the good and with the evil, and this even to the consorts themselves. Both are in this love emulous of Love truly Conjugial; both feel the sphere of the celestial heavens in their sweet innocence and friendship; both believe that the sweetnesses and delights of their love make the very blessedness of their life; and all this because both the evil and the good regard their own consort alone.
But beyond this first state of marriage the similarity does not extend, for from the beginning the ends of the evil and those of the good are altogether opposite. The end of the good is chaste and eternal union with one, the one whom the LORD hath given; but the end of the evil is merely the satisfaction of their own self-love; And after the first state of love these ends become more and more manifested, if not to the world, still to the consorts themselves. Trials and temptations come in which the evil cannot stand, and their love dies, because it is not sustained and vivified from the spiritual end of eternal marriage. "Soon after the nuptials they come into indifference and insensibility of those pleasantnesses which before they had deemed the very joys of life" (C. L. 59). This is the case in almost all the marriages of the present day, and hence it is so often said by the merely natural man, and one may be easily deceived by those things which appear to sustain the saying, that marriage is a lottery and a failure; that its joys and delights are empty chimeras, the vain dreams of lovers and poets, dreams beyond the possibility of realization.
But with the good the opposite is the case. In the trial and temptations which come after the nuptial state, they receive strength from the LORD to resist and steadfastly shun those evils which would turn the mind from the love of the only one, the consort whom the LORD hath given. With them the first state is the state of initiament to perpetual happinesses, which move forward step by step as the spiritual rational of the mind, and from this the rational sensual of the body of the one conjoin themselves to those of the other" (C. L. 59), as their internals are successively opened and conjoined (C. L. 302). With these the first state of innocence is to return purified and ennobled, elevated and tempered by wisdom as the Innocence of Wisdom. And this is done, their love becomes more and more truly conjugial, its delights ever more delightful, "as the husband is perfected in wisdom, and the wife loves that wisdom in her husband, and this takes place by the uses, and according to them, which each by mutual aid performs in society."
It is use by which and according to which Conjugial Love grows, and conjunction of the consorts ever more interior is effected, for use is the containant of the Conjugial Itself in its inmost origin. This inmost Conjugial is the marriage of good and truth in the spiritual mind, and this marriage can only be effected as genuine uses are performed. The performance of use therefore opens the spiritual mind in which the Conjugial resides. Man must not only will to love God and the neighbor, he must not only learn the trues by which he can love, but he must actually love; his love and his true must be conjoined in uses which are love in act. "Use is as the atmosphere which contains heat and light in its bosom. What are heat and light without that which contains them. And so what are love and wisdom without their use! There is no conjugial in them, because the subject in which they might be is not" (C. L. 137).
And use, it must be borne in mind, is not merely the doing of something that is useful- That is, the formal, in which the origin of all genuine uses exists, and by which it is established. But uses, to be genuine, must contain in their bosom the essential Love and Wisdom made one in the bonds of the Conjugial. Man may do useful things from the love of self; but these are not genuine uses, for, while they may be useful to others, they are not uses with the man himself, since his will is not to do them except for the sake of self. There is no marriage within him of love and wisdom, from which true uses exist. Genuine uses, by which Conjugial Love is eternally vivified and perfected, consists in the actual performance of uses from love guided, by wisdom. It is actual Jove of the LORD and of the neighbor-love in act.
And in like manner, as uses can only proceed from good conjoined to truth, so man and woman can only do genuine uses when united in marriage. Each may, indeed, appear to do them alone, but as conjunction of good and truth is necessary in the individual man, that the uses done be genuine, so uses are only genuine as the Conjugial of one man and one woman is regarded, and love of it and hope for it are cherished. Man of himself is harsh, judging and condemning from the truth alone; his intelligence needs the softening influences of the wife's love. Alone, he will always be more or less in the love of his own intelligence; that love must be transferred to his wife, that he, from being hard and cold, may become just and wise; that his intelligence may be tempered by love, his judgment by justice. And woman of herself acts from affection, and thus from impulse; she lacks the interior judgment necessary for the performance of uses, her affections need the rational guidance of the husband that they may be directed. Then again, on the natural plane, men and women both need a home in which they can find rest, need sympathetic hearts to which they can confide their trials, need the comfort derived from the uses performed by each.
And it is because genuine uses can only exist in and from marriage, and other uses are only so far genuine, as marriage is looked to, that Conjugial Love has the most excellent of all uses; in this world-i. e., in the body- The use of filling the Heavens with angelic inhabitants, and in the other world-i. e., in the spirit the more interior use, by continually more and more interior conjunctions, of fructifying and multiplying goods and trues to eternity, by which the consorts are more nearly conjoined to God, and become more fully the means by whom the LORD in His Divine Mercy rules the angels of Heaven and the men of the Church. From the conjunctions of Conjugial Love come all the loves of Heaven and the Church, just as in the body all relationships, parental, filial, social, come from the conjugial relation; and this because all loves come to man from the Divine Love of the LORD for His Church and His conjunction with her. "When man by marriage has become Love truly Conjugial, then also he is in love to the LORD, and in love toward the neighbor, hence in the love of all good, and in the love of all true. . .. Hence it is that Conjugial Love is the fundamental love of all the loves of Heaven" (A. E. 993).
In Conjugial Love, then, and in that love alone, man has true wisdom; for from that love alone is the fructification of goods and trues in which wisdom dwells and by which it is established. Hence none are admitted into Heaven is component parts thereof, but angel- Consorts.
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It is by the uses of Conjugial Love that Conjugial Love is established and made firm; for the internal conjunction of the consorts would soon be dissipated if there were not forms in which it could exist. In the firsts of most marriages there is a beginning of internal conjunction, but because the partners do not perform uses from love and wisdom this conjunction is soon dissipated, and cold and separation ensue. This is almost universally the case in the world. We cannot indeed always see the effect in actual cold, for there are many reasons why it may be disguised, but the rational man can plainly see the causes. Uses are indeed performed in the world, but they are natural and corporeal uses for the sake of self and the world, and instead of being regarded as the means to true uses they are made the very, centre of the world's actions. What is it which keeps business alive, which compels men to work for each other's good, to perform uses? What but the universal lust after gain for the sake of ease and comfort, of honor and glory! Men would laugh at the idea of doing business from any other end. And even when, from experience, they find that there is no enjoyment in laziness, still they do not perform uses for the sake of the neighbor but for the sake of their own comfort. Men are not in the love of uses, they have not the trues to enable them to perform uses; women do not love such trues, but rather by their affections spur men on to persevere in their selfish and worldly loves. Man is rather a form of false than of true; woman a form of evil than of good, and the conjunction of false and evil cannot but from infernal love bring forth the deadly brood of hell as its offspring. That which should have introduced to the full-performance of spiritual uses introduces to the opposite. After the first external love has been extinguished the internal nature begins to manifest itself in adultery, love of rule, and deceit, and when ultimated results by scenes too sad and tragic to bear mention. So lost to man is Conjugial Love at the present day.
But this love is now given anew to those who will be of the New Church. The Divine Promise is not a vain or idle word, it is not an ideal which can never be realized, but it is an actual fact with those who will be of the New Jerusalem. Again and again are we emphatically taught that Conjugial Love is now given to those who will approach the LORD and become spiritual from Him;, that for these He provides from eternity similitudes with whom they may ever dwell in the inmost blessedness and peace of Conjugial Love. And if these be not provided on earth, yet are they provided in Heaven. We must not, however, take this last to mean that they cannot, or can rarely be provided on earth. That is far from the meaning, for the Revelation is a Revelation to us on earth; and moreover the promise is distinctly made that similitudes are provided on earth for those "who from youth have loved, have chosen, and have petitioned of the LORD a legitimate and lovely consort with one, and have despised and loathed wandering lusts" (C. L. 49). The Church is Heaven on earth, for what makes Heaven that also makes the Church, and the laws which govern Heaven also govern the Church. So far then as the Church is established on earth, just so far can the LORD provide on earth that which He provides in Heaven. HE is the same LORD,-leading by the same Divine True. In the New Church; as it is more and more established in the hearts and minds of men, will the LORD provide similitudes for those who are of the Church; and for those not of the Church on earth, but who will be received those who are of that Church; and for those who are therein in the other life, He still provides them, if not in this world, still in Heaven.
It is in order that such similitudes may be provided, that man may be thus regenerated and enjoy the blessings of Love truly Conjugial that the LORD has revealed Himself as the Divine Truth ruling and providing on earth, as He rules and provides in Heaven. Therefore before His Glorification; He prayed, and also commanded the Church to pray, "Thy will be done, as in Heaven so upon the earth." The end of the Divine Revelation, the end of all Creation, of all re-Creation or regeneration is the establishment of Love truly Conjugial, of the internal marriage of good and true and thence the marriage of two minds and two bodies, that man may be eternally blessed, and that new goods and trues may be eternally born to him by which he hay be more nearly conjoined to the LORD. And as this is the end of all Revelation, so it is the inmost end, the celestial end of education, and makes the use of education a celestial use. Men must be taught to love to do uses, and they must learn how to do them. They must be taught to unite will and understanding in the goods of life, or uses. They must learn of the Conjugial, and be trained to shun the opposite. In a word, all men are evil, and they must learn "to love, to choose, and to petition of the LORD a legitimate and lovely consort with one, and to shun and loathe wandering lusts." When man learns to fulfill the Divine conditions he need not fear as to the Divine Promise. The Divine Love is ever active to give every blessing to Its creatures; man's reception is all that lacks.
It is this preparation, for the Conjugial, for the blessing of eternal and lovely marriage that is the work of our beloved Academy. The end of its use of education is to prepare for the performance of genuine uses, to train the will and build up the understanding, that in uses they may come into the Conjugial union from which the union of two souls, of one man and one woman, with its innumerable and ineffable delights may eternally exist. In the schools of the Academy, not only or principally is the mind stored with the knowledges of the trues of the Revelation, but the will is trained to act according to those trues, and thus men are trained for the performance, in useful acts of genuine spiritual uses. We are trained to live according to order, to act out in our daily-lives- The trues which we daily learn. We are taught concerning the Conjugial, both in its internal, the marriage of good and true, and in its external, the union of one man with one woman; we are trained to love it, to pray for it, and to shun all that opposes it We are trained "to love, to choose, and to pray of the LORD, a legitimate and lovely consort with one; and to shun and loathe wandering lusts." Where then can we look for the fulfillment of the Divine Promise as regards Conjugial Love, but in the Academy of the New Church, in which we are educated and instructed to fulfill the conditions of that Promise? It has needed long preparation in the Church before a Body having this end of the Conjugial as its very life could be established. But now the work has begun, and we, here; have received, and do still receive the benefits of that work. In this, our preparation for uses, for the actual application of trues from goods to life, there can now be established in our minds, if we will, that conjunction of good and true which is the eternal, ever-living fountain from which Love truly Conjugial with all its blessedness and sweetness will be eternally vivified.
Well may we call this School our Alma Mater! for to us it has been, indeed, a mother, nourishing our spiritual life that we may be prepared to go forth and enter into those uses from which, faithfully performed, will come our every felicity and joy.
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Well may we say Schola nostra cara! our dearly-loved school, for worthy indeed is it of our highest love, bringing to us, as it does, the Infinite blessings of the Divine Revelation.
And for all these blessings, in which and by which Conjugial Love is once more and eternally given to man, and for the Divine Mercy which the LORD has shown us in leading us by the most wonderful and incomprehensible ways to this School which is so dear to us, in which we can be trained to receive that love; and with some of us, who this day cease to be students here, for the Divine Mercy of the LORD in permitting us to conclude our preparation, and to enter upon our uses in which we can receive from Him innumerable felicities arising thence, for all these blessings can we say from the heart, from the inmost love and life: O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; for to eternity His Mercy. And we, who now leave the fostering care of our Alma Mater, pray the LORD that He may enable us faithfully and sincerely to perform the uses for which we have been so well prepared; for in the proper performance of uses will we truly show our love for our School, for those whom the LORD has in His Mercy used as His servants, and above all for the LORD Himself, Whose Divine Revelation constitutes the very life and soul of the School. May we look to Him alone for guidance in the path before us.
[Hebrew]
Notes and Reviews 1893
The Lord's Kingdom is the title of a book by the late Rev. R. L. Tafel, to be published shortly. It consists of discourses on the LORD'S Prayer. It will also contain a portrait and biography of the author.
THE Western New Church Union has published a little book entitled, Emanuel Swedenborg and the New Christian Church, by the Rev. L. P. Mercer. It is being given as a World's Fair Souvenir to all inquirers at the New Church exhibit.
ALMOST the whole of Part 65 of the Swedenborg Concordance is occupied with the subject "Life." The last entry is "Light." Some very interesting references appear under "Life after Death," particularly the one which states that the belief in the resurrection of the material body has this use, that those cherishing it believe in a life after death.
THE New Church Messenger for June 28th contains an account of Mr. Kelly's work in Bombay, written by one of his converts. In speaking of the admiration his family has for the New Church teachings, he says: "And the crowning of all our admiration of these writings is that they shut out everything in the shape-of priestcraft, the curse of Christendom."
AFTER reading the arguments of- Those who are carried away by the "woman's rights" movement, the perusal of the essay on Woman's Place and Work, by the Rev. James Reed, is like inhaling the fresh air. He believes indeed that there has been too narrow a conception of woman's work in the world, but he finds, on restudying the Doctrines, that they positively teach that women should not assume those forensic or out of doors duties, in which understanding, thought and wisdom take the lead. He makes suggestions, which will be of use to women who approach the subject in an affirmative spirit, although the limits of his short treatise have not permitted him to expand these suggestions. Incidentally he pays some attention to the claim for women preachers which is based on the assumption that the present is a celestial dispensation, and disposes of it by as neat a "reductio ad absurdum" as we have seen for some time in New Church literature.
A WRITER in The New Christianity thinks "that it is disorderly for a clergyman to ordain any one into the ministry," and "that every New Church Society should ordain its own clergymen by the laying on of the hands of its own lay members." He quotes from The Apocalypse Revealed, n. 802, in support. The brief but comprehensive statements in the fourth chapter on the "Holy Spirit," in the Canons of the New Church, will help to clear up this subject.
The evil love of dominion, as contrasted with the good love of ruling is not restricted to men who enter the priesthood. All men have it, and must shun it as a deadly sin against the LORD. It may be reasonably assumed that the proportion of priests of the New Church who shun this among other evils is as great as that of laymen. Granting this, the question which remains is what is the orderly form of government: a priesthood, such as is taught in the Doctrines of the New Church, or a democracy which they do not warrant? The question answers itself.
THE Swedenborg Society held its eighty- Third anniversary, on June 18th, at its house 36 Bloomsbury Street, London. Mr. H. T. W. Elliott, Chairman. The donations and annual subscriptions amounted to ?118 Se., the dividends to L520 16s. 2d.; the amount received for books sold, to L116 10s. 8d and for the Concordance, to L213 16s. 11d. The Society has received a legacy of L500 subject to a life interest. It has presented 455 volumes to free libraries; 331 volumes and 8000 leaflets to other institutions; also 110 copies of The True Christian Religion, and 106 of The Apocalypse Revealed to ministers and students. The total issue for the year comprises 2,939 volumes in English, 71 in Latin, 150 in Welsh, 4 in Russian, 2 in French, 1 in Polish, 1 in Icelandic, 6 Philosophical. The Society has contributed L100 toward the printing of an edition of 3,000 copies of Heaven and Hell translated into Dutch. It has also entered into a contract for the printing of an edition of 500 copies of Heaven and Hell, at present being translated into Hindi. The Society has promised to partly defray the cost of printing translations of the second volume of The True Christian Religion and The Apocalypse Revealed in Norwegian. The late Dr. Tafel's unfinished MS. of a new translation of The True Christian Religion has been placed with the Rev. J. F. Buss for completion.
A complete set of the Latin and English editions of the Writings, numbering 74 volumes, has been supplied to "The John Ryland's Library," together with a copy of the original edition, in quarto, of De Caelo et Inferno, Vera Christiana Religio and Apocalypsis Revelata. The preliminaries have been settled for the completing of the work of photo-lithographing the manuscripts of Swedenborg. The first volume, it is proposed, shall include: Prophetae et Psalmi; Index Apocalypseos Revelata; De Conjugio; De Justificatione; Letters to Dr. Beyer; Clavis Hieroglyphiica. It is estimated that it will occupy 456 pages, and cost about L380 exclusive of any charge for superintending its production. The Society has under consideration "A Bibliography of Swedenborg."
A discussion took place on the subject of translations of the Writings for Mohammedan countries. It arose on a resolution that Heaven and Hell be translated into Arabic with a view to its publication and distribution in Africa and the Fast. A question arose as to the language. Dr. Wilkinson had suggested Swahili, as being that in general use over a great portion of Africa, but Dr. Blyden suggested Arabic as the language used by Mohammedans all over Africa. It was proposed to commence with Heaven and Hell, "which, although not strictly speaking a theological treatise, was saturated with theology;" and to add the Doctrine of Charity. The resolution was carried.
New Enlightenment 1893
After the Last Judgment had been accomplished . . . light arose also to men in the world, from which they had new enlightenment.- C. L. J. 80.
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QUESTION OF EVANGELISM 1893
MR. GILES'S latest book, Consolation, is printed and bound in excellent taste by the American New Church Tract and Publication Society. The author dedicates it to the bereaved, to whom he introduces the words of hope and comfort, which he has to tell, by relating his experiences and conversations with such as he had been called upon to minister unto in times of sorrow, caused by the loss of husband, child, or fortune. The closing chapters present more systematically the principles underlying relief for sorrow or care.
As would be expected from one of such wide experience, the style of the author is admirably adapted to those whom he addresses. But the methods which he uses to bring conviction to the mind raise a question which can best be formulated after an illustration has been adduced. In conversation with a recently bereaved wife, the minister makes some remarks about the spiritual world and its inhabitants. She interposes the doubt, "But I have no means of learning anything About the spiritual world." Naturally; one is led to expect that the minister will at some time or other refer to the Revelator about the other world, made through Swedenborg, as to the means of which she is in need. Instead, comes this argument, which is repeated in different forms throughout the book: "The more you reflect upon and become familiarized with the thought of the substantial existence of the spiritual world and of the vast multitude of human beings who have tone there, the more real it will become." Now, while it may be admitted that such a result will follow, why should one, in the first place, start to think about the spiritual world in such a manner? The general reference to the Sacred Scripture which preceded it is not sufficient. A proselyter of any heresy might begin by demonstrating a caching in the letter of the Word, and then say, "The more you reflect upon this and become familiarized with it, the more real it will become." Is there not danger in such appeals to make human reason the sole arbiter and judge of truth? The teaching repeatedly insisted upon in the Doctrines is not that a thing is true because one sees it to be rational, and that by familiarity it becomes confirmed, but that it is true "because the LORD has so said." A Christian must finally rest on the Word. Therefore, as one continues reading truly glorious description of the other life, which stimulates any latent thirst for knowledge concerning heaven, and the doubt and the anxiety of the listener becomes manifest in her questions whether all that her new acquaintance pictures can come to pass, "Will it, will it? how can I know it? how can I be sure of it?" there is no little disappointment at the minister's answer, which ignores the direct teaching of the letter of the Word, and the analogy between the experiences of the prophets and those of Swedenborg, and opens with the indefinite statement, "It will if you do your part. It all depends on you." and then continues with exhortations to rise out of seclusion and grief and perform the works of charity. In conversation with the mother who has lost her cherished boy, the minister does better, and reminds her of the teachings in the letter of the Word. But neither there, nor in the more formal part of the book, is anything said of testimony borne in the Writings of the LORD'S servant, Emanuel Swedenborg.
The question which ought to be earnestly considered is, whether this is sufficient to attain the end of leading to the LORD as the Consoler in times of trouble? Is it the mission of the New Church to look upon the Old and New Testaments as the final Revelation from God, the meaning of which is a later and human discovery? Or, ought faith in the spiritual world, in the internal sense of the Word, in the sole Divinity of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, and in other vital Doctrine be identified with the real Second Advent of the LORD, in and by the Revelation made through Swedenborg? Is the acknowledgment of the LORD as He manifested Himself eighteen centuries ago, in His Human, sufficient, or do men actually need to know and acknowledge that that same LORD JESUS CHRIST has come again in a form visible to the understanding in His own Divinely Human Revelation of Himself? Is prophecy fulfilled, and ought man nevertheless to be withheld from it? "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same JESUS which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven" (Acts i, 11).
"The man the Church of the present day knows hardly anything about Heaven and about Hell, nor about his life after death, although all things stand forth described in the Word; yea also many, who were born within the Church, deny them, saying in their heart: Who has come thence and told? lest therefore such a negative, which reigns especially with those who are very wise from the world, should also infect and corrupt the simple at heart and the simple in faith, it has been given me to be together with the angels, and to speak with them as man with man, and also to see those things which are in the heavens and those which are in the hells, and this for thirteen years: thus now from things seen and heard to describe them; hoping thus to illustrate ignorance, and to dissipate incredulity. That at this day such an immediate Revelation exists, is because that is what is meant by the Advent of the LORD" (H. H. 1).
General Church 1893
Address all communications for the department of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, to the Secretary, the Rev. Leonard G. Jordan, 2536 Continental Ave., Philadelphia, Pa.
INTERESTING EVENT AT MILVERTON, CANADA.
A SOMEWHAT notable social meeting was held at this place on the evening of June 24th, 1893. The occasion was the retiring from pastoral charge of the Church in Milverton, and from work of the General Church, of the Rev. F. E. Waelchli in order that he may devote himself more fully to the distinctive uses of the Academy.
The hall, the usual place of meeting, not being available, the meeting took place at the house of Mr. Henry Doering. Several members were prevented from attending, and it thence resulted that of those present twenty- Two were members of the Doering family, and included grandparents, sons, daughters, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren. - The only others present were Mr. Waelchli and Mr. Jacob Stroh, of Berlin. That there should be so many from one family is a circumstance worthy to be chronicled.
The early part of the evening was devoted to the entertainment of the nine small children of the company. Afterward refreshments were served and toasts drunk, the first to "The General Church of the Advent of the LORD." The song, "Our Glorious Church," having been sung, Mr. Waelchli showed how when the
New Church seemed in danger of destruction, there was raised up first the Academy of the New Church, and then the General Church.
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He pointed out the distinction between these two Churches, and showed that confusion and loss to both must result from their conjoining.
A toast to the "Schools of the Academy" was responded to with the Color Song, and a sketch of the purposes and methods of the school in Philadelphia given by Mr. C. E. Doering, a graduate of this year. Supplementary remarks were made by Mr. Henry Doering and Mr. Stroh upon the necessity of New Church education and the means of attaining it. It was said that if one earnestly desires a very good thing the LORD, in His own time, provides it.
To toast to the "General Church in Milverton and the Pastor of it," Mr. Henry Doering responded with reference to the good work done and the appreciation of it by the people. Mr. Waelchli added that this was the last time he would be among them as pastor. He had enjoyed the work very much. In the future his visits would be in the interest of New Church Schools. He hoped that the affections uniting him to them and them to him would increase notwithstanding the changed relationship, and lead still further in the development of the Church.
The sphere of this occasion was exceedingly pleasant and hearty.
On Sunday, June 25th, Mr. Waelchli delivered a most impressive sermon on the "Second Advent of the LORD," after which the Holy Supper was administered to sixteen persons out of the thirty who were present. The afternoon was devoted to further instruction by Mr. Waelchli upon the relation of the two Churches, the Academy and the General Church, to each other.
After the Last Judgment 1893
After the Last Judgment, thus now, every one who wants to be enlightened and to be wise can be.-L. 61.
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
A TALE.
(Copyrighted.)
XIX.-(Concluded.)
SHE then told me that after she had grown to be a tall girl, and was past fifteen, she was removed to the present school, where there was much that was different. She still had her flowers, but there was now a new sign; she had been given a dove, and by its action was warned when she was unkind in thought or imprudent in act.
She had heard that in some of the colleges the maidens were given swans; in others, birds of paradise; in still others, lambs.
We had not seen each other till that hour; and how strange was this confidence- This friendship and trust! How strange the feeling which came over me that I had known her from my boyhood up!
"I bless the day that brought me here," I told her, with a long, long look, as she ceased to speak.
There was a moment's stillness after I had spoken, and then, as the whirr of wings fell on my ear, the young maid started to her feet.
"My bird has flown!" she said, a shade of anxiety on her face.
"I have stayed too long," she added, moving away.
I sprang up to follow, but one glance from her eye arrested me. My hands were lifted and followed after her, but my feet were stayed.
"Every day will I pray that I may see you again," I said, in great happiness and sore pain.
She did not pause, but she looked back and smiled, and there was heaven in that smile.
"Remember," I cried after her, softly, beside myself, "remember what shall be my daily prayer."
She did not halt, but again she looked back and smiled, and always there was heaven in that smile. So she passed on till the myrtles claimed her- Till the almond- Trees shut her from my sight- And I, standing alone, looked about me with the vague regret and pain of one suddenly awakened from a dream of beauty.
I turned and went my way, striding forward blindly, filled with the turbulent thoughts of a young man who for the first time believes that he loves a maid. Hurrying up the forest- Clothed hillside, forgetful of and seeing not the guards supposed to watch the boundary, I descended into our own valley and walked there till the twilight fell, seeking then my own apartment in the college and avoiding every one.
My soul was troubled. New and unsuspected feelings were awake within me. What could such strange things mean? Here was I, a spirit, preparing, as I hoped, for heaven, with my whole soul shaken from thoughts of love for and marriage with a maid!
Was this a last and crowning temptation sent from hell? Had not the LORD Himself said while on earth, "For in heaven they are neither married nor given in marriage"? How full of evil, then, was I to have such thoughts, to feel such emotional . . . But if this be sin, how sweet is sin! And if heaven he without love, how incomplete is heaven!
XX.
LIGHT AFTER SHADE.
ALL through the night I battled with my thoughts of love- All the next day, while listening absently to my masters- All the day following, and the day after that; but the victory was love's, not mine. At last, in despair, I sought audience with the head-master, and he appointed to speak with me in his reception room.
"What is it, my son?" he gently asked, as I hesitated before him there. "I have seen these three days that all was not well with you, but have waited for you to speak."
"I come for help, my father. I am deep in trouble. I have been shaken with strange desires; I have thought strange thoughts. I fear I can never enter heaven; sometimes, often indeed, I have wished not to go there. I am helpless-I know not what to think, or what to do."
"Not wish to go to heaven!" echoed the head-master, with piercing gaze.
"Even so, my father," I answered, averting my eyes.
"Do you realize what you say? It is clear that you are in a state of temptation, but that is insufficient to explain such-madness."
I hung my head, and after a moment he continued, with such sternness as he had never shown: "Can it be possible that you are to turn back now, after going so far? If so, the last state is indeed worse than the first. Take care."
I bowed my head upon my knees.
"Have pity, my father. Give me hope, not despair.
"Could I not remain always here in this intermediate world, and, by teaching those arriving from the earth, fully serve the LORD?" I asked wildly, bursting out with a thought which I had for hours revolved in mind.
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"And wherefore? Do you wish to halt at the threshold, resting content with the sounds only of the music and, dancing within? Do you wish to sit in the gate after the bridegroom has gone in with His friends to the feast? Wherefore?
"Because here, as I have observed, men and women live in marriage."
"Speak, and explain this mystery."
"I have seen"-I stammered, not daring to look up-"I have seen, O my father, a woman, a young maid- And I-love her. I have struggled hard these three days, and still love her."
"And why not love her?"
Amazed, incredulous, I slowly lifted my eyes to the head-master's face and saw-no sorrow, no rebuke, but a look of relief. And then I made answer like one in a dream:
"The LORD has said, 'For in heaven they are neither married or given in marriage.'
"Have you not yet learned," asked the head-master, in a tone of surprise, "that the angels live in marriage- That conjugial love is the very life of heaven, the inmost joy of those who dwell there?"
My heart leaped within me at these words. In great wonder and sore confusion, I felt that the sun was again shining; still-still there was a cloud. "But those words of the LORD, my father?"
"I will explain," was the re- Assuring answer. "You have learned from our Divine Word that the LORD when on earth spoke often only apparent truths in the ears of simple men who could not receive, and to those who would have profaned, the real truth-which, therefore, was concealed or veiled from view. In that internal, genuine sense, these words-'in heaven they are neither married nor given in marriage'-signify that the marriage of good and truth cannot take place in man after he has entered the spiritual world, unless that marriage shall have already begun in the natural world. In other words, he cannot enter heaven unless he have truly begun the work of regeneration while on earth; for it is impossible for the marriage of good and truth to take place in a spirit confirmed in evil by his life in the body."
"And the angels live as man and wife?" I asked, half afraid that I should awake and find that the words which I hung upon were spoken from the land of dreams. "And is there"-I added to ask-"is there offspring from their love?"
"No natural offspring. It is according to order and to Divine law that all men, or all angels, should be born in the natural world; therefore no children are born in heaven. The offspring of marriage there is ever increasing love to the LORD and the neighbor. This love of a man for a woman and of a woman for a man is implanted in all from creation, and is the deepest and strongest inclination of the human race. After death it is not rooted out-such is not the will of Him who is the Bridegroom and Husband of the Church as a bride and wife-but lasts to all eternity, unclean and adulterous with the devils, who have made it so, but a pure, chaste, and heavenly with the angels."
A song of gladness awoke in my heart; already my troubled soul was at peace.
"And I may then hope"-I asked, with confidence- That some day I may marry this maid and live with her in heaven?"
"You may; but remember there are conditions set."
"Tell me what they are."
"A true and happy marriage is provided on earth for those who, from their youth, have loved, wished for, and asked of the LORD a legitimate and lovely companionship with one, and have scorned and loathed wandering lusts. The conditions here are similar, and if truly abided by, this greatest of all blessings will one day be yours, in order to prepare for the heavenly marriage, you must shun adulterous tendencies as infernal evils; and bear in mind that you cannot do this unless you likewise shun all other evils, for adulteries are the complex of all. Remember that if beauty alone conjoins, it is mere adultery; genuine marriage is a union of minds and of souls. Love truly conjugial originates in the marriage of good and truth, and in order to come into it you must so live that in your mind and heart truth may be conjoined to good. This work you have already begun, and you may complete it here with us if you will. Then study diligently the Divine Word; let all your thoughts be conformed to, and your affections governed by its teachings. So will you fit yourself to enter into a lovely union with an angel-maid, whose every thought and desire will be in conformity with yours because yours will be in conformity with the laws of heaven.
"Such a union," the head-master concluded, solemnly, "is the happiest of all happinesses, the blessing of all blessings. Every day, my son, be it your care to reverently pray the LORD to lead you forward in preparation to receive this crowning gift of His love."
As my beloved master uttered these final words, I remembered my vow spoken in the presence of the lovely maid-"every day will I pray that I may see you again- And, when dismissed, I walked forth into the open air repeating it fervently again and again.
The whole world was changed; the very physical aspect of our valley and the inclosing hills was glorified in my eyes-eyes that roved from hill to hill and covered every object, though dimmed with happy tears.
"Every day, yea, every hour," I whispered, with quickening breath-" till I become fit to see her again, and then again and forever!- Till the great day when she is mine, mine only- Till we together have found our final home, there to dwell with the prime of eternal youth endowered, our blended joys made glorious with conjugial love's undying torch!"
In the same hour, while walking in our lovely valley alone, I came upon a strange adventure. As I thought deeply on the subject of the beautiful union of married pairs in heaven, suddenly there was uncovered in my mind the recollection of my mother, that sweet idol of my childhood who faded away and left us ere I was quite ten years of age. I remembered that my father had not married again, that my aunt-who was with my sister at the time of my own last illness- Came to the house in order to care for us, and that six years later my father also left us to enter the spiritual world. As the angels lived in marriage, these, my beloved parents, must now dwell together as in the world. Oh, that I might see them! Where were they now, and why had I not inquired before?
Was it because, under the Divine Providence, I had been withheld therefrom till now for good and sufficient reasons? Or, was it because the long separation had caused them to so completely fade away from my affections that the recollection of them rarely now entered my mind? The latter seemed impossible, and yet I could not recall having once inquired after them in thought since my arrival in the spiritual world.
I inquired now most earnestly, especially with regard to my mother, whom I remembered with a more tender affection. Walking forward in a lonely place, I thought of her with an absorbed interest, wondering if it were possible, and intensely desiring that I might be allowed to see her.
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And, anon, I had my wish. All at once, as I raised my eyes, I saw her standing in the path, only a few feet in front of me. It was unmistakably my mother, but so changed!-so much younger, so much more beautiful. It was truly she-she, whose dear face was pictured in tenderness on my heart.
"Mother!" I cried, hastening to her, uttering words of affection. I threw my arms round her and kissed her face, as she smiled on me tenderly.
"You are transformed," I said, "and the transformation is so beautiful!"
"And this is Oswald-my little Oswald," she rejoined, in the soft, low tones which I well remembered, and which were now even more musical. "You, too,- Are transformed," she added, standing away and looking at me.
"But I am still your son, and you are my mother."
I detected a slight alteration in the expression of her face. "That was the tie on earth," she answered, gently," but our relationship is now changed. Here it is rather that of brother and sister, or of friend and neighbor."
This did not quite please me. I was blinded by my old natural feelings, by the tenderness of my childhood's love, now newly awakened, and I did not understand. -
"What does this mean?" I asked, in a changed voice.
"I thought you knew, Oswald," my mother answered kindly, a shade of regret upon her face. "Have not your teachers instructed you that in the spiritual world natural relationships are no longer in force?"
"O mother!"
"I am no longer your mother in that sense, Oswald. We all have one common mother here- The Church- And one Father- The LORD. And it is spiritual affinity, not the mere tie of blood, which unites those who dwell together."
"Then are we not to dwell together?"
"That is known only to the LORD. When you are fully prepared it may be that you will be led to the same heavenly city where I reside, and if so, I shall be glad, but after you are there you will live separate from me in your own house with your own beloved wife."
"But my father-does he not live with you-in the same house?"
She did not answer, and, turning suddenly, looked toward a grove of trees on our right. And then I saw advancing toward us a man- Angel, noble in face and comely in form. He came close to her, encircling her waist with his arm, meanwhile saluting me graciously. My mother leaned her head against his shoulder, her face suffused with an indescribably lovely light as it was upturned to him. I now noted that she wore a beautiful, shining robe which seemed to vary from soft tints of blue to those of red as she moved, and, wonderful to behold, as she turned toward her companion, the rosy tints brightened to a flame-like hue.
Her companion was beautiful, and no doubt good, but he was not my father; I could not look upon him with friendship where he stood.
"Mother, what does this mean?" I asked, amazed and indignant.
With her head still resting upon the stranger's shoulder, she turned her face toward me and answered:
"He who was your father is among the good, but he does not dwell with me. This is my beloved husband."
I could not speak, so turbulent were my thoughts and feelings. My mother after a moment continued:
"We cannot remain with you longer in your present state. Your teachers will instruct you." After another slight pause, she added: "May all go well with you, Oswald. Some later day, when you are wiser than now, it may be that we shall see each other again.
And then, ere I could open my mouth, they were gone; they had passed behind the veil, fading in a twinkling from my view. I followed after them, calling, for a few steps, but was answered only by silence and vacancy.
Half an hour later I strode back to the college, sought speech with the head-master, and told him of my adventure.
"I perceive that you are in a state of temptation," he said to me ere I had spoken. Then, after he had heard everything: "What is your complaint? She who was your mother said truly that all have one mother and one Father here. Your relation to her is no longer that of a son, but only of a friend whom she tenderly esteems.
"And wherefore should you grieve because those two angels who were father and mother to you on earth do not now dwell together in heaven?" he continued, as I sat silent. "Do you not know that they would still be man and wife if their union were conducive to their best interests? Do you think our merciful LORD capable of ordaining that two angels internally unsuited to each other should remain in marriage to eternity? In this age few of the marriages made on earth are true marriages, and, through the mercy of the LORD, all not so are here dissolved, new and fitting alliances being formed. Though your father and mother unquestionably lived together in outward peace and were regenerating, they were, as is now evident, not in true internal sympathy, and in heaven, therefore, each was joined with that one- That only one- Capable of furnishing the blessed interior satisfaction and happiness which they could not give each other.
"If you are still troubled," the head-master concluded, "retire to yourself and pray the LORD that you may see your earthly father. If it be best for you, your request will be granted, in which case you will hear all that I have told you con firmed."
"I need not to do this, my father," I answered, humbly and in shame, quite overwhelmed by what I heard. "I have been most foolish, and I am rebuked. It becomes clear to me more and more how full of evil I am- How little I genuinely trust in the LORD."
"It is in your power to become wiser through this experience and to fully atone, my son," was the gentle response.
I saw and understood it all now; it was as clear as the light of noonday. The recollection of my Cousin Mary's unhappiness returned to me and accused me. What if the insufferable bond which bound her to my Cousin Paul had never been loosed!
Nevertheless, not many days afterward, I did seek and obtain speech with my father, and also a second time with my mother. As I rested beneath an olive tree at no great distance from our college, absorbed in thinking of my parents and earnestly desiring to see them, they both appeared to be there, accompanied by their heavenly consorts. It was an hour of much and sweet instruction. The subject of conversation chosen by this noble company was heavenly marriage; and, being now prepared, I listened with decorum, intelligence, and sympathy, meanwhile duly sensible of the honor they did me by their presence and profoundly grateful for all they taught me.
They exhibited so many tokens of friendship, and were so gentle with me that at last I fearlessly opened to them all my heart, telling of the maid whom I had found among the almond trees and could not forget.
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At this recital they one and all showed signs of pleasure, bidding me trust in heaven and hope to win her at the proper time.
"Give this to her when she is yours, dear Oswald," my mother said, with radiant smiles, taking from her finger a ring set with stones which flashed as from a living flame.
And as my heavenly guests rose to take leave of me (there were garden chairs at hand and fruit and wine upon a table), this tender and beauteous angel who was on earth my mother kissed me solemnly upon the forehead, saying: -
"Doubt not, my Oswald, that-we shall meet again, when you have won the maiden whom you love."
XXI.
IN THE VALLEY OF THE RAINBOW.
THESE parting words of my mother among the angels went with me for days, calming my thoughts and perfuming my spirit as with the sweetness of a heavenly benediction.
My mental horizon was now, clear. The sublime mystery of human life was solved. The wondrous and beautiful spectacle of two human souls knit together in love, and through that heaven-sent love drawn nearer and nearer to the all- Creating Source whence it flows as a stream, filled me more and more with an enduring recognition of the Divine goodness and mercy. Every day asked myself, How can man do less than glorify in his heart the gracious LORD who, from love Divine, has provided a heaven of such superlative delight and peace for those of His creatures who will but live according to heavenly order and so fit themselves to dwell there?
I felt no more concern for the future, content to await the time when Providence should lead us, the one to the other, and I might claim the maid I loved as mine own forever. For she, and she alone, was mine, as I knew and felt from my whole soul.
None the less did I experience the thrills of a new and great joy when it was announced that a festal day was near on which the two colleges would worship the LORD conjointly in a place called the Valley of the Rainbow; and when the day came I felt as one feels who goes to his wedding.
The short, intervening distance was walked by the students, arrayed in their banqueting robes; but all the masters rode on horses, except their leader and head, who traveled in a beautiful carriage, similar in many respects to the ancient chariot, but provided with a long seat covered with purple cushions.
The Valley of the Rainbow was adjacent to the territory surrounding the college of the maidens, and at no great distance from the spot where I first found my love among the myrtles and the almond- Trees. The place was beautiful beyond all telling. It was, in truth, a paradise of such loveliness as may not be pictured in words. Yet it maybe well to mention the flowers of indefinite variety, many of them unknown on earth, which grew spontaneously in arcs or in circles, their arrangement being with relation to color, thus producing a rainbow effect. There were lawns where roses of every conceivable color-not excepting soft tints of green and blue- Thus placed themselves in continuous and beautiful series.
The very trees stood in circles, and even here, through the varying shades of green, the rainbow was suggested. Toward the centre of the valley there was a beautiful and extensive grove of such arrangement, wherein one species succeeded another according to their excellence and correspondence. The outermost circles of this continuing spiral or gyro of trees were filled with oaks, and leading farther inward successively were plane- Trees, chestnuts, laurels, beeches, pines, firs, cedars, myrtles, figs, pomegranates, the almond, the almug, the orange, the palm, sweet-scented shrubs, the vine, the olive, and in the centre, with wonderful gyrations and interlacings, paradisiacal trees unknown on earth, their fruit, as it were, of shining gold, and their leaves of seeming silver, edged with glistening emeralds.
In this centre there was a living temple of green, formed by interlacing trees, and here it was our blessed privilege to worship. As we drew near three angel-priests from heaven were seen standing before the door clothed in shining garments, the first in purple, the second in blue, and the third in white. And when they had entered a rainbow of amazing splendor and beauty appeared above the temple. Afterward the head-master instructed us that the rainbow represented regeneration, and that none but the regenerate could approach this valley.
Entering the temple among the last, I saw that the three angel-priests were now in the chancel, and that the one in the purple robe stood before a table of gold beneath an arching canopy which flashed with precious stones. Upon that golden table or altar lay the Divine Word, and when it was opened the whole chancel was filled with the brightness of its radiating halo. The
three officiating priests stood bathed in its glory-especially the one in the purple robe, who read aloud from the Word- And were now in very truth, as to the very externals of their bodies and garments, angels of light.
I had not yet seen the face of my love, but during that beautiful service of reading and responses, of prayers, of wise words of instruction, and of soul-felt dinging, I rested in a happy calm; the LORD ruled and all would be ordered well. If there had been some faint pangs of disappointment they were soon forgotten when the hour of the banquet arrived; for then I saw her. During two hours or more, as we sat there, always could I see her face.
For, later in the day, when the temple service had come to an end, the members of the two colleges feasted together. The spot chosen was within the precincts of the wonderful grove, but not in its centre. The banqueting- Table was similar to that in our college, which has been already described. The youths were ranged along the right, the maidens along the left, the teachers of both colleges being seated in pairs at the head. It was afterward made known to me that our masters were really angels of heaven, and that the angel-mothers of the other school were their wives. And, what filled me with wonder, it was said that there was a way between the two colleges which only the angel masters and mothers knew, a way so short as to make the two places practically one- To them. The masters and Their wives were thus always together, except when in the activity of their use of instruction. These wives, who were mother to the young girls under their charge, seemed almost as young, and truly were more beautiful than any of the maidens-excepting one, who sat there a very star among them all.
(To be concluded.)
Last Judgment was effected upon 1893
The Last Judgment was effected upon no others than those who were moral in externals, but in internals were not spiritual, or but little spiritual.-F. 64.
128
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
FOUR SHILLINGS IN GREAT BRITAIN.
THE EDITOR'S address in Huntingdon Valley P. O., Montgomery Co., Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
PHILADELPHIA, AUGUST, 1893=124.
CONTENTS.
Editorial Notes, p. 113.- The Ministry of Fear (a sermon), p. 114.- The Truths of Faith and the Goods of Love (Genesis xlix, 1-15), p. 117.- The Development of Conjugial Love In Use, p. 118.
Notes and Reviews, p. 122.- A Question of Evangelism p. 123.
The General Church-Interesting Event at Milverton, Canada, p. 123.
The Wedding Garment (a Tale), xix (concluded), xx, xxi p. 124.
News Gleanings, p. 128.-Births, Death, p. 128.
AT HOME.
Massachusetts.- THE Waltham New Church School has closed, to reopen on September 20th.
Ohio.- At URBANA University closed for the summer vacation on June 19th. Sixty-six pupils had attended during the year, a number of whom belonged to the Old Church. Attendance at the doctrinal instruction is optional.
THE will of Mrs. Allen, Glendale, in which she left her estate, amounting to about $50,000, for a New Church school in Glendale, was contested by relatives on the plea of insanity. The jury decided against the will, and the judges of the Court of Common Pleas who tried the case overruled the motion for a new trial. The New Church people appealed to the Circuit Court, which has decided in their favor, thus sending the case back to the lower court for a new trial. The New Church Messenger, of July 26th, publishes copious extracts from the decision which was prepared by Judge Shanck, Judges Smith and Swing concurring. The Judge showed a clear and rather extraordinary insight, as is manifest from this declaration, among others: "Those whose interpretations of the Scriptures lead them to believe that the spirits of the departed are among the living are not to be confounded with those who believe in actual communication between the living and the spirits of the dead."
Maryland.- THE Rev. Hiram Vrooman, lately assistant pastor of the Associate Reformed Church of Baltimore, has been called to the pastorate of the New Church Society of that city. He will take advantage of the summer vacation to further prepare himself by the study of the Writings.
Maine.- THE Rev. William B. Hayden died at Portland on the 29th of June, aged 76 years. According to a biographical sketch printed in New Church Messenger, Mr. Hayden was born in Schodack, N. Y., December 25th, 1816. Here he spent his early years. He removed to Boston, and subsequently to Buffalo, to engage in the book selling and publishing business. Later he formed a partnership in New York City with G. P. Putnam, in the business which afterward developed into the great publishing house of G. P. Putnam's Sons. Here every week congregated some of the leading literary men of the day, among them Bayard Taylor, Washington Irving, Fenimore Cooper, and Fitz-Greene Halleck. It was one of the pleasures enjoyed by Mr. Hayden's friends to listen to his reminiscences of these early days. Professor Bush, the distinguished Professor of Hebrew in the University of New York, was one of the habitues of the publishing house, coming almost daily to discuss literary topics or to translate the Hebrew or Syriac books which the firm were importing. Through Professor Bush, who had become a firm believer in Swedenborg's system of theology, Mr. Hayden was led to investigate it. He became an ardent believer in the Doctrines of the New Church, studied for the ministry, land, in 1850 accepted a call to Portland, his first pastorate. Here, with the exception of one year spent in Cincinnati, he preached for a period of 26 years. In 1876 he tendered his resignation, and went abroad for two or three years preaching a art of the time in England. Since then Portland has been his home, with occasional absences to fill the pulpit or lecture in other places.
Endowed with a wonderful memory, which held all the facts gained from his extensive reading, he also possessed a most rigorous intellect. These trips rendered him an execedingly delightful and stimulating companion alike to young and old. He was a great student of history, both ancient and modern. His recreation of the past winter has been a careful review of ancient Grecian history, with atlas and encyclopedia by his side, to look up every point with which he was, not familiar. This thoroughness of study made his opinions always valuable, and the young student who might apply to him for aid in science; archeology, or general literature was sure to receive the needed information.
Among the books written by him are Light on Last Things, Ten Chapters on Marriage, Dangers of Modern Spiritualism, Science and Revelation, Lectures on the Book of Revelation, and, in two volumes Our Heavenly Father's Book.
Pennsylvania.- A LEGACY of $1.000 bequeathed to the Pittsburgh Society by the late Mrs. Anna Aitken has been the occasion of bringing up for settlement the question, which of the two parties is considered by the civil courts to be the Society. The case has come before the Orphans' Court, and the decision of the judge is now being awaited.
THE Rev. Edward C. Bostock, after visiting Philadelphia, Chicago, Berlin and Toronto, left New York for England on July 8th.
IN the second note under "Pennsylvania," in last month's "News Gleanings," line 25, read "Bachelor of Theology" for "Bachelor of Arts."
ABROAD.
Denmark.- THE Board of Home and Foreign Missions has sent Mr. Broninche, a student in the Theological School, to assist the Rev. William Winslow in Copenhagen, and ultimately to take pastoral charge of the New church there.
India.- AT John H. Kelly, colporleur an Bombay, has removed to 376 Grant Road, an order that he may be more centrally situated. He holds three meetings weekly, reports that he has 300 readers, and has sold New Church works to the amount of $26.50.
Canada.- THE thirtieth annual meeting of the Canada Association was held on the 22d of June when a new Constitution was adopted leading to the amalgamation of the General Church of Canada with the Canada Association. The compromise consisted in the adoption of the name of the one body and of the constitution of the other. The Rev. F. W. Tuerk was appointed the president.
Great Britain.-BISHOP Benade arrived in London on June 28th, and is in good health.
That eighty-sixth session of the General Conference began on June 19th, being held at Birmingham. There were present 116 members, of whom 31 were ministers. Forty-eight societies were represented. The Rev. John Presland was elected president, and the Rev. R. R. Rodgers, the retiring president, vice. The Rev. S. C. Eby attended as the messenger of the General Convention, and read its address to the General Conference. There are 873 Isolated Receivers on the Register, residing in 413 different places. One hundred and twenty-one of the Receivers are connected with Societies of the Church. The New Church Home Reading Union has now 217 members. The questions and answers in connection with the reading, which have appeared In Morning Light, have been printed and bound into a volume. . . . . There are 73 Societies in connection with Conference, with a membership of 5,179. The treasurer reported an invested capital of L68,241.
THE Rev. Peter Ramage was nominated for next year's president.
The Rev. R. R. Rodgers brought forward the "weekly half-penny scheme," which, if carried out would amount to L600 a year, toward the augmentation or building funds. The idea is that each member of the New Church in Great Britain shall contribute a half-penny per week. The resolution was carried.
The Conference will meet in Manchester next year.
THE New Church Educational Institute held its annual meeting on June 14th. The report stated that two numbers of the issues of the New Church had been published, and that the late Dr. Tafel had left the manuscript of three others, viz.: 1. On the Internal Church; 2. On the Authority Principle in the New Church; 3. On the Relation of the New Church to the First Christian Church.
THE Northampton Society celebrated New Church day on June 20th.
The Rev. H. McLagan received a welcome to the Melbourne, Derbyshire Society as its future pastor on June 3d.
THE Rev. R. Hebbron (Methodist Free Church) gave a "stirring and interesting" address to the Sunday-school scholars of the Wigan- Society, on June 25th, on the subject of" Trees."
THE North of England Missionary Society held its seventy-seventh annual meeting on' June 13th, at Salford, Lower Broughton.
Last Judgment will be where all are together 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE
Vol. XIII, No. 9. SEPTEMBER, 1893=124. Whole No. 155.
The Last Judgment will be where all are together, thus in the Spiritual World; and not on earth.-L. J. 28.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE home needs women educators as much if not more than the school, for in the home life the affections of the will are freer to disport themselves than in school, where the affections of the understanding predominate. The Kindergarten of the day is a makeshift for that which ought to be done for children at home in the direct sphere of the mother who has borne the children. Most of the suggestions of Comenius, Pestalozzi, and Froebel which are forced into rules for the Kindergarten ought to remain as suggestions to be used spontaneously in the supervision of the play of children at home. Were this done by nurses (who have had some training), under the wise guidance and oversight of a mother, a much greater fullness of remains would be implanted in the children, and the nurses themselves would be prepared to become intelligent and wise mothers or mothers' assistants. And what is true of children applies in a more extended sense to the daughters, much of whose time should be spent at home. The "higher education," truly so called, will have, for an object, not the study of the sciences, but the study of affections, in the living books of children's minds, as these are opened to the astonished gaze of girls by wise wives and mothers. Is it not of common sense that a girl's education should be presided over by a wife and mother? Where better can she teach and enforce and illustrate her teaching than at home?
Title Unspecified 1893
THE case is clearly stated by the minority of the New York Association where they say:
"The duties of unmarried women and widows are, like those of married women, primarily domestic, and are to be determined principally by what is taught about the respective duties of husbands and wives . . . there is ample scope in this direction for the employment of at least most of the feminine energy that is now seeking an outlet, if women are willing to take advantage of it. . . Great injury is being done by the general failure to recognize this principle. From the shop-girl up there is an increasing tendency to neglect the domestic duties that more properly belong to woman,' and in the faithful discharge of which she can best work out her regeneration, and to crowd into fields heretofore occupied by her father and brothers. It is a complaint that is felt and heard on all sides: and as a consequence, not only is the capacity of man to maintain a home lessened by the competition of women, but the home itself is rendered less attractive and less powerful for good" (Report of a Committee of the New York Association, etc., p. 21).
As is hinted at here among other things, there is a growing, scarcity of domestics in the world, and New Church people, who live in and with the world, share the distress which it entails. The dominating love of self which would do away with all subordination, and which is, fostered by the teachings of modern democracy, has led to a contempt for service. And where want forces young girls and women to seek for work, they prefer almost everything o the honorable position of servant in a family.
Title Unspecified 1893
IN a state of order, the servants in a family ought to form part of it, and not be considered as mere hirelings. There ought to be a relationship between them, much like that of children and parents, the servants being cheerfully obedient to master and mistress, and the latter, from affection, concerning themselves about the spiritual welfare of their servants.
In most ancient times, when men were distinguished into houses, families, and nations, a house consisted of the husband and wife with their children, and also some of their family, who served. A family consisted of more or fewer houses, and a nation of more or fewer families (A. C. 470). The laws of order require, that all who live as one house, should be bound together by spiritual ties, not principally by blood relationship, for they should all think as one (A. C. 9213). For this reason, servants in) the golden age were selected from the "family," for in that age the blood relationship was, in correspondence with the spiritual kinship. At the present day this is very far from being the case. But in the New Church, where the Divine Order, newly revealed, is to be rationally accepted and adopted in all the affairs of life, loyally to the laws of that order will lead its members to establish, as far as possible houses in which oneness of thought and purpose shall animate all from the head of the house to the youngest child and lowest servant. The beginning of this is made by the young of the Church, when they look forward to marriage within the New Church, with one whose deepest love is directed to the LORD and His Church. This is the greatest and most important step. For this must they be educated. And their education also involves instruction in those things which will enable them to rear children in love, honor, and obedience.
Title Unspecified 1893
As the boys are prepared for their distinctive duties in life by entering positions of service in whatever calling they select, contentedly remaining in subordinate positions, if the Divine Providence should not advance them to become masters in their business, so the girls need to be prepared in a similar manner for their distinctive duties in life, and when the opportunity for serving their parents at home does not present itself, opportunities should be afforded in households related in the spirit of the New Church, for them to prepare there, in the sphere of conjugial love, for their own future positions as wives and mothers; or, if the LORD should not bring them to the desired goal in this world, to remain in the family to perform one or some of the great variety of uses that belong to the home.
Title Unspecified 1893
HOME.- Home-life and home uses are as yet as little comprehended as is the love on which they are based- Conjugial love. The rush for money, on the one hand, the love for spending it on the other, or, more euphemistically, business anxiety on the one hand, and, the distractions which, the world offers on the other, leave little time or disposition for the peaceful, calm, and contented family life in which attention to the necessities of the body is blended with due regard for the soundness of the mind, and where, even if spiritual matters do not as yet take the first place spontaneously, there is on the part of all a willingness for self- Compulsion to compass this end.
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Title Unspecified 1893
IF parents will look at the subject from this point of view, be desirous of having servants as part of their family, to whom they are in duty bound to exercise the same spiritual oversight as over their children-if they are willing that their own children should enter other congenial households on the same terms-if the children will be taught to fill such positions- A variety of spiritual as well as natural domestic uses will develop, of which we have as yet a very faint conception. The Church will grow, not primarily in numbers-on that score we need never be anxious-but in quality. The vexatious, annoyances, and infestations which the servant question now causes will be greatly reduced; the housewife can enter upon loftier uses in her household; the husband can devote himself more freely to a consideration of the spiritual laws which should govern his actions and those of his house; the children will be spared the insinuation of evils which frequently come from unprincipled servants, and thus be more fully prepared for regenerate life; and the servants themselves will develop in a sphere a hundred times better than that of the business world; for, notwithstanding the Church is feeble, yet in such a house the LORD is known and acknowledged in some measure. He can far better protect His own, where His means for this end are received, even though it be in humble and lowly fashion.
Feasts 1893
Moreover the feasts which were instituted among that people, which were three in the year, are said to have been instituted in memory of deliverance from slavery in Egypt-i. e., in a spiritual sense, in memory of deliverance from infestation by falsities, by the advent of the Lord into the world.- A. C. 7093.
THREE FEASTS Rev. E. C. BOSTOCK 1893
"Three times you shall feast to Me in the year. The feast of unleavened bread thou shall keep; seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I have commanded thee, at the stated time of the month Abib, because in it thou went est forth from the land of Egypt; and they shall not see My faces empty. And the feast of the harvest of the first fruits of thy works, which thou hast sown in the field; and the feast of collections in the going out of the year, in thy collecting thy works from the field. Three times in the year all thy males shall be seen before the faces of the LORD JEHOVAH. Thou shalt not sacrifice upon ferment the blood of My sacrifice; and the fat of My feast shall not pass the night even to the morning. The first of the first fruits of thy ground thou shalt introduce to the house of JEHOVAH thy GOD. Thou shalt not cook a kid in his mother's milk."-Exodus xxiii, 14-19.
THESE three feasts which were commanded the Sons of Israel represent permanent worship of the LORD and thanksgiving on account of liberation from damnation.
To elevate our minds to the interior truths contained in the words of our text we cannot do better than to read and reflect upon the LORD'S own explanation of the opening words, as given in the Arcana Coelestia.
"Three times thou shalt feast to me in the year, that it signifies permanent worship of the LORD and thanksgiving on account of liberation from damnation, appears from the signification of to feast or to make a feast, that it is worship of the LORD from a joyful mind on account of liberation from damnation . . . and from the signification of three times in the year, that it is a state full to the end; for three signifies full from beginning to end; . . . and year a whole period, here, therefore, full and complete liberation; or b the feast of unleavened bread is signified liberation from falsities; by the feast of the harvest, the implantation of truth in good; and by the feast of collections, the implantation of good thence, thus full liberation from damnation; for when man is purified from falses, and thence introduced by truths into good, and at length when he is in good then he is in heaven with the LORD, thence then there is full liberation. The degrees of successive liberation from damnation are as the successive degrees of regeneration, for regeneration is liberation from hell and introduction into heaven by the LORD; for the man who is regenerated is first purified from falses, then with him the truths of faith are implanted in the good of charity, and at length that good itself is implanted, which being done man is regenerated and then is in heaven with the LORD; for which reason by the three feasts in the year is also signified worship of the LORD and thanksgiving on account of regeneration. Because on account of the remembrance of those things those feasts were instituted perennially, therefore it is said worship and thanksgiving remaining, for those things which are especially of worship are to remain continually; those things which remain continually are those which are not only of the memory, but are also inscribed on the life itself; and then they are said to reign universally with men" (No. 9286).
One of the first thoughts that inflow into our minds as we read this teaching from the LORD is, what is necessary that we may internally celebrate these feasts, permanently worship the LORD, and give thanks to Him on account of liberation from damnation?
It is manifest that only those who have passed through the three spiritual states represented by the three feasts can celebrate them in fullness; only these can be said to be in a state of permanent worship and thanksgiving from a joyful mind, on account of full liberation from damnation.
But every one who has come into the New Church, and has therefore begun the journey from hell to heaven, under the guidance of the LORD- Can worship Him and give thanks for his present state of liberation and for the full liberation that he knows will come if he but persevere in the obedience to the LORD'S truth.
Each one has, then, power from the LORD to worship and to give thanks, an of joyful mind, according to the degree of his liberation from damnation. They who have come out of Egypt, who are liberated from falsities, or who have been led out of the infestation of falsities, can worship the LORD, give thanks to Him, and be of a joyful mind on account of that liberation.
They in whom truth has begun to be implanted in good, who have begun to live the truth and thence have in themselves a forming and growing affection for the truth, can worship the LORD, give thanks, and rejoice from that state. Their worship, thanks, and joy of mind will be more interior than with those of the first state.
Those in whom the good of charity has been implanted, who have passed through their states of reformation and regeneration, and are thus in heaven with the LORD, as to the state of their wills and understandings, can worship the LORD and give thanks to Him for full liberation from damnation; they can rejoice and be of a glad mind in the permanent possession of the fruits of the field, of the vineyard, and of the olive tree.
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Preeminently they can celebrate the feast of collection or of ingathering at the going out of the year.
In order that man may worship the LORD and give thanks to Him on account of liberation from damnation, and, indeed, that man may be liberated from damnation, he must first see that he is in a state of damnation. He must see that as to himself, and his own proprium, he is in evil and in danger of spiritual destruction or death. He must be affected with fear for his very life, and he must turn away and look for a means of escape. We may come to service and take part in all the externals of worship; but we have really no part in them if we do not see and acknowledge that we are in a state of damnation when left to ourselves. We must realize the danger before we can be thankful for deliverance. The first step in liberation from hell or from damnation is to realize that we are in hell. Indeed, when man does see this and looks for liberation, he is liberated from one great falsity, viz.: that he is in good and truth himself.
But it is not only necessary to see that we are in danger of losing our eternal life, that we are in the hands of thieves and murderers, we must come to see that it is impossible to liberate ourselves. This is not seen in the beginning of regeneration, even though we may know the doctrine concerning it, and acknowledge that doctrine to be true. In the beginning man strives to liberate himself. This may be manifest to him if he examines himself and sees the delight he feels when he thinks that he has discovered some truth or done some good. It is manifest that so long as man feels and thinks that he liberates himself he cannot enter interiorly into worship of the LORD and thanksgiving on account of liberation from damnation.
As man, beginning from the perception of his danger, strives to liberate himself by shunning evils as sins against the LORD, the LORD opens his eyes to see that he never can liberate himself, but that the LORD alone liberates. Then he realizes more fully than ever his state of damnation and trust in and love of self. Then he is affected more and more interiorly by the Divine Mercy of the LORD, and so comes into more interior worship of Him and into a state of thanksgiving and joy of mind, that the LORD in His Infinite Mercy liberates him from damnation and continually preserves him in heaven.
The quality of our worship, thanksgiving, and joy of mind depends upon our perception of these three things:
Our state of damnation and need of liberation.
Our utter inability to liberate ourselves.
That the LORD alone liberates and can liberate from damnation.
And from these comes our love for good and truth, the implantation and reception of which are liberation and heaven.
This is the true thanksgiving which aught to animate each one of us. The fruits of the field, of the vineyard, and of the olive- Tree ought to be to us representatives of the fruits of regeneration, spiritual goods, and truths. We ought to elevate our minds to the contemplation of these fruits, and be thankful for them as the greatest good which we can receive from the LORD.
We ought, however, to be thankful to the LORD for earthly goods, for He gives them also. As we look to Him and give thanks for these goods let us withdraw our minds from the mere quantity of such goods, and call to mind the LORD'S teaching, that He gives to each one of us the goods of this world, as they are conducive to eternal welfare. Let us be thankful for this, and strive to live contented with our own, using what the LORD gives us for the uses of life. Thus in descending to these external goods let us suffer the LORD again to elevate us to the contemplation of the goods of eternal life, the only real goods.
The limits of time and space prevent us from here entering into the particulars of the teaching concerning these three feasts. A few words may be said, however, concerning the three states represented by them.
The first feast- The Passover or Feast of Unleavened Bread-represents "purification from falsities."
This is the first state of liberation-viz., the state of reformation. It is also represented by the going out of the Sons of Israel and their journey to the land of Canaan. Man cannot receive truths till he is liberated or purified from falsities. And he cannot receive goods except in truths. This is the first struggle then-viz., to reject the falsities which fill his mind. With many this is a severe and bitter struggle, for falsities have been imbibed with affection and it is hard to give them up; so hard that man finds it difficult to see the truth because of the darkness of falsity. The difficulty of this state may be seen from the difficulties experienced by the Sons of Israel in coming out of Egypt and in the journey to the land of Canaan. By the struggles and temptations of this state man's understanding is formed, falsities are rejected, and truths received, and he can then celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
When this state is over, truth must be implanted in good. Truths must not only be known and acknowledged but they must be implanted in good-i. e., they must enter into and be conjoined with affection. Evils must be rejected and goods must take their place.
The beginning of this state, and indeed the first implantation and conjunction, is represented by the Feast of the First Fruits-i. e., the second feast. The same is also represented by the entrance of the Sons of Israel into the land of Canaan.
In this state, by a life according to the truth, man comes into the affection of truth. He begins to act from affection; before, he had acted from obedience, he needs must compel himself to shun evil and do truth. Now he begins to love to do the truth and to feel abhorrence for evil and falsity. This affection is not strong nor marked at first, but it is there. It begins to be felt, and now man can celebrate the second feast- The Feast of the First Fruits of His works which he has planted in the field.
Fruits are goods, and goods exist when there is affection and its delight. The truths of faith, which are as seeds, grow and produce fruits, and the first fruits are the affections for truth and good by which man is animated to do, without the necessity of compulsion. From this first state of fruit-bearing, man can worship the LORD and give thanks to Him with a joyful mind, for the harvest is in sight; he begins to experience the delight of genuine charity, a delight exceeding all worldly delights in its perfect peace and happiness.
But from the time of first fruits another course is to be run; or, what is the same, when the Israelites have just crossed the Jordan and entered the land of Canaan, there is still combat before them. The land must be conquered the inhabitants must be driven out or exterminated before the Sons of Israel can enter in, dwell in the land, and cultivate it. This must be done little by little, little by little- As the LORD says:
"I will not expel them from before thee in one year, lest perchance the earth be desolate and the wild beasts of the field be multiplied upon thee.
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Little by little I will expel them from before thee, until thou art fruitful and inherit the earth" (Exodus xxiii, 29, 30).
When this state is completed and the goods of charity are implanted in man he acts from affection. The Inhabitants of the Land-evils- Are expelled. He has become fruitful and the land is inherited-i. e., goods and truths. In this state combat ceases. The LORD holds him in charity or love to the neighbor, he is regenerated and is in heaven with the LORD. Then he is in a state of permanent worship of the LORD and thanksgiving, from which he can never be withdrawn.
This is represented by the third feast, viz.: the Feast of Collection in the going out of the year. The same is represented by the dwelling of the Sons of Israel in the Land of Canaan after its conquest.
Perhaps few of us are in internals of this feast from the state of full regeneration, with its state of deep worship and thanksgiving; but we can all give thanks and be of a joyful mind from such good and truth as we have been enabled to receive from the LORD. We can see in this feast the Divine Promise of the future. We can worship the LORD and return thanks to Him that He has liberated us from the falsities of the vastated Church and that He has led us each one thus far on the way. We can rejoice in the goods thus far received and look forward with an assured hope to the more perfect and full liberation of the future when we shall-"Dwelt in the Land in safety. And the Land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat your fill, and dwell therein in safety" (Leviticus xxv, 18, 19). "For the Land whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou showedst thy seed and wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs: but the land whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, it drinketh water of the rain of heaven: a land which the LORD thy God careth for the eyes of the LORD thy God are always upon it from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year" (Deuteronomy xi, 10-12).
PRAYER.
O LORD JESUS CHRIST our FATHER in the Heavens, we give Thee thanks for Thy Divine Work of Redemption by which we are liberated from damnation. We thank Thee for the light of Thy Divine Truth. We thank Thee for the ability to see our evil and fallen state in the light of that truth. We thank Thee for liberation from the infestation of falsities and especially' that Thou has enabled us to see that we can by no possibility liberate ourselves; but rather that left to ourselves we plunge the more deeply into hell.
We thank Thee for the power to see our evils and to shun them as sins against Thee.
We thank Thee for the implantation of truths in good and for the heavenly delights of the affection of truth.
We thank Thee for the implantation of goods and for the innocence, peace, and security of the state of permanent worship and thanksgiving to Thee our CREATOR, REDEEMER, and SAVIOUR.- AMEN.
New Heaven from Christians 1893
It is to be known that since the Last Judgment, which was accomplished in the year 1757 in the Spiritual World, . . . there has been formed a New Heaven from Christians.- A. R. Pref.
TRUTHS OF FAITH AND THE GOODS OF LOVE 1893
GENESIS XLIX, 16-33.
(16.) THEY who are in truth; and not as yet in good, except some good of life from truth, but not as yet from good, are in the ultimate heaven, or in the ultimate of the LORD'S Kingdom; this is a truth in general in its office.
(17.) These reason from the sensual about truth, because good does not as yet lead, and from truth about good, wherefore they are in fallacies from lowest nature, whence comes recession from the truth. It is manifest that they who are in truth and not yet in good, are in fallacies from lowest nature, for that truth is not in any light, unless good appertain to it or be in it, for good is like a flame which emits light from itself, and when good then meets with any truth, it not only illuminates it, but also introduces it into its own light to itself. They therefore who are in truth and not yet in good, are in shade and darkness, because truth has nothing of light from itself, and the light which they have from good is faint, as a light which is going out. Wherefore such recede from the truth (18.) unless the LORD brings aid.
(19.) They who are in works from truth and not yet from good, are in works without judgment, which disturb from truth, whence there is want of order in the natural. They who do works from truth and not yet from good, must needs bring about a want of order in their natural, for works affect the natural; and consequently they must needs close to themselves interior things, for the plane in which interior things terminate is the natural; and if this be without order, the things which inflow from the interior become without order also; and the thing which are without order are dark and opaque, wherefore they cannot see what truth is, but in that opacity and darkness they seize for truth what is not truth, and from this non- Truth they perform works.
(20.) The blessedness of the celestial affections, which are of love to the LORD and of charity toward the neighbor, constitutes the happiness of eternal life. In it is delight from good and what is pleasant from truth. The delight from good and pleasantness from truth, which constitute the blessedness in heaven, do not consist in idleness, but in activity; for what is delightful and pleasant in idleness becomes undelightful and unpleasant; but what is delightful and pleasant in activity remains and continually elevates, and constitutes blessedness. Activity with those who are in heaven consists in performing uses, which to them is the delight from good; and in relishing truth, with a view to uses, which to them is pleasantness from truth.
(21.) After temptations comes a state in which there is freedom of the natural affections, whence there is gladness of mind.
(22.) The spiritual Church in which the LORD is present as to the Divine spiritual, is the spiritual Kingdom and the good of faith, whence it has fructification and multiplication; its fructification is from truth from the Word. They who are of the LORD'S Spiritual Church, from truth from the Word learn to know what good is, and thus by truth are initiated into good, whence is fructification. This Church is prepared to fight against falses. In the Supreme Sense here the LORD is represented as to the Divine Spiritual; the LORD is nothing else than Divine Good; what proceeds from His Divine Good, and inflows into Heaven, in His celestial Kingdom is called the Divine Celestial, and in His spiritual Kingdom, the Divine Spiritual; thus the Divine Spiritual are so called in respect to receptions.
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(23.) But the spiritual Church meets with resistance from falses, for from them the opponents of the Church fight with all enmity.
(24.) But the Church is safe by the combating truth of doctrine; for the power of the strength of fighting is given by the omnipotence of the LORD'S Divine Human; hence, is all good and truth to the spiritual Kingdom.
(26.) From the God of the Ancient Church, which was spiritual, and in which the LORD was worshiped, comes the help in the combats spoken of above; the same God is the LORD, Who is the benefactor after temptations, for He then inflows with good and truth from within, and gifts with scientifics which are in the natural, and with the affections of good and truth and their conjunction.
(26.) The Spiritual Church has spiritual good from the natural or external man, but not from the rational or internal, but it may come to mutual celestial love, as to its interiors and as to its exteriors.
(27.) The truth of the good of the spiritual Church has avidity for snatching away and delivering the good from hell; when the LORD is present this is done, and they who are in this truth have possession in the LORD'S Kingdom while as yet they are in obscurity.
(28.) In this series all truths and goods in the complex are treated of; all these have communication by influx from spiritual good, and predictions are made concerning spiritual life, as to what would befall every one when in such a state as any of the above describe thus in this series are described all the states of the Church as to goods and truths, thus as to the spiritual life within the Church.
(29.) It is insinuated that spiritual good must be in the goods and truths of the natural, which are from it; for therein are interiors and the inmost, where is obscurity, but where there may yet be clearness.
(30.) In that obscurity as to its quantity and quality there is redemption from the LORD, and regeneration for those in the Church with whom good and truth can be received.
(31.) All interior things are in order in good and truth in the natural.
(32.) All they are redeemed who in the Church, and yet in obscurity, receive truth, and by truth good.
(33.) The effect of the insinuation of spiritual good into the goods and truths of the natural is that it receives new life therein; wherefore the LORD inflows as to spiritual good into the goods and truths of the natural which are from Himself.
Lord will effect 1893
The Lord will effect the Judgment from His Divine Human, because He is the Word- A. R. 273.
WEDDING GARMENT 1893
A TALE.
(Copyrighted.)
XXI.-( Concluded.)
To sit at the banquet in our college on festal days I had heretofore seemed a happiness all complete, but now I knew that, as compared with this great feast, it was as light without heat, or as the white of the rainbow without the red.
While we were still seated the head-master addressed the young men and maidens directly on the subject of marriage, of the loveliness and ineffable joys of a true union of souls, describing it as the very crown of angelic happiness, which was to be desired with the whole heart. Be reminded them that this precious love originates in the marriage of good and truth, and that it can therefore find a real abiding-place only in the hearts of the regenerate. He also spoke of the particular representation of man and woman in this heavenly marriage: the husband, who in his inmost is the love of good and wisdom thence, represents good; and the wife, who in her inmost is the love of truth from the LORD in the husband, representing truth. Thus are good and truth eternally joined in every true marriage, the consorts having each individually joined truth to good in their own minds and hearts by confirming right thinking with right doing.
The head-master also spoke of beauty, deducing its origin from the union of good and truth, or of love and wisdom; the union of love with wisdom in a youth, and of wisdom with its love in a maiden. A maiden does not love wisdom in herself but in a youth, and hence sees him as beauty, and a youth, observing this in a maiden, sees her as beauty. The outward is in correspondence with this inward beauty. The chief external constituents of the beauty of the countenance are the red and white, and their lovely mingling; and the red belongs to good or love, and the white to truth or wisdom, love being red from its fire, and wisdom, white from its light. Thus is the marriage of good and truth, or of love and wisdom, mirrored in the very faces of the angels.
As they listened, the young men looked across to the maidens, each to that one of his choice; and the maidens looked back-not, indeed, with the ardor of the youths, but none the less with true tokens of friendship. And so with each and all the feast was a feast of love-of love to the LORD and to the neighbor, and of the love of regenerated and regenerating man for woman. This was a foretaste of the joys of heaven itself.
Later there were games and dances, and delightful conversation. The angel masters and mothers were ever present-indeed, they took part in the merry recreations- And there was no opportunity for more than a few words of private speech; but what mattered that? That was according to order, and therefore good. Though the tongue might be silent, the face was there to speak. The science of facial speech is lost on earth, but is known in heaven. The eye was there to tell the soul's secrets. What mattered anything?- All was well. I could stand near my love; occasionally in the dance I touched her hand. And once- Ah! once the wind lifted some strands of her soft dark hair into my face. The very physical world was all a glory were she but near.
Love is indeed from heaven, for the true lover exalts the object of his tenderness as high above self as the stars are high above the earth.
In the Valley of the Rainbow that day we danced a dance in which all joined, and which was a wonder of intricate mazes-in which I lost my love but ever found her again-in which, whenever it became her turn to touch the hand of man, it so befell that I alone was there and, she touched mine; in all the mazes of that gay dance did she touch none but me.
"She is mine-mine alone," was the thought which came and came again in a flood of rapture, as I observed this ever-favoring chance which was far more than chance.
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XXII.
THE JEWEL OF HUMAN LIFE.
BUT months of study and struggle were yet to pass ere my wedding garment would be complete. As I sat at the college banquet on festal days and listened to the appointed student delivering his speech, as I watched' the soul-stirring spectacle of the placing of the victor's chaplet upon his head by an angel of heaven, or saw him return to his seat still unprepared- As was now and again the case-I wondered when my time would come.
I felt that the time would come, and was not impatient, being the more truly content to wait from seeing my beloved on occasional golden days. Trust and confidence in the LORD of all goodness had grown with me, but I was still open to temptation. I was not yet able, the power had not yet been given me, to shut out every vestige of evil from my intention and thought. In the daily, searching self-examination I could still detect traces of the inclination away from the good and true. There were times when my attitude in thought toward my brother students was not wholly one of love and charity; the old spirit of rivalry, of jealousy, with the accompanying tendency toward injustice, slumbered only, and was not dead. Worse than this, there were I times when I was infested with the thought of my own worthiness, oblivious of the truth that what worthiness I existed was only adjoined to me and not my very own. The forms of discipline, adapted to these evil states, which came to me under the LORD'S providence, were many and various. The nature of one will be indicated here in the relation of an incident.
As I walked forth from the college alone, one day, little by little a feeling of jealousy and unkindness toward certain of my unoffending companions was awakened and grew in my mind. Unrebuked at the outset, the evil suggestion soon gained a firm hold, and as it strengthened it so absorbed my interest that I scarcely noted the ominous changes in the surrounding vegetation, which from beautiful became indifferent, and presently barren and cheerless. Unheeding, I pursued my course, still cherishing my evil thoughts, until state of infestation was as profound as sad, and until lost my way in a wild and pathless region, where there was no sign of human or even animal life, and where I wandered for hours, affrighted by the loneliness and desolation. In the stunted, hideous vegetation, thistles, briars, thorns, brambles, nettles, and the deadly aconite were alone conspicuous.
It was clear from all these signs that I was approaching hell, whence come such feelings and thoughts, and whither they lead. Awakened to my situation all at once, in the pains of an overwhelming remorse, I fell, upon my face and humbly confessed that of myself I was nothing but evil, and but for the restraining hand of the LORD, hell would be my own proper place. Not until this repentance was most profoundly sincere, not until all enviousness was dead, and only tender friendship for my brethren filled my heart, could I find my way upward from that place.
Thus, by being as it were let down into my former self, was I taught the wholesome truth that the good adjoined to me from above was not truly mine own, and should be ascribed to its only Source.
But the time was, at last, when the evil of my nature was fully and finally rendered quiescent, when I looked to the LORD in all things and willed better to my brethren than to myself, and now there came over me the feeling of which Alaric had spoken- The premonition that my removal was near. And so, at last, it; came about that one day in the banqueting ball, as I stood before my masters and my brethren and spoke words of truth inspired from heaven, a great light filled the place, and an angel was seen placing a wreath of laurel upon my head.
Nothing was ever more unexpected; I thought of and was intent only on the truth which it was my blessed privilege to speak. Having uttered the last word, I stood still for one moment before moving to take my seat. It was then that the light shone and the angel came. The touch of his hands in placing the chaplet on my head was to me as a benediction from the Most High, and I could have fallen on my face and worshiped.
But the angel took my hand and led me through that mysterious door into that chamber where Alaric had disappeared. A single glance revealed far more magnificence than any other part of the college could boast, for the eye rested on walls covered with beautiful and significative frescoes in silver on a ground of gold, and on a floor formed of one single glistening dark-red stone. Into this retreat all the masters followed us, and their leader and head, receiving a beautiful garment from the angel, whom with profound satisfaction and pleasure I now recognized as Ariel, thus addressed me:
"You have now, dear friend and brother, fully and finally prepared yourself to enter that society of heaven for which you are by nature best fitted, and where you can be most interiorly useful and happy. You have become spiritually clothed from the LORD, and so approach the marriage feast of eternity, wearing the required nuptial robe. It is, therefore, fitting that you should be externally clothed in correspondence with your internal state, and you are now presented with this wedding garment, given to you from the LORD, and brought by this heaven-sent messenger"-glancing toward Ariel.
"With all my heart and soul I bless and thank the LORD!" I answered, deeply moved.
Then Ariel and the head-master stripped me of the banqueting robe and put upon me the heavenly garment which shined softly, as from an inward light, and which was rich and beautiful in color. Thus clothed, I was conscious already of a great change, and knew that heaven was near.
The angel Ariel now stepped to the other end of the room and threw open a door.
"Go forward through that open door," said the headmaster, "and you will find the jewel of human life." After a moment he added: "We do not now bid you farewell because we shall presently see you again."
Smiling and wondering, looking with affection from my dear master to beloved Ariel, I walked forward from between them.
The door opened on the outer air, and, descending the steps, I found myself in a garden of such wonderful beauty that I was amazed, asking myself how it was that I had not heard the fame of it, since it was entered from our college. The valley of the rainbow near the home of the maidens and their angel guardians was beautiful, but this- Ah, this was most beautiful- This garden of perennial bloom, where the trees bore blossoms and fruit together. The red and the white, the blue and the gold, the green and the purple- All the colors were there in the leaves and the flowers. And the odors which floated with the gentle breezes seemed, as they entered through my nostrils, to exhilarate my very mind and warm my very heart.
With every sense alive to the beauty of the place, I followed a winding path through murmuring groves, past crystal pools, and across laughing, flower-rimmed streams, far into the paradise, wondering where I should find and what was that "jewel of human life" which they bade me seek.
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At last, at a turn of the path, where all the beauties of the garden seemed centered, I came suddenly upon my beloved.
"It is she I" I cried aloud, and leaped and went to her.
She did not shrink from me; she smiled, and as always there was hope and heaven in that smile. I took her hand and held it fast.
"O my beloved!" I said, "when before we met among the myrtles and the almond- Trees it was not permitted me to speak the words of love which died upon my lips, but now-now I feel, I know, there is none to stay me if only you be not offended."
"Say on," she answered, low and graciously. And then- Then was heaven tasted in the interchange of love's dear tokens. In that sweet time she confessed that she had known, had felt, what was to be, on that first golden day when I came and found her with her dove. I had hoped only, but she had known.
"They told me I should find a precious jewel in this garden," I said to her anon. "I have found it-it is you."
She smiled in answer first, but in her smile I could not trace a full assent. "So also they told me when the door was opened to this place," she said. "And we indeed have found it, but the jewel is not you, nor is it I."
"It is our love," I said, as the truth was suddenly clear to me. "The tender love of married pairs in heaven or in earth- This is the jewel of human life.'"
"I now understood that she, too," had been sent forth prepared for heaven from the school of the maidens and had been given a wedding garment suited to her state. As this was mentioned, she glanced downward at her beautiful clothing, and, my eyes following hers, I saw that it was a rich silken robe with trimmings of golden leaves and diamond blossoms. The color of the robe resembled that of the fire-opal, and, as my love's eyes returned to my face, I saw the rose tints in it brighten as the foam-bow brightens in the wind. Her face, too, brightened-flamed-but with an added expression of heavenly loveliness rather than with color.
A true realization of our position now dawned on us: this was our wedding day. These garments were truly ours individually, since they were representative of the spiritual clothing of good and truth, of which we had separately possessed ourselves; but they were at the same time ours conjointly, for they were to be worn at our wedding. In a double sense were they our wedding garments, it being manifestly intended that we should enter heaven together as a married pair.
What shall I say of our feelings as this became clear to us?-of our interchange of thoughts afterward when we had found a seat in a lovely bower among sweet shrubs and flowers?-of our words and tokens of love as we promised ourselves each to the other to eternity?
It is better that nothing be said, since these things are inexpressible. But let this be said: anon our thoughts turned reverently toward the Source whence flows all our happiness and our very life. Then hand in hand we kneeled upon the' lush grass and flowers at our feet, lifting our inner eyes toward the glorious Sun of heaven. And in such words as these-words which took form, in that heavenly tongue, as flowing rhythm-did I give utterance to the thoughts which stirred our souls:
"O loving Father of eternity, 0 Divine Giver of all love and light, O Prince of peace and joy, O merciful LORD and Saviour, we bare our hearts before Thine eyes and lift our souls to Thee! Look down on us from the high seat of Thy Divine majesty and glory; deign now to accept us as Thy thankful servants and as willing subjects of Thy heavenly kingdom. Grant us there to walk uprightly before Thee to eternity, praising Thy name forever, in purity of thought and doing. We know, O loving Father, that Thy blessing pours forth ever on Thy creatures, even as the sun's rays fall upon the earth unsparingly, yet now we ask Thy benediction on this our wedding day. Give to us that we may be married as good and truth are married; give to us that love's undying torch, which lives alone from Thee, may burn within our hearts, our lives ennobling to eternity. Loving Father, Thou knowest all our needs and all our thoughts before we speak, yet we thus speak from hearts abrim with thankfulness for all the glorious happiness which is ours from Thee."
XXIII.
WE CROSS THE BORDER.
As we rose to our feet, tears of great joy in our eyes, and hand in hand walked forward from that place, two turtledoves flew up from some near perch and saluted us with their soft, caressing notes. This seemed the signal for the joyous uplifting of a thousand bird-voices among the neighboring trees. Farther along the path, while this sweet harmony still lingered in our ears, young lambs and fawns came forth from the groves on either hand, and looked upon us with fearless and friendly eyes. And then, as the bird-song died away, a chorus of beautiful human voices grew upon our hearing, and anon we passed an assembly of lovely young virgins who stood on either side of our path, smiling upon us and singing a song of love.
And then-O miracle of beauty!-it seemed to us that a shower of golden rain descended upon us from on high.
"The outward representative of the inward descent of the Divine blessing, for which we prayed-mayhap," I whispered, when it had ceased.
We now saw that we were approaching the limit of the garden. Before us stood a house of a pearl-like stone, built into the wall after the manner of park lodges, but much larger. As we drew near a man rose from a seat near by, and, throwing wide the door, courteously invited us to enter.
Ascending the steps and passing through the doorway we found ourselves in a beautiful hall or reception room, where, all in wonder and good pleasure, we saw to the right and to the left the familiar faces of friends. All the masters from my school and the angel-mothers from my love's were there, besides Ariel and my dear comrade, Alaric. A second glance showed still another, and this a stranger- A very noble-looking man in rich flowing robes of a flaming purple.
As we entered, hesitating, leaning together and looking about us, this noble person fixed his eyes upon us, and, with solemn emphasis, pronounced the words:
"May the Divine blessing be upon you!"
Then my beloved master slowly and earnestly repeated the same, and after him the chief of the angel-mothers. Following, each of the remaining masters and angel-mothers then singly uttered the words; and lastly Ariel and Alaric. Then' all together, as with one voice-"May the Divine blessing be upon you!"
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And we stood there with throbbing hearts, thrilled to the soul. Assuredly this was the LORD'S own benediction spoken through the mouths of His angels.
"We thank you from our hearts, good friends," I said at last, profoundly calm. There was no added word from my beloved, but her radiant face returned full thanks.
The head-master now approached, and presently led us to the noble person who had blessed us first, and who was now seated in an elevated chair of gold beneath a beautiful arching canopy.
"You must," said the master, "be presented to your Prince, who has come here to do you honor on your wedding-day- The noble ruler of that heavenly society to which you and your loved one now belong."
From the first moment I loved him, and with true devotion and reverence I that day bent before my Prince and kissed his hand, listening then with gladness to the wise and kindly words accompanying his congratulations.
"You will dine with me at the palace to-day," he told us, ore he ceased to speak, "and afterward the young men and maidens of the court, singing heavenly choruses, will precede and follow your chariot through the streets to the eternal home which has been provided for you by the LORD."
And then," he added, speaking to me singly when I had made fitting response, "in a day or two you will receive appointment of duty in the use which you have chosen."
After this all of the company, one after another, passed before us and pressed our hands, uttering words well chosen. Last of all Alaric.
"You were good to come and meet me, dearest friend," I said to him, in gratitude. And after he had spoken: "You too," I said-with a long look into the eyes of the loved one at my side-"you, too, have your heavenly consort?"
"She is not far away, and you will see her shortly," he answered, with a glad flash of the eye.
But now wine had been poured into golden goblets and passed around, and, at the word of the Prince, all drank to the spiritual health and prosperity of the newly-wedded pair.
"And we," I said, as wine was given us, "we drink to our beloved Prince and brethren."
After this ceremony there was a sound from without, and a door opposite the one we had entered was opened, framing an extended view of a beautiful open country. The Prince then saluted the representatives of the two schools and descended to his chariot, smiling upon us as he passed and announcing:
"You are now to follow me."
Thus ended that happy, festive hour, for now all the masters and angel-mothers bade us farewell-with expressions of joy rather than regret, thinking not of the parting but of our well-being and happiness. And then, escorted by Ariel and Alaric, we also descended to our chariot.
The chariot of the Prince, which was of beaten gold with brass- Tired wheels of a red wood, and which was drawn by twelve white horses, had now moved forward to give place to ours, which was also of gold and drawn by white horses four in number.
"How?" I asked, surprised, when my love and I were seated, and Alaric stood on the right and Ariel on the left of our beautiful carriage, "are we to ride and you to walk?"
"Even so," was Ariel's answer, with a smile, "we would thus do you honor on your wedding day."
And in such state we moved forward.
As presently we climbed the slope of a hill, along a beaten track adorned with vine- Twined laurels, the Prince's chariot leading, I observed with wonder the unfamiliar country on either hand, and at the hill- Top I drew in my breath with almost a gasp, for there, spread out before us, was the most beautiful valley I had ever beheld, and in the blue distance the glistening domes and spires of a great city. I looked around me, behind me, for some familiar feature, but all was changed.
"What is this?" I asked of the two friends walking at our side. "I can no longer see the college building of my masters. Surely we have not yet gone so far."
"You cannot see it," answered Ariel- And both he and Alaric smiled upon me tenderly-"because you have passed beyond the veil."
"The veil? When did we pass? I did not know-"
"No one ever knows."
"And we are now"-I looked into the radiant face of my beloved and back to Ariel again-"and we are now in-"
"In the LORD'S heavenly kingdom."
* * * * *
(The end.)
Notes and Reviews 1893
PART 66 of the Swedenborg Concordance concludes the entries under "light" and gives a part of those under "LORD." This latter entry promises to be the longest yet in the Concordance if not in the whole work. At its commencement the reader is referred to sixty-seven ether entries. This will give some idea of its importance, which is illustrated in the very first reference, which is: "Each and all things of the Word regard the LORD."
"BERING Spirits" is the title of an article in the New- Church Independent, in which is related, with all seriousness, how an evil spirit was seen and driven away by a person whose name is given. It gives in the following words the manner of the fiend's departure: "In a roar like that of a wild beast, which all present heard, the fiend dashed through the window and broke several panes of glass in his exit." The question naturally suggests itself "Did the fiend sustain any injury?"
"LOYALTY TO REVEALED TRUTH."
THE annual address to the ministers of the New Church this year was delivered by the Reverend James Reed. "Loyalty to Revealed Truth" is its theme and the treatment is worthy of the title. The address shows that in the Old Church there is no loyalty to revealed truth because no acknowledgment of it, for all authority in matters of religion is ascribed to sources merely human, viz., reason, the Church, and human perversions of the Word.
A few of the trenchant sentences in which the address is rich will give the best idea of the subsequent trend.
"There can be but one fountain of divine authority, and that is the divine truth whereby the LORD God reveals Himself to human beings. . . . The Church never had, can have, or will have, any legitimate authority distinct from or independent of the authority of revealed truth committed to its charge. . . . From the beginning to the end of time it [human reason] has never given birth to a single spiritual conception. Still less can it of itself reveal God.. There are no such reasoners as the devils themselves." . . .
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And with those who profess to seek for Christian guidance in the Word alone, the trouble is stated by the address to be that they go not to the Word but to the teachers of the old theology. On the other hand, "The doctrines of the New Church commend themselves to those who receive them, because they are truths of the Word. . . . They are, in their essence, the Word laid open. . . . They are to us the source of divine authority-not different from the authority of Scripture but identical with it. . . . So far as we find their teachings obscure and difficult, or opposed to our preconceived opinions, the trouble must be, not with them, but with ourselves. . . The plainest of all duties which rests upon us is that of unswerving loyalty to the new doctrines. . . . Such loyalty . . . is simple fidelity to divine truth, or, what is the same thing, to the LORD Himself."
The address then considers what, with the individual and with the Church, is involved practically, by loyalty to the truth. "To be loyal to divine truth is to make it the uniform guide of life. There is no possible situation or emergency, no possible subject of contemplation or action on which its light may not be shed. . . In shaping the policy of the Church and in directing its affairs, so far as these duties are devolved upon us [the ministers], our first if not our only question should be, In what way can we give the fittest and fullest expression to the principles for which the Church stands?" And we are warned that to be diverted from giving primary consideration to those principles, by motives of natural expediency, tends to their dissipation with us and to the disintegration of the Church. To avoid these dangers and to secure the benefits of the Divine Revelation in meeting the many problems which disturb the peace of the Church, we are counselled to go apart from outside clamor and, taking "sweet counsel together," and laying aside pride of opinion and' self-will, seek for a common understanding and application of the Divine teaching. When such counsel and such a spirit shall prevail in the Church, practical unanimity-which the address extols-will be no Utopian dream, but an attainable reality. To that end patience should accompany zeal: "Most questions can afford to wait, and we should be willing to let them wait as long as is necessary for their solution."
"In conclusion, the Church is admonished that its growth depends not merely in the making of converts but in the ever deeper and interior understanding and application of its Doctrines. "Loyalty to revealed truth requires that it shall be studied and understood. In the truth revealed to the New Church there is inexhaustible wisdom; and it is the wisdom of heavenly life. . . . . It should be alike our duty and pleasure to dwell, as much as possible, in the peaceful atmosphere of this interior truth. . . . Missionary work on behalf of the New Church is doubtless a good thing. . . . But the
building up of the Church itself in the minds and lives of its members is a higher and better thing."
From the Lord's Divine Human there proceeds the Divine Law or Divine Truth, which is the same as the Word in John. . . (A. C. 6723.)
MR. BARRETT'S AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
THE Autobiography of the Rev. James Fisk Barrett, which, revised and supplemented by his daughter, Miss Gertrude A. Barrett, has been published by the Swedenborg Publishing Association of Germantown, is a very entertaining little book. Mr. Barrett was born in the year 1808 at Dresden, Maine, where his father settled while that entire region was still "thickly covered with forest trees, and no carriage road run through or near the farm." A bright boy, he possessed a great thirst for knowledge and made the utmost of his few educational advantages. The story of his boyhood and youth may well serve as an example for others. Mainly by his own exertions, he received an education that fitted him eventually for the Cambridge Divinity School, the professors of which were liberal Unitarians. The story of his reception of the Doctrines of the New Church is, like that of most people, intensely interesting, and again awakens the wish that some one will make it his use to collect authentic descriptions of the way in which the Divine Providence has led people into the New Church. A volume of such stories would be of great value to the young, and would be of use to all as confirmations and illustrations of the Divine government.
It is delightful to read of the fresh first love of the young Unitarian minister for the Doctrines of the New Church, and the loyalty and disinterestedness with which he followed them out of the Old Church. Unhappily, as the narrative reveals, a change came over the understanding of this gifted man, and this change is best seen in the comments which in the year 1890 he made on one of the most important events of his life, which had taken place fifty years before. Even alter it became known that he had accepted the Doctrines of the New Church, he received overtures from several Unitarian societies to become their pastor, which he properly declined. One of these societies adopted unanimously a resolution to this effect:
"That the society was prepared to extend an invitation to Mr. Barrett to become its pastor, and to allow him to preach as much Swedenborgianism as he pleased or might deem useful, and call it Unitarianism."
Mr. Barrett relates,
"While I finally appreciated then, and do still, the liberality which such a resolution indicated, I told the committee I was not prepared to accept the pastorate of any society at that time; and if I was my conscience would not allow me to comply with the conditions. I knew that what was popularly called Swedenborgianism was not Unitarianism and therefore I could not call it such. But had I been ready to receive or accept a call, I might very properly have said: 'I will call what I preach the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST;' and this I doubt not would have been satisfactory to that society. This is what hundreds of ministers in the various Christian denominations are now doing. They are teaching their people the New Church theology- The doctrines they have learned from reading Swedenborg; and they call it what it really is, the Gospel of our LORD. But they rarely mention the name of Swedenborg, because of the intense but ignorant prejudice against him and his teachings, which it is well-known prevails in nearly every Christian community. And the ministers, I think, act wisely in pursuing this course," etc.
A strange and a sad contrast between Mr. Barrett the younger and Mr. Barrett the elder! Much of the same kind of deceptive argumentation clouds the autobiography, as it beclouded the mind of its writer.
The history of Mr. Barrett's activity in the New Church deserves a more detailed account than the one given in his autobiography, for it plays a noteworthy part in the general spread among men of a knowledge of the Doctrines of the New Church. Though the errors are grave that accompanied most of his work, the Doctrines have become more widely known by his means, and the Divine Providence will overrule the errors and overcome the falses, so that while evil has doubtless resulted, and will continue to result, good will also come of the work which he has done.
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The General Church.
Address all communications for the department of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, to the Secretary, the Rev. Leonard G. Jordan, 2536 Continental Ave., Philadelphia, Pa., Fairmount Station.
ALLENTOWN, PA.
AT Allentown the good work done during the past year, principally by Mr. Boyesen, is taken up, for the present, by Mr. R. H. Keep, B. A., who is spending the summer there.
BROOKLYN, N. Y.
OWING to the absence from the city of several who would attend the services of the Brooklyn Circle, a vacation has been taken for the heated term. It is to be hoped that a public ball may be secured for the use of the Circle on the resumption of public meetings. For the numbers, no more interested or loyal body of the Church than this at Brooklyn is to be found.
CHICAGO, ILL.
AFFAIRS have gone on prosperously with the Immanuel Church. The Church uses have been performed with vigor and delight. Some accessions to the Church have been made. The movement to locate in the country has been forwarded, several families having summered on the premises chosen. An unusual number of visitors from other parts of the Church has been enjoyed, especially since the opening of the World's Fair, and from their presence mutual pleasure and permanent benefit have resulted. The Immanuel Church is not behind any of the particular bodies in loyalty, zeal or intelligence in the principles of the Church, and it is always refreshing to visit it.
MILVERTON, CAN.
THE withdrawal of the Rev. Waelchli from the pastorate of the Milverton Church has not been felt as severely as might have been the case, inasmuch as the Rev. Alfred Acton entered immediately upon work there for the summer. Mr. Acton has preached regularly every Sunday morning, held a doctrinal class in the afternoon, and then conducted practice in the new music for the Church. By special request he has also held a class in the study of Conjugial Love on Saturday evenings. Besides this, Mr. Acton, three afternoons in the week, has taught a class of three children in Religion, the Letter of the Word, reading and writing Hebrew, memorizing the Decalogue and the song "Shema Israel" in Hebrew, reading or hearing the Memorabilia in Conjugial Love in English, and other similar exercises. On July 9th last he baptized two children, making the whole service on that occasion to have reference to the Sacrament. The administration was thus made very full and impressive.
CALIFORNIA.
THE Rev. Richard de Charms, who has been spending a year in Oakland, Cal., having gone there in hope for benefit to the health of his wife, has been obliged, on the latter's account, to go for a time to the southern part of the State and is now in Pasadena. He expects soon to return to his pastoral charge in Denver. It would be a pity to leave the whole Pacific Coast without a single representative among the priests of the Church of the strong, clear view acceptance of the Authority of the Writings of the Second Coming of the LORD. But He Who raised up to fill "with His Spirit, to teach the Doctrines of the New Church through the Word from Him" and whom He commanded to Write on the books prepared by His hands, "This Book is the Advent of the LORD," will yet provide for the Church there, as in other parts of this country, a priestly leader in the acknowledgment of Him in His outward and ultimate Advent the second time, as well as in the internal and particular coming into the heart of life.
It is believed that good and distinctive work in the New Church has been done at Oakland, and that progress there has been such that it will be impossible to go back to the merely general teaching characteristic of most of the priestly work of the Church in this country; a work in many cases scarcely to be distinguished from that of the Old Church.
The Church in Denver will appreciate the return of its pastor, and, it is hoped and believed, enter upon a new and more vigorous and happier stage of life. From a variety of causes no one of the ministers of the General Church has been able to visit Denver during Mr. de Charms' absence; a circumstance greatly to be regretted.
PITTSBURGH, PA.
AN active, united, and altogether delightful sphere has prevailed here since the entrance of the Rev. Homer Synnestvedt upon his work assistant to the Bishop in the pastorate. Uses have been performed in acceptable ministrations of public worship, in musical development, both instrumental and vocal, in the social life, and in recognition of the more perfect order of the Church. At the same time Academical work has proceeded in encouraging ways. The new building for the Church has proved of the greatest utility, but is even now too small for the needs of the congregation. Mr. Synnestvedt has been taking a two months' vacation, and his place has been supplied by Candidate Joseph E. Boyesen, B. A. The latter, at request of members of the congregation, preached a series of sermons upon the Decalogue, prefacing them with one on the Shunning of Evils. There has been a class for reading and singing on Wednesday evenings at which the attendance has been good. A general picnic was an important feature of the social life, and to it additional zest was lent by the presence of Mr. Louis Pendleton and Miss Pendleton, of Philadelphia, and Mr. David Klein, of Brooklyn, then on the way to Chicago.
The question of the custody of the property of the Pittsburgh Society has been decided by the Orphans' Court in favor of the majority to which Mr. Whitehead still ministers. A bill in equity to determine this question had been filed by representatives of the minority, but as the same matter was involved in the interpretation of the will of Mrs. Mary Aitken, who left a legacy of $1,000 to the Society, it was agreed by both parties that the decision of the Orphans' Court should cover both cases. Circumstances prevented the consideration of the matter wholly upon either the distinctively ecclesiastical or the civil plane. The General Church would have contended that the merely civil charter of the Society was for the sole purpose of giving standing in court and for the transaction of business in the holding of real and personal estate, that the development of the Church carried with it the subordination of merely civil rights and the property must follow that development.
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This view was brought out to some extent. On the other hand, the purely civil view of the matter made necessary full compliance with the literal requirements of the Charter. It was shown that the minority had not done this. Moreover, there was offered in evidence a letter of the Bishop written some years ago in which the right of a Society by action of a majority of its members to secede from the Church was apparently acknowledged. The Court ignored the purely ecclesiastical aspects of the case, as appears by the formulated judgment, held to the observance of the Charter as necessary, and, accepting the admission of the Bishop above referred to as still binding, gave the property to the majority. A result, under the circumstances, logically to be expected.
The Church will not fail to observe the difficulty under which the loyal members of the Pittsburgh Society labored. To rely upon the Charter alone involved continuance upon the ministrations of Mr. Whitehead, or, at least, recognition of him as President of the Society, but inasmuch as he had been suspended by the Bishop this would have been in violation of the order of the Church. Not to comply with the Charter violated the civil law, according to the usual technical application of the same. It would have been interesting and perhaps worth the effort, to determine whether the civil law of the land is in accord with the assumption that ecclesiastical bodies may make their own rules and regulations, and hold their property subject to Church government; an assumption warranted by certain decisions of this State. Apart from this the mere question of the holding of the property in the present case was of little consequence, and no one will feel badly over the judgment of the court.
THE Rev. T. F. Robinson, recently graduated from the Theological Department of the Academy with the degree of Bachelor of Theology, has gone to England, and the good wishes of all who have known him in his connection with the School accompany him. It is earnestly hoped that the way may open for his permanent engagement in the uses of the priesthood at Colchester, or, if not there, elsewhere in the land of his nativity. But this is said by no means to the disparagement of his possible usefulness in this country should the way open thereto. Earnest in his affections for the Church and willing to work in whatever field he may be called to, it is not to be doubted that he will be led, in the Divine Providence of the LORD, to a sphere of uses pronounced and valuable.
REFERENCE is made to the new music for the Church, at various points. Some of it is much less difficult than the most and may be acquired by any circle of worship era. Attention is called especially to the "Holy, holy, holy, LORD God Almighty," which will prove much more acceptable than the one usually sung from the Liturgy,' "What shall I render unto the LORD," "Arise! O LORD," and the Third Psalm. It is quite desirable that the distinctive quality' of this music, together with the translations of the Letter of the Word furnished with the same, become, as soon as possible, the property of the whole Church. Universal experience thus far is that the music of the Church has been most Providentially enriched by this new contribution to the language of the affections.
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
DEDICATION OF THE BERLIN SCHOOL- HOUSE.
THE building of the Berlin School of the Academy of the New Church, an illustration of which was sent out with the January number of the Life (see description on page. l0), was formally dedicated on August 6th. Seven priests, including the two actively employed here, took part in the services, and visitors, to the number of about forty, from Parkdale, Milverton, Wellesley, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Brooklyn, come to join with the worshipers on this occasion.
The services were conducted in the beautiful chapel in the upper part of the building. In the absence of the Chancellor of the Academy, who is in Europe, the Vice- Chancellor, Bishop Pendleton, officiated, assisted by the Rev. Messrs. Schreck, Waelchli, Hyatt, Rosenqvist, Synnestvedt, and Alfred Acton. The services began with a period of ten minutes' silence, during which the congregation remained seated in quiet meditation. The priests then entered the main door of the ball, in solemn procession, Bishop Pendleton carrying a copy of the Word of the Old and New Testaments, in Hebrew and Greek, and Pastor Waelchli one of the volumes of Writings, in Latin. These sacred books were placed upon the altar by the Vice- Chancellor, and the priests ascended the platform. All then knelt and prayed the LORD'S Prayer, followed by a prayer by the Vice- Chancellor, after which a selection from the Word was sung. The Doctrine concerning the Holy Spirit was read in unison.
After another interval of silence, the priests, by turns, read selections from the Writings or from the Letter of the Word, while, in the intervals, the congregation participated by singing appropriate Psalms and selections and by unisonal and responsive readings.
The readings from the Letter of the Word were, Psalms cxxxii and cxxv and I Kings, chapter viii. The selections from the Writings taught that the Church on earth is the basis on which the angelic heaven rests, and that man is perfected in wisdom in the angelic heaven in the degree that he on earth learns the truths of the Word and lives according to them in a life of charity, which is a life of uses.
The following is a summary of the Doctrine read during the service:
The quality of the Church depends on its doctrine, but not on its doctrine alone, but on the life according to it. The possession of the Word does not institute and make the Church in man, but a faith according to the truths and a life according to the goods which a man extracts thence and applies to himself (T. C. R. 245).
The existence of the Church on earth is essential to the existence of the angelic heaven, just as the angelic heaven is essential to the existence of the Church in man. The former must terminate and rest in the latter, for unless the spiritual flow into and terminate in the natural, it would be like a prior without a posterior or a cause without an effect. For the spiritual and natural make one and cannot be separated (Coronis, 19).
There is a Church in the heavens as well as on the earth, for the Word is there also; there are also temples, and sermons delivered in them and ministerial and priestly officers; for all angels there once were men and their departure out of the world was only a continuation of life.
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They are, therefore, perfected in wisdom each one according to the degree of the affection of truth and good which he took with him out of the world (A. R. 533).
The Church is more a neighbor than a man's country, for no who provides for the Church provides for the souls and eternal life of the men who inhabit the country, and the Church is provided for when man is led to good. He who does this from charity loves his neighbor, for he wishes and wills heaven and happiness of life to eternity to the other (A. C. 6822).
The Church is not the church from external worship, but from internal worship; for external worship is of the body, while internal worship is of the soul; hence external worship without internal is only a gesture, thus worship without life from the Divine. The man of the Church, by the internal things of worship, communicates with the heavens, to which heavens the external serves as a plane on which interior things may subsist, as a house upon its foundation; and when it so subsists it is complete and firm, and the whole man is ruled from the Divine (A. C. 10,436).
Man at his first creation was endued with wisdom and the love of it, not on account of himself, but on account of its communication with others from himself. "It is a maxim of the wise that no one be wise for himself alone, or live for himself, but for others at the same time. To "live for others is to perform uses which are the bonds of society. Uses are infinite in number. There are spiritual uses which are of love to God and to the neighbor; there are moral and civil uses which are of love to the society and state in which a man lives, and of his fellow- Citizens among whom he dwells; there are natural uses which are of the love of the world and its necessities; and there are corporeal uses which are of the love of self-preservation or he sake of uses of a superior order. Every love has its particular delight, and the delight of the love of uses in heavenly delight (T. C. R. 746).
The Vice- Chancellor then delivered an address, in the course of which he first dedicated the building in general and the Chapel in particular. At the appropriate time he lifted the copy of the opened Word, replacing it again upon the altar. After the dedication of the Chapel six of the priests and the Councillors of the Church in Berlin, with their wives, passed to the school- rooms, below, where the Vice- Chancellor continued his remarks, and in each room formally opened the copy of the Word already in use there, in recognition of the work previously inaugurated.
During this ceremony one priest remained standing in a reverential attitude, as a guard beside the altar on which lay the open Word. When the others returned the Vice- Chancellor, in a moving prayer, supplicated the Divine Presence in the uses of the Church and Schools, and invoked the Divine Blessing upon the work and upon those engaged in it, after which the congregation, still kneeling, united in repeating the beautiful eighty-fourth Psalm.
After the singing of Psalm xv, the Offertory was brought forward, the opened Word closed, benediction pronounced, and the priests read, antiphonally, part of Psalm ilviii; the stringed instruments, which throughout the service had accompanied the singers played a quiet selection; the priests retired and the congregation silently passed to the room below where friendly greetings were exchanged.
Following is the text of the Vice Chancellor's address:
DEDICATORY ADDRESS.
An organized body of men, in which the LORD is acknowledged, and where the Word is, is called a Church. The essentials of such body or Church are, love and faith to the LORD from the LORD, as these exist with the individual men who compose the Church; and the Word teaches how man is to live that he may receive love and faith from the LORD. When the LORD is acknowledged He is present and manifests Himself to the men of the Church; He manifests Himself in His Word and by His Word; the Word must therefore be read and taught, in order that there may be with the men of the Church the understanding of the Word; for without the understanding of the Word there is no Church, and therefore no religion, which is and makes the life of the Church. But the Word cannot be taught nor received into the understanding, unless there be doctrine from the Word, for the Word is only understood from Doctrine and according to Doctrine. The LORD, therefore, is present where there is genuine Doctrine from the Word, and where, by Doctrine, the Word is understood, and, by understanding, men live according to the truths of faith, which the Word teaches. Where these are the Church is, where these are not the Church is not.
The Church exists therefore where there is instruction in Divine things, and where this is received in the acknowledgment and affection of the heart. To this end the office of the Priesthood is instituted by the LORD in the Church, for by the instrumentality of the Priesthood things Divine are made present among the people, and the Church becomes the Church with men. For Priests are duly appointed and ordained by the LORD to teach men the truths of faith, and to lead men, by those truths, to the good of life, and thus to the LORD; where this is done the salvation of souls is provided for, and the Church fulfills its use in the world.
In the Church are the uses of Piety and the uses of Charity. The uses of Piety relate to external worship, both public and private, and look to and provide for it; especially to the use of instruction in Divine things, which takes place on the day set apart for that purpose- The LORD'S Day, or Sunday. But in order that the Church may come into the full fruition of its work among men, and fulfill its appointed mission in the salvation of souls, it must also perform spiritual uses of charity, which, like the natural uses of charity, must be done daily, and to which the uses of piety are instrumental, and serve to further and promote.
A Church may be organized to perform the uses of Piety, which are spiritual, and look to the salvation of souls as their end, the one universal use of the Church on earth; or a Church may be organized to perform the uses of Charity, which also are spiritual, and look to the salvation of souls as their end.
The body of the LORD'S New Church, known and styled as the Academy of the New Church, is organized to perform spiritual uses of Charity, to which the uses of Piety are instrumental means. The central use of Charity which the Academy has chosen for itself is the education, in the Church and for the Church, of infants, children, and youths, and at the same time, the education and preparation of young men for the Priesthood. The use of education is therefore made by the Academy its spiritual use of Charity in the world among men, and it proposes to fit itself more and more for the faithful performance of this use, going forward in a firm trust in the Providence of the LORD to lead and guide in the way of truth, and, praying for the Divine protection, that the falses of evil may not enter nor invade, to mar, or to injure, or to destroy that which has been set up in the name of the LORD.
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In order that the uses of a Church, whether principal or instrumental, may take on ultimate form, and actually exist among men; it is necessary that buildings be erected and duly consecrated and set apart, formally dedicated and devoted to the end and purpose for which the Church exists.
The building in which we are now assembled has been built by the members of the Church in this place, under the auspices of the Academy of the New Church, that the local Church of the Academy may have a home and abiding place for its uses, both for those which are instrumental, its uses of Piety, and for those which are principal and first, its uses of Charity.
This Chapel has been built and furnished for the uses of Piety, that the members of the Church of the Academy in this place, and others who are interested to co-operate with them in their chosen use of the education of the young, for the Church and for Heaven, may meet together at stated times and unite in the worship and praise of the LORD, may receive instruction in Divine things, and appropriate the benefits and blessings that are conveyed in the ministrations of the offices of the Church.
Here is placed the Sacred Repository for the Word of the LORD, the altar of worship, the desks for the reading and expounding of the Word, seats for the people, and here are to be the sacred vessels of the Church and other appliances of worship. In the Sacred Repository are to be placed the Word of the LORD, the Word in its Letter and the Word in its Internal Sense, out of which they are to be taken and laid upon the altar and upon the desks, in the administration of the offices of the Church.
Here the Pastor of this Church, and his Assistant, clothed in their official robes, are to minister in the uses of worship, and teach the people the truths of the Divine Word, which are to lead them to Heaven and the LORD.
And now in the name of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, the God of Heaven and Earth, the Saviour of the world, the Founder and Builder of the Church, in obedience to the Laws of His Divine Order, and in the presence of this assembly, I do declare that this building is set apart and dedicated to the worship of the LORD, this Chapel to the spiritual uses of Piety, and these School Rooms to the spiritual uses of Charity of this Church. And may the LORD'S blessing rest upon the uses that are to be performed here, upon the priests who are to be engaged in these uses, upon their associated teachers, upon the people who are to co-operate with them, and upon all who are to receive of the offices of the Church, administered here.
"Except the LORD build the house, the builders thereof labor in vain; except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; so He giveth to His beloved in sleep." Amen.
The following part of the Address was delivered in the School Rooms, after the descent of the priests.
And these School Rooms which have been built and furnished by the members of the Academy of the New Church in this place, others co-operating with them and in which spiritual uses of Charity have already been inaugurated, are now formally set apart and dedicated to the uses for which they have been designed and prepared, the uses of the education of the young in the sciences, in the languages, and in the Doctrines of the Church, to prepare them for the world, and for the Church, and for Heaven.
And may the LORD'S blessing rest upon the work that is to go on in these rooms, upon the Head-Master, and his Assistant, upon the teachers, and upon the pupils, now and forever. Amen.
"Behold, sons are the inheritance of the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. As arrows in the hand of the mighty, so are the sons of youth. Blessed is the man that hath filled his quiver with them; they shall not be ashamed when they speak with the enemies at the gate." Amen.
PRAYER.
We humble ourselves before Thee, O LORD, and acknowledge that all that is good, all that is true, and all that is of use, is from Thee alone, and nothing from ourselves; and we pray Thee, O LORD, that the uses that are to be performed in this building, now dedicated to Thy service, may be uses done by Thee, and not from the proprium of man, the pride of intelligence, or the self-will that rises up from the flesh and the world. May the ministers and the teachers, who are to perform the uses of the Church here be guided, and love to be guided, by the Divine Wisdom of Thine opened Word. Give them the light of spiritual intelligence, that they may see and know to follow Thee in the way of truth and use. And grant unto them, O LORD, the reward of faithful work, in the increase of heavenly riches, in the growth and prosperity of the Church.
Bless the people of this Church with the spiritual blessings of Thy Divine Mercy, and guide them in a faithful co-operation in the uses that are to be done, that they may receive an ever fuller fruition of the blessings which flow down from Heaven upon the works that are done in Thy Name.
We confess, O LORD, that if our love and our desire be toward Thy Church in very deed and truth, the increase in uses and the rewards of use, will be more than we can number; that if we trust from our inmost heart in' Thee alone, and not in ourselves, the Church with us will go on to prosper, and become ever more and more the Heaven of the LORD upon the Earth. Have mercy upon us, O LORD, and give us strength to do Thy will. Amen.
THE social part of the day's celebration began when the members and friends assembled at the school building late in the afternoon and sat down to a generous repast, prepared by the Berlin ladies.
The double school-room in which the supper was served was beautifully decorated. At one end was a large hank of flowers, while individual plants stood about in appropriate places; streamers of red and white bunting hung from the ceiling, and six shields of red were arranged around the rooms, bearing respectively in white characters, the inscriptions: Innocence, Peace, Chastity, Obedience, Confidence, and Friendship. After doing justice to the viands the people retired to the school grounds, which were much admired by the visitors. The members of the Society, each of whom has taken a personal interest in the movement, had worked hard in grading, planting trees, and otherwise beautifying the grounds, and the green lawn, the product of their exertions, made a most pleasing foreground to the school building.
The sun was just throwing his last beams over the scene, with its attractive groupings of the strollers, when a number of young trees which one of the members had I obtained from the woods were brought out, and the interesting ceremony of planting them was performed.
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The first tree was planted by Bishop Pendleton. The onlookers stood around him in a circle, and as he placed the sapling in the ground they all joined in the stirring chorus of "Our Glorious Church." Trees were planted also by Mr. Schreck, Mr. Blackman, and Mr. Robert Carswell. The large school-room had meanwhile been arranged to receive the company, and when all had retired thither it presented a most animated picture, with its many flowers, its streamers of bunting, and its many bright faces.
The Rev. F. E. Waelchli, Head-Master of the Berlin School, was the toast-master of the occasion. The first toast of the evening was to "The Church," to which all responded by singing "Our Glorious Church." This was followed by a toast to "The Academy." Vice- Chancellor Pendleton responded. He said that Swedenborg was once asked, "What is Swedenborgianism?" He answered, "The worship of the LORD JESUS CHRIST." Applying this, the Vice Chancellor said if any one asked what is the end of the Academy, it might be answered, "The worship of the LORD JESUS CHRIST." There were two kinds of worship, external and internal. External worship was well known. It was that for which Churches were usually organized, and consisted more in the observance of acts of piety. It was not internal worship, although this might or might not be present as its soul, depending on the internal state of the worshipers. Internal worship is produced by the daily performance in occupations of the uses of charity; by the daily shunning of evils as sins. When a man in internal worship enters external worship, the worship is full, for then the two are one.
The Church is a man in a larger form. The Church of the Academy performs a daily use of charity when it educates children in its schools. This is more internal than the other of piety. It is not only for the present, but for coming generations end for eternity. It is the Church coming down to ultimates daily. The Academy also performs uses of piety- That is, external worship-but it has not this for its main end and purpose.
In introducing the next toast, "The Academy School," Mr. Waelchli mentioned that six years ago Mr. Schreck had visited Berlin, and in a speech had called attention to the importance of New Church Schools. The result had been the establishment of a school a short time afterward. He therefore took great pleasure in calling on Mr. Schreck to respond to the toast just proposed.
Mr. Schreck dwelt on the fact that such results as we saw to-day in the Academy School of Berlin could only have been the result of the LORD'S wonderful work. Nothing else could account for the notable growth of. the School. It was He alone who had implanted the seeds; it was He who had prepared the soil in the hearts of men so that the seed took root. The sense of the Infinite mercy of the LORD is overwhelming. Great is our responsibility of co-operating with the LORD by teaching children to be obedient, by instilling into their minds the scientifics and cognitions given to us for the purpose by the LORD, and by thus leading them in the way toward heaven. In this work we also must be obedient to the LORD, must receive Him in all humility, and while recognizing that the gifts to the New Church surpass in value all others, must allow nothing of pride, of contempt of others, or of feelings of superiority over others to enter in.
The LORD is present in our work. We are witnesses to-day of an ultimate and material evidence of His constant presence in the completion and dedication of this school building. Who that took part in the worship of the morning was not affected with the realization that the LORD JESUS CHRIST was present within these very walls? And His Presence and Blessing is seen equally in the work of the other schools of the Academy. In Philadelphia the beginning of a Theological School led to the successive establishment of a college, a School for Boys, a School for Girls, and a Primary Department. Now a beginning has been made in training teachers in special sciences. We have among us this evening a graduate of this year who has been especially prepared in our schools to teach the science of mathematics.
The LORD is now providing the Church with music which may be said to surpass all other music on earth, and our duty diligently to cultivate it is plain. It is equally plain that as soon as the LORD leads youth to us who have a great love for music and some ability, we should do all in our power to train them in our University for the profession of music in the New Church.
In responding to the toast of the "Academy School in Berlin," Mr. Rudolph Roschman spoke from the standpoint of the laymen. He said that the service of the morning had impressed him very much. It was a service which he felt sure the members would never forget. Very rare indeed were the occasions on which seven priests could lead in the worship for them, and where the sphere could be so complete and strong. He spoke of the thankfulness which he knew they all felt, and dwelt on how such services would serve to awaken and strengthen affection for the Church. The completion of the building would help to show them how the LORD is ever ready to bestow when we are ready to receive. Two years ago the prospects of a building for their School had been vague. Now there was a happy fruition of their hopes. He hoped that they might all be strengthened by this occasion and increase their endeavors to promote the welfare of the School.
The last of the regular toasts was to "Music in the Church." Mr. Waelchli, in proposing it, spoke of how much the music had contributed to the impressiveness of the services that morning. Without this music the services would have been far short of what they had been. Much of this was due to the efforts of Mr. Blackman, who so carefully and patiently had drilled the voices and instruments in their duties. The thanks of all were due to him, and he would, therefore, ask him to respond to the toast of "Music in the Church." Mr. Blackman said that the new Church Music of the Academy must form the centre of all our efforts in music. This music in the future would lead to all that was desirable, not only in worship, but even in all the degrees of secular music. The Church was now receiving music, the beauties of which it would not fully appreciate for years to come. He was finding new treasures in it continually. The LORD has given us this music. Our duty was clear. We must be prepared to receive it. We must learn it. He earnestly besought those who could not read music to make every effort to learn, and admonished the parents to do everything in their power to encourage the children if they showed any love or inclination' toward music.
Mr. Waelchli then announced that informal toasts were in order and this led to a joint toast to Bishop Benade and Bishop Pendleton. The entire company marched joyfully around the tables and to the strains of the various school songs clinked glasses with Bishop Pendleton. A toast to the Berlin priests, Mr. Waelchli and Mr. Rosenqvist, and their wives, was received in the same manner. Bishop Pendleton then arose and spoke of what a delight it had been to hear how the building in which they were had been erected.
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One of the members of the Church had superintended the work, while all had turned to with a ready hand to do all in their power to assist. The grading of the ground, the digging of the basement, and other work had been done by members, often in the, evening, after their regular work of the day was done. It delighted him to think of this as a labor of love and rejoiced in the affection shown by all in furthering the heavenly, uses of the School. He proposed a toast to "The Builder and the Builders of the Building." When this had been heartily drunk, as the hour was late, the people gradually dispersed.
Throughout the evening, in the intervals between the toasts, several vocal and instrumental selections were given, and each toast in turn was accompanied by some appropriate chorus sung by the whole company. The day's celebration was most successful in every respect. Throughout it all the thought of the Church and School was everywhere prominent, and the warm feeling of affection and friendship felt, one for the other, was allowed to come forth freely. The result was a meeting the memory of which will be cherished for years afterward by visitors and by those more actively identified with this period of the history of the Church in Berlin.
To gather scientifics 1893
To gather scientifics, and by means of them to build up the external man, is not unlike the building of a house.- A. C. 1488.
EARLY HISTORY OF THE NEW CHURCH IN BERLIN F. W 1893
In the "History of the New Church in the Western States and Canada" by the Rev. G. Field, the following account is given of the beg inning of the New Church in Canada:
"The first known receivers of the Doctrines of the New Church in Canada, were Mr. John Harbin his wife, and her sister (Miss Wheeler) who in 1830, left Salisbury, England for Montreal Canada, Mr. A. then being thirty-seven years of age. He had been a local preacher among the Methodists in England; but on receiving the Doctrines of the New Church, in 1827, had been baptized by the Rev. T. Goyder, and soon after originated the New Church Society in Salisbury. These three first came to Montreal, but remained there only during the winter; and after visiting several other localities settled themselves in Chinguacouchy- About twenty or twenty-five miles north from Toronto-in Canada West (now Ontario), where they resided some years, and where a Mr. Bagwell (also an Englishman) had erected a very commodious log chapel, in which Mr. Harbin preached regularly; and soon there were known to be a number of scattered receivers of the Doctrines in various places. An effort was also made to obtain the services of a regularly ordained New Church Minister, to make a permanent, or temporary abode with them, but without success. On the 9th of January, 1842, Mr. Christopher Enslin writes from Berlin (Waterloo County, Ontario): 'Besides myself there is only one receiver of our Doctrines, and three occasional readers,' but he says, in the rear of Toronto (some seventy miles from this) there are several receivers, having a regular preacher, meaning Mr. Harbin. In 1844, Mr. Adam Ruby [Mr. Enslin's first associate in Berlin,] said there was an increased number of members and receivers, and the work went bravely on. In February, 1845, Mr. and Mrs. Harbin, sister, and children, removed to Berlin; and, with the few others then living there constituted the first organic Society of the New Church in the Dominion of Canada."-Pages 276, 277.
This brief history could be filled out with many interesting particulars, but we will at present confine ourselves to pointing out the significant connection which exists between the first state of the Church in Berlin and that which now exists in the Church of the Academy there Mr. Enslin, the first receiver of the Doctrines in Berlin, was a prominent man among the German pioneers of Waterloo County.- He was editor of the Deutcher Kanadier ("German Canadian") and also a, notary public; besides he carried on a book business and book-bindery. He sent to Dr. Im. Tafel, Tübingen, Germany, for all of the Writings then translated into German, and such as were not translated into that language he purchased in English. These books he studied earnestly. Through his efforts the earliest receivers were brought to the Church, and even after the coming of Mr. Harbin, Mr. Enslin continued to be, in many ways, the real leader of the little flock, especially as most of the receivers were Germans, and MrHarbin was an Englishman. For several years a number of the receivers would meet every Sunday afternoon at his house, where he would translate for them from the English editions of the Writings. Can it be doubted that the views held by these pioneers of the Church were largely formed by the instrumentality of Mr. Enslin, to whom they looked with so great affection and so high a regard? What these views were will be clear when it is stated that Mr. Enslin was a member of the Central Convention, which in its day performed the use which the Academy took up in a later day of the Church, the maintenance of the Doctrines in their purity. There are to-day, associated with the Academy's uses in Canada several old people of Mr. Enslin's time, who say that from the beginning they never regarded the Doctrines otherwise than as Divine Revelation and of absolute authority.
The minister of the Church, Mr. Harbin, after about six years' labor, passed into the other world, and a few years later Mr. Enslin followed. After the death of Mr. Harbin the Society had no regular minister (except for a short period when a Mr. Whittaker held the position), until the coming of the Rev. F. W. Tuerk, about 1857. When he came he found there the affirmative state toward the Doctrines, established by Mr. Enslin in the beginning, fostered it in his work, and for a time by his zeal in the uses of the Academy, greatly promoted it. But when he with many others fell away from that integrity of doctrine which had been from the beginning and had grown in the First New Jerusalem Society in Berlin, then it became necessary that the Church be established anew in the community. This was done by the Church of the Academy, in which is continued that true state of the Church which was in Berlin in the early days, but now advancing step by step into that clearer light which comes with the zealous performance of uses in accordance with the Doctrines. It was a great pleasure to see in the congregation which gathered for the dedication of the school-building of the Academy the faces of some who, half a century ago, had been enlightened in the doctrines by Mr. Enslin; also, it is a pleasure to know that a large portion of those who are earnest in the Academy's uses in Berlin are descendants of persons who were associated with him in the early days of the Church. F. W.
good with man 1893
The good with man is compared in the Word to "a house;" and moreover the man who is in good, is called "the house of God."- A. C. 3128.
New form of wedding announcement 1893
It is to be hoped that the new form of wedding announcement and invitation, inaugurated in the news columns of this number, will grow into a custom with friends of the Life.
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NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
FOUR SHILLINGS IN GREAT BRITAIN.
THE EDITOR'S address is Huntingdon Valley P. O. Montgomery Co., Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
PHILADELPHIA, SEPTEMBER, 1893=124.
CONTENTS.
Editorial, p. 129.- The Three Feasts (a Sermon), p. 130.- The Truths of Faith and the Goods of Love, p. 132.- The Wedding Garment (a Tale), xxi (concluded), xxii, xxiii, 133.
Notes and Reviews, p. 136.-Loyalty to Revealed Truth, p. 136.-Mr. Barrett's Autobiography, p. 137.
The General Church, p. 138.
Communicated.- The Dedication at Berlin, p. 139.-Early History of the New Church in Berlin, p. 143.
News Gleanings, p. 144.-Wedding Announcement, p. 144.-Births, Marriages, and Deaths, p. 144.
AT HOME.
Pennsylvania.-Ix the case of the Pittsburg Society the Judge has decided that the legacy of 11,000, left by the late Mrs. Mary Aitken, and also the property of the Church, shall be under the control of those who remained with the Rev. John Whitehead.
Philadelphia.- THE Fall Term of the Academy Schools will open on the first Monday in October. New applications for admission should be sent a few weeks in advance, to the Dean of the Faculty, 1821 Wallace Street.
Illinois.- THE Rev. A. J. Cleare has resigned the Pastorate of the Englewood Society.
THE Inauguration of the season of Religious Congresses in Chicago, so far as the New Church is concerned, took place in the form of a reception, under the auspices of the Woman's Committee, in the New Church Temple, Chicago, on July 21st. The Rev. L. P. Mercer presided and many prominent persons in connection with the World's parliament of Religions addressed the meeting.
THE Rev. A. J. Bartels has discontinued his visits to the Newburg Society in Pike County.
Iowa.- THE Methodists, Congregationalists, and the "Swedenborgians" of Lost Nation have joined together and built a church "where the representative of any faith may freely preach by paying his tax of one dollar for each service."
Ohio.- THE Rev. Percy Billings has resigned his charge of the Cleveland Society, to take effect from October 1st.
THE marriage of the Rev. Lewis F. Hite took place in Urbana on July 19th.
New Hampshire.- THE re-dedication of the Church at Contoocook took place on July 3d. There were about two hundred and thirty persons present, only a minority of whom, however, were members of the New Church.
Los Angeles.- THE Rev. G. W. Savory has resigned the Pastorate of the Los Angeles. Samuel Worcester M. D. has been invited by the Society to become licensed and minister to them.
Texas.- THE General Society of the New Church in Texas held its fourth Annual Meeting in Galveston on July 9th. The Rev. Jabez Fox was elected President. The Treasurer reported a balance in hand of $46.38.
Tennessee.- THE Rev. C. A. Nussbaum preached by invitation at the Presbyterian Church, to an audience of about two hundred people.
ABROAD.
Great Britain- THE Rev. A. E. Beilby preached a special sermon at Blackpool on the 8th of July on the loss of the "Victoria," and also in reference to a recent railway accident near Blackpool.
Bishop Benade arrived in London in time to be present at the closing exercises of the School there.
THE Society in Colchester celebrated New Church Day with a Social at which Mr. John Stephenson, A. B., presided, in the absence of the Rev. E. C. Bostock in America.
THE members of the Academy and those of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD respectively, in London, celebrated New Church Day on the 19th and 20th of June. On the latter day service was held at 7 P. M. in the Hall of Worship of the Academy school, Brixton, after which a Feast of Charity was held. A very full and interesting account is given in the July number of the Standard.
THE Rev. R. J. Tilson visited the Liverpool Society on June 25th, and preached to them. Ha also visited the small Circle in Lancaster.
London.-ON July 13th, the Society at Brixton held a fully- Attended Reception in order to give the members an opportunity of meeting Bishop Benade. "The prevailing sphere was most joyous." The Pastor, proposing toasts to "the Church" and "the Bishop," referred to "the unique work which Bishop Benade had been permitted to do in the Church." In replying, the Bishop called attention to the fact that the Lord needed no man to carry out His purpose, but used man for man's own sake, inasmuch as he needed to work in the LORD'S Church for his own salvation.
THE Rev. E. C. Bostock arrived in Camberwell on July 16th.
BISHOP Benade ordained Messrs. Glendower C. Ottley and Mr. John Stephenson into the priesthood on July 23d. On the same day also he installed the Rev. B. J. Tilson as Pastor of the particular Church of the Academy of the New Church in London. The attendance at the service was so large that extra seats had to be provided in the centre aisle. It is expected that a detailed account of the service will be given in the Standard for September.
THE Rev. J. Stephenson ministered to the Circle in Liverpool each Sunday in August.
THE Rev. T. F. Robinson is to take charge of the Circle in Colchester under the direction of the Bishop.
THE Rev. S. C. Eby has accepted a three months' engagement with the Camden Road Society, London. He had been preaching previously to the Society in Glasgow.
MR. W. T. Lardge, leader of the Society at Clayton-le-Moors, on July 30th, was ordained by the Rev. W. Westall, assisted by the Rev. H. W. Freeman. Between four and five hundred persons were present at the service.
THE Yorkshire Missionary and Colportage Association held its thirty- Third Annual Meeting in Keighley on July 8th. The Association had distributed seven hundred and fifty tract sermons and lectures, two hundred copies of Parson's Outlines of the Religion and Philosophy of Swedenborg, and two hundred copies of the Doctrine of Life; they had also sold sixty-five books. The Treasurer reported a balance in hand of L19 12s. 0 1/2d.
Italy.-Professor Scocia reports that he has had to suspend the publication of the Writings in Italian for want of means. He has received for missionary work L132 13s. He is awaiting the visit of an ordaining Minister in order that he may be inducted into the office of the Priesthood.
Paris.-M. Humann, leader of the Society in this place, held a Service to inaugurate the first Communion of some of the young people. After the preliminary service M. Humaun administered the Communion to the children (!). The young girls were "veiled and robed in white as brides to the Church." The writer in the New Church Magazine for August says, "This was a fete de premiere communion, a phrase less familiar to Protestant than to Catholic ears, and one showing that M. and Mine. Humaun thoroughly appreciate the wisdom of the late Dr. Bayley's view of the expediency of adapting ourselves to our surroundings, whensoever, especially, no sacrifice of principle is demanded."
ANNOUNCEMENT 1893
Toronto, Can.-Mr. and Mrs. R. Carswell desire to announce to the members of a the Academy and of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD the approaching nuptials of their daughter Emeline and the Reverend Alfred Acton, A. B., Th. B., which will be celebrated on Thursday, September 14th, in the House of Worship of the Parkdale Society.
1893
-Photographs of the oil painting of Swedenborg, in possession of the Academy, now on sale.
Silver print, size 5x7. Price, 30 cents.
Platina print size 5x7, mounted on cardboards 8x10. Price 50 cents.
The above-mentioned oil painting, hung in Swedenborg's own bedroom, and is by competent judges considered the best likeness extant.
Our photographer has succeeded remarkably in the difficult task of taking a good likeness of the old painting of which no other photograph has been taken in many years.
SWEDENBORG'S RULES OF LIFE.-On cards, 7x9.
We have recently obtained some copies of the above cards, tastefully printed. Price, 25 cents.
Academy Book Room,
1821 Wallace Street,
Philadelphia, Pa.
145
Jehovah 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII. No. 10. PHILADELPHIA, OCTOBER, 1893=124. Whole No. 156.
Jehovah, Who is the Divine Itself, is, and what is from Him also is.- A. C. 10,409.
Title Unspecified 1893
TIMES of misfortune, such as the era of financial depression through which the people of the United States of America have been passing-when many have lost their wealth, entirely or in part, or have been thrown out of employment, or have had their income largely reduced, or have had such events staring them in the face for months- Have a most important bearing upon the spiritual welfare of those who can be regenerated. Not, as is often imagined, that the natural distress and anxiety induced at such times are spiritual temptations. These they are not, for in spiritual temptations spiritual prosperity is at stake, and spiritual and celestial and Divine things are the subjects about which turn the conflicts between angels and devils. Natural anxieties do not affect the spiritual life of man. But since, at the present day, only few can be admitted into spiritual temptations, they undergo natural anxieties, as these have an effect preparatory to the interior conflicts between good and evil, truth and falsity. Under the Divine Providence men suffer the natural anxieties, in order that they may be withdrawn by them from the loves of self and the world into which they would otherwise rush unchecked.
Title Unspecified 1893
FOR, natural temptations are due to assaults upon one's loves. They arise when one foresees or feels that one is, or will be, deprived of honor, of the goods of the world, of reputation, of pleasures, of the life of the body, and the like. The good which they produce with the well-disposed consists in the subduing and breaking of the life of one's pleasures and lusts, and in the determining and elevating of one's thoughts to interior and to pious subjects. In this way natural temptations sometimes lead to spiritual temptations. For, when man suffers them, loses riches or honor, or grieves, or is in disease, if he then thinks about the help which the LORD alone can bring, about His Providence, or about the state of the evil, who glory and exult when the good suffer and undergo various griefs and losses, then spiritual temptation is conjoined with natural temptation. Of this kind was the last temptation of the LORD, and when He suffered the cross, which was the most atrocious of all.
Title Unspecified 1893
WHEN natural distress and anxiety perform such a spiritual use, they usher in the Second Day or State of regeneration, in which a distinction is made between those things which are of the LORD, and those which are man's own. Those which are the LORD'S are remains, especially the cognitions of faith which have been learned from infancy, but which are hidden, and, do not appear until man comes into this state. The very question which arises in the mind, why such natural evils befall him, brings the answer from that within him which is the LORD'S, which was given to him by the LORD and stored up with him, through the instruction imparted from infancy. The Doctrines teach about this state of regeneration, that it "rarely exists at this day without temptation, misfortune, sadness, which cause, those things which are of the body and of the world, thus, which are one's own, to quiesce, and, as it were, to die. Thus the things which are of the external man are separated from those which are of the internal. In the internal are the remains, hidden away by the LORD for this time and for this use" (A. C. 8).
Title Unspecified 1893
IN order to be in the stream of the Divine Providence, therefore, it behooves man, when in misfortune, to raise his eyes to the LORD, instead of keeping them cast down on the apparent ruin about him.
Many are the passages in the Word of the Old and of the New Testament, as also in the Heavenly Doctrines, that are given by the LORD for precisely such times. While recognizing the affliction of man, they lift him up, they direct him to the constant Love, the Provident Mercy of the LORD. "They who trust the Divine, although they have care for the morrow, still they have it not, for they do not think of the morrow with solicitude, still less with anxiety; they are of an equal mind, whether they possess what they desire, or not; at loss they do not grieve, they are content with their lot; if they become rich, they do not set their heart in riches; if they are elevated to honors, they do not regard themselves more worthy than others; if they become poor, they are not saddened; if of low condition, they are not cast down; they know that for those who trust the Divine, all things succeed for a felicitous state to eternity, and that those things which happen to them in time, still are conducive to the same" (A. C. 8478).
Title Unspecified 1893
Own prudence is nothing, and only appears to be.-D. P. 191.
Title Unspecified 1893
AT a recent meeting of one of the State Associations connected with the General Convention, the vexed question, "What can the New Church do for its Young People?" came up for discussion.
We should like to ask, "What cannot the New Church do for its Young People?" Whatever lies within the range of human possibility to further the salvation of the young, to train their faculties for the warfare with evil or falsity, has been given to the New Church by her Divine Master.
It is a noteworthy fact that those who often prefer the guidance, of practical experience to the revealed principles of the New Church, when they come to the very practical matter of dealing with the young, ignore the experience of those who maintain New Church schools, as organized efforts to carry out the LORD'S Will, revealed in the Truths that bear on the growth of the youthful mind.
Own prudence 1893
Own prudence is to the Divine Providence as a mote scattered and rare in the atmosphere.- A. C. 6485.
146
SUMMARY OF THE INTERNAL SENSE OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS 1893
AN event of some importance to those who have been reading the Arcana Coelestia, during the last six years, according to the plan adopted by the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, is the completion of the explanation of the Internal Sense of the Book of Genesis, during the month just past. As it is fitting, at the end of a certain state or period, to look back and form a conclusion, so this is an opportune time to pass in review a summary of the Internal Sense of the whole Book of Genesis. In this way, the particulars that had been read become more firmly implanted in the mind, and, at the same time, a preparation is made for the better reception of the spiritual teachings of the Book of Exodus, next to be read.
IN the Spiritual Sense of the first chapter of Genesis is described the new creation or regeneration of man in general, and specially of the men of the Most Ancient Church. (1) In the second chapter is described their intelligence and wisdom, while they were being regenerated, for that Church was celestial, the primary of all on this earth. (2) But it came to its fall and to its end by their receding from the celestial man to the natural, whence they had intelligence from their own, in place of intelligence from the LORD. (3) That Church came divided between those who placed all of the Church and all salvation in the mere doctrine and knowledge of cognitions, who are Cain, and those who placed it at the same time in the life of love and charity, who are Abel; the science alone of doctrinals, like faith alone, when everything of religion is placed in it, kills charity; but they were rejected, who made the Church to consist of faith alone, and not in life. (4) That Church was divided and changed, as signified by the posterity of Adam and Sheth. (5) Its end came when there was no longer any good and truth, because it was in its own intelligence; but a New Church began, which is understood by Noach and his three Sons. (6) The destruction of the Most Ancient Church is described by the flood, and the initiament of the New one, by the ark and its preservation. (7) Thus the Most Ancient Church came to its end, and the Ancient Church began, (8) to whom were given precepts and statutes. That Church is Noach; its celestial is Shem, its spiritual Japhet, and its natural Chain. (9) That Church was spread over a great part of the Asiatic world, and hence there were divisions, which are described by the posterity of Noach, or of his three sons. (10) Babel began, and was destroyed. The Ancient Church continued to undergo various states, even unto the end, when it became idolatrous and magical. The Israelitish and Jewish Church was instituted from Eber, hence it was called the Hebrew Church, and its first institution was by Abram, who was commanded to go to the land of Canaan, because there, and round, about, all the places had received from the men of the Most Ancient Church spiritual significations, which are named in the New Word written among them; and in which those places were named. (11) (12)
In the Work that contains the "Summaries of the Internal Sense of the Prophets and Psalms," it is indicated that the eleventh and the following chapters treat of the successive states of the Hebrew and Israelitish Churches.' In the Arcana Celestia, the history of these Churches is told occasionally in explanation of the chapters, but, as a rule, the Glorification of the LORD is the subject of the explanations. For the Internal Sense treats inmostly of the LORD, and in the derivative senses, of the Kingdom of the LORD in the Heavens, of the Church in general, and in the individual, and of the historical Churches that have existed on earth.
To begin, then, with- The eleventh chapter, what is said of Abram represents the state of the LORD from first infancy to adolescence- That is to say, his progress from scientifics up to celestial truths. (11) In boyhood, His External Man, when first imbued with scientifics and cognitions, proceeded more and more unto conjunction with the Internal. There were still many things in His External Man which impeded the conjunction, but He wished to be separated from them, and the promise was made to Him that to Him would be given all authority. (13) He underwent temptation- Combats even in boyhood, the goods and truths from which He fought being the apparent goods and truths of His External Man, and from these He overcame evils and falses; but the Rational Man, seeing that the apparent goods and truths occupied the External Man, vindicated and freed Him, and subjugated the evils and falses. (14) Having thus sustained, in His boyhood, most grievous temptation- Combats directed against His love for the human race, and especially for the Church, He became anxious about its future state, and a promise was made Him, and it was shown Him at the same time, what the state would be toward its end, when it would begin to expire; but, nevertheless, that a New Church would revive which would take the place of the former, and the heavenly Kingdom would be increased immensely. (15) The first Rational in the LORD was conceived from the influx of the Internal Man into the affection of the sciences of the External, but as it was from the External Man, its nature was such as to vilify intellectual truth; therefore, the LORD thought of subjugating it, whereby it would become spiritual and celestial. (16) Thus He progressed to the Union of His Divine Essence with the Human, and of the Human with the Divine, whereby, through the Human Essence, the LORD became conjoined with the human race. (17) But before the perfect Union of His Human Essence with the Divine, He perceived the Divine and communicated with it; He perceived that the Rational in Him had to put off the Human and become Divine. He grieved and was in anxiety over the human race, because it was so much imbued with the love of self, and hence with the cupidity of ruling over others from evil and false; He interceded for it in that state, and obtained the promise of the salvation of those with whom there were goods and truths. (18)
By Lot is described, in the Internal Sense, the state of the Spiritual Church, which is in the good of charity but in external worship, which decreases in process of time; but by the inhabitants of Sodom is described the state of those within the same Church, who are against the good of charity, and with them the evil and false grows up in process of time, until they have nothing but evil and false. The good are separated from the evil, and the good are saved by the Human of the LORD made Divine. (19)
As the LORD was instructed in scientifics when He was still a boy, so, during the state to which He had now come, He was instructed likewise in the doctrinals of faith and charity; especially was He instructed about the origin of the Doctrine of charity and faith, that it is spiritual from a celestial, but not from a rational, origin. (20) When the Divine Rational was born, the merely human rational, which had vilified truth intellectual, was separated and expelled. Human rationals are adjoined to the doctrine of faith, which in itself is Divine. (21) The LORD underwent most grievous and inmost temptations, by which He united the Human Essence to the Divine, and through that union He saved those who constitute His Spiritual Church. (22)
147
After the former Church expired utterly, a New Spiritual Church was exsuscitated by the LORD, and those who were of that Church received faith from Him. (23) When all things had been reduced into the Divine Celestial order by the LORD, so that to the Divine Good of His Rational might be conjoined the Divine Truth, and this by the common way from the Natural Man-namely, from the scientifics, cognitions and doctrinals which are there- Then, through the Divine influx of the LORD, truths were called forth from it, initiated to Good in the Rational, and made Divine; so that the Rational, made Divine by the LORD, as to Good, was also made Divine as to Truth. (24) The spiritual Kingdom of the LORD, which had derivatives, was separated from His celestial kingdom.
The representative of the LORD through Abraham was finished, and the representative of the LORD by Isaak and Ishmael began. The Spiritual Church, which is represented by Ishmael, is the Church which is scattered over' the globe, with those who have the Word, and with those who have it not, and the varieties of faith are its derivations.
The Divine Natural, which as to good is Esau, and as to truth is Jacob, was conceived and arose. In the Church truth is apparently the first-born, but good actually. (25) Divine Good and Truth cannot be comprehended, thus they cannot be received, except in appearances; therefore, in order that truths, and the doctrinals of truth may be received, and the Church may exist, there are adjoined to Truth' Divine appearances of truth of a three-fold degree. The appearances of Truth of the higher degree are those which are in the Internal Sense of the Word, in which are the angels, and in which is the' Divine Truth and Good; the appearances of Truth in lower degree are those which are in the interior sense of the Word, in which the men can be who are of the Internal Church; and appearances of Truth of a still lower degree, are those of the literal sense of the Word, in which the men can be who are of the External Church, and through which they can still be conjoined with the LORD. The scientific truths are adjoined to good there. (26) As the LORD made the Rational in Itself Divine, so also did He make the Natural (the food of which is Esau, the truth, Jacob) in Itself Divine; for the LORD, when He was in the world, made His whole Human, both the interior, which is the Rational, and the exterior, which is the Natural, and also the very Corporeal, in itself Divine, and this according to the Divine Order. (27) The LORD began to make Divine His Natural as to Truth and as to Good in general, by conjoining the good of truth of the Natural to truths which are from external collateral good, and by conjoining the good of the Natural with Truth from a Divine origin. The LORD began to make Divine His Natural as to Truth from the ultimates of order, that thus He might dispose the intermediates, and conjoin all and single things to the First- That is, to is Divine Itself. (28) The good of truth was conjoined with kindred good from a Divine origin, first through the affection of external truth, and then through the affection of internal truth. There was an ascent from external truth to internal good, as in the Church there is a corresponding ascent from the truth which is of faith, to exercise according to that truth, afterward to charity from it, and finally to celestial love. (29) Then natural truth is conjoined with spiritual good by media, which conjunction is followed by a fructification and multiplication of truth and good. (30) Mediate good and truth of the Natural was separated from the collateral good, with which they had been conjoined, in order that they might be conjoined to the Divine from a direct Divine stock. (31) An inversion of order took place, so that good might be in the first place, truth in the second; but this involved struggles of temptations. (32) The Divine Good of the Natural was conjoined with the Good of Truth, by the submission of the latter and its initiation into Divine Good Natural. Interior truths were acquired. (33)
The posterity of Jacob extinguished every truth of the doctrine which the Ancient Church had, for the representative of the Church among the posterity of Jacob consisted only in externals without internals; but the representative Church' among die Ancients, in externals with internals. (34)
The residuum in the Natural of the LORD was made Divine, and the LORD progressed to still more interior things, where the rational is." All the order of the Divine Good Natural of the LORD is described in the literal sense by names; His Divine Good Natural is Esau. (36)
Truths Divine, which are from the Divine Human of the LORD, were rejected, in succession of time, in the Church, and finally, in their place, falses were received. (37)
By Judah is described the Jewish Church, but the genuine Church is described by Thamar, her sons signifying the two essentials of the Church, faith and love; their birth represents that love is actually the first begotten of the Church, and faith only apparently so. (38)
The LORD also made Divine His very Internal Man, which is represented by Joseph, the conjunction taking place by means of temptation. (39) By temptations the corporeals themselves were reduced into correspondence; the corporeals properly so- Called are sensuals, which are of a two-fold kind, some are subordinate to the intellectual part and some to the voluntary part; the former were retained for a time, but the latter were cast out. (40) In the second state of the celestial of the spiritual, which is Joseph, it was exalted over those things which were of the natural or external man, thus over all the scientifics there, the Natural becoming quiescent, and leaving all things to the celestial of the spiritual; then this inflows into and is conjoined with the scientifics in the natural. (41) And then it inflows into and is conjoined with the truths of faith which are of the Church there. First there is an effort to appropriate these truths- Through the scientifics of the Church, and without a medium- To Truth from the Divine, but this in vain, wherefore they were sent back, and some good of natural truth was given gratis. (42) But when the medium came, the conjunction could take place, being preceded by a general influx. (43) The Internal Celestial Man infilled the medium with spiritual Truth from itself, but then came a temptation of the External Natural Man, which lasted until they submitted themselves spontaneously to the Internal Celestial; thus did the Internal man initiate the External Natural, by the Medium, into conjunction with itself." Then the Internal Man conjoined to itself the External Natural; but because this conjunction does not take place, except through Good Spiritual from the Natural, therefore it prepared itself to adjoin that to itself first. (45) It then entered upon this conjunction, and afterward it was conjoined with the truths and goods of the Church in their order. (46) After Good spiritual from the Natural has been conjoined with the Celestial Internal, the truths of the Church, which are in the. Natural, were insinuated into the scientifics, the scientifics being then reduced into order by the Celestial Internal.
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First true scientifics, then the truths of good and the goods of truths, finally every natural as to scientifics, are reduced under their general, and at last Good spiritual from the natural is regenerated. (47)
The Intellectual of the Church which is from Truth is represented by Ephraim, and the Voluntary of the Church by Menasheh. In the Church the truth of faith which is of the Intellectual is apparently in the first place, and the good of charity which is of the Voluntary is apparently in the second place. (48) The truths of faith and the goods of love are represented and signified by the twelve tribes named after the sons of Israel. Faith separate from charity is utterly rejected. The celestial Church is described, as also the celestial spiritual Church. (49)
Lastly, in the Book of Genesis, the Church is treated of, that after the celestial Church perished, a spiritual Church was instituted by the LORD; its beginning and "progress is described, and finally its end; and that in place of it there was only the representative of a Church instituted among the posterity of Jacob. (50)
In every evil 1893
In every evil from its origin lies hidden, own prudence.-D. P. 206
PERCEPTION Rev. ENOCH S. PRICE 1893
And said thy servant thy father unto us, Ye know that my wife bare me two-Gen. xliv, 27.
THE words of the text were spoken by Judah when he came with his brethren, and they submitted themselves to Joseph, and when Judah especially offered to remain as servant to Joseph in place of Benjamin, who had apparently been convicted of theft. The internal sense of the passage in brief is that the good of the Church in the natural now perceived from spiritual good that if there is to be spiritual good which is of the Church there must be internal good and truth.
It is only after the submission of the truths of the natural by good which is Judah, to the internal which is Joseph, that man begins really to see what it is that makes the Church, that he perceives that if there is to be spiritual good, about which he has learned from doctrine, and which he has been taught makes the Church, there must be internal good and truth. Thy servant my father said unto us.
It is to be noted that this is the first place where Judah says Thy servant my father said unto us, which he says of Israel his father who here represents spiritual good from the natural, which is the servant of the celestial of the spiritual. Judah could not say this hitherto, for he represents the good of the Church in the natural, and this could have no perception from the spiritual before it had submitted itself wholly to the internal.
But why is it that perception comes after this complete submission? It is because now self has been put aside, and the spiritual sky has been cleared of the clouds of self-intelligence and self- Confidence which obscured it, and there is a chance for the benign rays of the spiritual sun to shine into the remains of good and truth stored up in the interiors of the natural which now, like seeds that through the long winter of the selfhood have lain dormant in the soil, spring up and bloom in the warm sunshine of truth in which is good.
What perception is, is at this day unknown. It is a certain' internal sensation which is from the LORD alone as to whether a thing be true and good. It was best known to the Most Ancient Church. It is so manifest with the angels that they may know and have known what is true and good, what is from the LORD, and what from themselves; as also what is the quality of one who comes to them, from his coming alone, and from a single idea of him. The spiritual man has no perception, but it is with him conscience. A dead man has not oven conscience, and most do not know what conscience is, still less what perception is.
Further, perception is internal revelation. After what has just been said who of us can claim to have perception or even to have a very clear idea of what it is? Still the man of the Church who really, humbly, and of his own will submits his own self-derived ideas and opinions to the Divine truth of the Doctrines may begin to have some idea of what perception is; for it is a thing that comes with truth lived and done. While on the plane of spiritual things perception will be given to but exceeding few in these days of beginning, yet there are on the natural plane many things that may serve to illustrate by comparisons what perception is. The highest of these is conscience which, if it be genuine, is a real representative of perception, in fact, is perception on its own plane. It is an internal sensation in the natural mind without any process of thought as to the moral quality of a thing. It is derived from a form of the internal natural mind induced by the precepts of morality learned from parents, teachers, and the doctrines of the Church. Another illustration of perception on a still more ultimate plane is the ability to see the suitability of certain means to a certain end, which ability is derived from experience in the operations of this or that calling; for instance, the finished mechanic sees mentally and instantly without any process of thinking out, what tools and materials are necessary for the production of any simple article; he also sees in the same manner the unsuitability of other tools and materials which may be presented. The reason why we do not have perception is because we do not have the knowledge of experience in spiritual things, but only the knowledge of doctrine and precept. If we will only humbly submit ourselves to the LORD in His Divine Human, giving up entirely our own opinions, offering ourselves as servants, then we shall come into a state of spiritual good in the natural- That is, in our every-day life, and from that good will come light, and we shall see, we shall have an internal sensation, we shall perceive. It is then that natural good can say that thy servant my father said unto us; for there is no natural good, really such, that is not the offspring of spiritual good, and both are servants to internal good.
What Israel says is, that, Ye know that my wife bare me two. If we are to have the spiritual good which is of the Church, and the accompanying perception, there must be with us internal good and truth. The wife from whom these two were born was Rachel, beautiful in form and beautiful in aspect, the affection of interior truth. The other sons of Jacob, or truths and goods in the natural, are to be conjoined to the elder of these two, internal good, or Joseph, by means of internal truth, or Benjamin. The conjunction is not yet full, but has gene only so far as the submission of the sons of Leah through Judah, who is here natural good or good in the natural- The full conjunction is described as the narrative proceeds. Here the requirements for the conjunction are described in the declaration of Israel, Ye know that my wife bare me two."
There was a foreshadowing of the submission of the natural to the internal in the dreams of Joseph while a boy at home with his father and brethren; but Israel continues in the words quoted by Judah to Joseph, one went forth from me.
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Obedience to the LORD and love to Him are implanted in man in his childhood, in his obedience to parents and love toward them, but afterward this appears to recede, and in fact it does recede into the interiors, and evils and falses hold sway in the wild- Ass state of man, when, he leaves the innocent state of his childhood.
In the state now under our consideration there is a coming back toward the innocent state of childhood, but as yet there is no recognition of the fact that what brings back is the LORD in His tender mercy, but the appearance is of a hard and terrible master.
The spiritual good which man must have, and which is represented by Israel, is the good of truth in will and act. This truth, or this good of truth, appertaining to man, causes him to be a Church. When truth is implanted in the will, which is perceived from this, that a man is affected with truth for the sake of the end that he may live according to it, then there is internal good and truth with him. When man is in this good and truth, then he is in the kingdom of the LORD, consequently he is a Church, and, together with his like, makes the Church in general. In order that there may be a Church which is a Church there must be spiritual good- That is, the good of such truth as is in the Internal Sense of the Word, but never truth alone, from which alone the Church of the present day is called a Church, and by which one Church is distinguished from another. Let every one think whether truth be anything except it have life for an end. What are doctrinals without that end? Likewise what are the commandments of the Decalogue without living according to them? For if any one know them and all their sense in fullness, and still lives contrary to them, to what do they conduce, but to nothing, and with some to damnation? Similarly if one have the doctrinals of faith from the Word, which are the precepts of Christian life-for they are spiritual laws-neither do these conduce to anything unless they become of the life. Let a man consider with himself whether there be with him that which is anything unless it enter into his life? And whether the life of man which is life is anywhere else than in his will? Whence now it is that it was said by the LORD in the Old Testament and confirmed in the New, that all the Law and the Prophets are founded in love to the LORD, and in love toward the neighbor, thus in the very life, but not in faith without life, therefore by no means in faith alone, consequently neither in trust, for this without charity toward the neighbor is not givable. If it appears to be with the evil, in the dangerous affairs of life, and when death stands at the door, it is a spurious or false trust, for with such in the other life there does not appear even the least of trust, although at the approach of death they had professed such trust with apparent ardor. That faith or the expressions of faith have no effect to produce that confidence or trust with the evil, the LORD Himself teaches in John:- As many as received, to them He gave the power that they might be the sons of God, believing in His name, who were born not of bloods, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but from God. They who are of bloods are those who have done violence to charity, also those who profane the truth. They who are born of the will of the flesh are they who are in evils from self-love and the love of the world. They who are born of the will of man are they who are in the persuasion of the false, for man [vir] signifies truth, and in the opposite sense the false. They who are born of God are they who are regenerated by the LORD, and are thence in Good; these are they who receive the LORD and who believe in His name, and these are they to whom He gives the power to become the sons of God, but not so the former.
In order that a man may be regenerated and become a Church he must be introduced by truth to good, and he is introduced when truth becomes truth in the will and in the act. This truth is good and is called the good of truth, and produces new truths continually, for then first it fructifies itself; the truth which is thence fructified is what is called internal truth, and the good in which it originates is called internal good, for nothing becomes internal until it becomes implanted in the will, inasmuch as the voluntary is the inmost of man; so long therefore as good and truth are out of the will, and only in the understanding, they are out of the man, for the understanding is without, and the will is within.
To what extent have we truth in will from which we may have the good of truth, or internal good, and thence internal truth? Have we the two that must he born to the spiritual man ere he can be a Church thus in the kingdom of the LORD? Are we not each and all of us born of bloods, do we not do violence to charity? Let us pray that we are not of those who profane the truth, for this is most direful of all. Are we not born of the will of the flesh? Are we not all intensely in the love of ourselves and the world? Are we not much more inclined to act of ourselves and to trust in our own prudence than to act as of ourselves and trust in the Divine Providence? Are we not born of the will of man? Do we not incline continually to excuse our own evils and to persuade ourselves that we are right in our evil way? These are all questions that each one must ask himself in his self-examination if he would be born of God- that is, be regenerated and receive the power to be a son of God. With internal good and truth comes the glorious gift of perception. This perhaps none of us need hope to attain to while in this life, but may we not at least attain to a true conscience?
If our natural good shall have been reduced to subjection by such temptations and misfortunes as shall show us that in itself it is nothing but evil, and that it shall of itself submit itself, and say by me my LORD, and humbly pray for conjunction with internal good, then Judah shall be able to say, Thy servant my father said unto us. Then there will be an influx from the spiritual man within-into the good of the natural; for saying signifies influx on the part of the speaker and reception on the part of the hearer, and he who hears perceives the meaning of the speaker, if he understand.
If men on earth had the perception of good and truth, which means had they the will of good, how much more smoothly would the wheels of society move on; for then men would be as the angels, each one seeing distinctly what uses he ought to perform, never wishing to enter into or interfere with the uses of another except in the way of co-operation.
Genuine perception exists by heaven from the LORD, and affects the intellectual part spiritually, and leads it perceptibly to think as the thing really is, with an internal assent, the source of which it is ignorant of. It supposes that that source is in it, and that it flows from the connection of things, whereas it is a dictate by heaven from the LORD, flowing into the interiors of the thought concerning such things as are above the sensual and natural- That is, concerning such things as are of the spiritual word or of heaven.
Perception in itself is nothing but a kind of internal speech, which so manifests itself that it maybe perceived what is said. Every interior dictate, and even conscience itself, is nothing but internal speech; but perception is a superior degree of it.
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The perception of the Church consists in this, that they perceive from the LORD what is good and true as the angels do; not so much what the good and truth of civil society are, but what the good and truth of love and faith in the LORD are: from a confession of faith confirmed from life it can appear what is the quality of any one's perception; and whether he has perception.
And this wonderful gift, how near it is of attainment and yet how far, how easy of attainment and yet how difficult I Every one born was predestined to have it, and yet how few obtain it I And why? Because they will not have it. How easy it would be to do the truth if we would, and yet how prone are we to do the opposite. It is not contrary to freedom for man to compel himself, and if man would compel himself to shun evil and do good, the will to do it would be given of the LORD, when compulsion would no longer be necessary.
If we had this living voice of the LORD with us we should know that all our struggle for mere knowledge is useless unless there be the end of life constantly in it. What is science unless wisdom be in it, and when wisdom comes we shall know that science alone is nothing, neither truth alone, but that there must be a marriage of good and truth in us, yea a marriage of internal good and truth, if the Church is to be with us, and in us; then Israel will say, through his spokesman Judah, Ye know that my wife bare me two.
Let us therefore humbly bow to the Divine commends, reduce our stubborn will to submission to the Divine will, offer all that is natural in us as servants to the internal, let the proud and stiff-necked sons of Jacob, be convicted of treachery and theft before the governor of Egypt; for this treachery and theft is what all claim of merit is. Then will mutual love, conjugial love, and love to the LORD find a dwelling-place in us, and in place of doubts and misgiving will be true conscience and clear perception of the good and the true; and the good and the true in marriage will fructify, and sons and daughters, new and ever newer goods and truths, will be born unto them.
Ye call me Master and LORD, and ye say well, for I am. If I, then, LORD and Master, have washed your feet, ye ought also to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye shall do as I have done to you. Amen, amen, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things happy are ye, if ye do them. Amen.
Every man is led 1893
Every man is led of the Divine by his intellectual, otherwise no man could be saved.- A. C. 10,409.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SPIRITUAL CHURCH AND ITS END 1893
GENESIS L.
IN this last chapter the Church is treated of, that after the Celestial Church perished a Spiritual Church was established by the LORD; its beginning and progress are described in the Internal Sense, and, at the end of the chapter, the end of the Church; and that in its place only the representative of a Church was established.
(1.) When the internal celestial inflows into the affection of spiritual good, there is sorrow, but still a first conjunction. By the sorrow here mentioned is not meant sadness on account of death, in the Internal Sense, as in the external, but on account of the good of the spiritual Church, that it cannot be elevated above the natural; for the LORD, inflowing by the internal, continually wills to perfect that good and to draw it toward Himself, but still it cannot be elevated to the first degree of the good which is of the celestial Church.
(2.) The influx from the internal is concerning preservation from the evils which hinder conjunction, lest the good of the spiritual Church should be infected with any contagion; the effect was to preserve the good which was from truth.
(3.) Then came a state of preparation by temptations; such states are of preservation; but there is sadness on the part of the scientifics of the Church, because the good of the Church leaves the scientifics which are of the externals of the Church when it ascends from them to the internal of the Church, which is the good of truth; for then it no longer views scientifics with it self as before but below itself; for when the truth of the spiritual Church becomes good, then there is effected a turning and then it no longer looks at truths from truths, but it looks at truths from good, whence there is brought about another order among scientifics which is not done without grief; but this must proceed even to a full state.
(4.) When that state of sorrow is finished the Internal inflows into the natural mind, in order that it may be well received, with solicitation that the natural mind may consent.
(5.) For the Internal has the Church at heart, for this is wanting, wherefore it is to be resuscitated, and the resuscitation must be from the Internal by presence in the natural mind.
(6.) The natural affirms that the Church may be resuscitated because the Internal has it at heart.
(7.) When the Internal inflows for the establishment of the Church, it adjoins to itself the scientifics of the natural which were concordant with good, and which were concordant with truth.
(8.) It also adjoins the celestial things of the spiritual and the truths thence; likewise in the complex all things of the good of the spiritual; but innocence and charity and the exercises of charity were in the inmost of all these scientifics.
(9.) The Internal also adjoins to itself doctrinals and things intellectual; all these things are goods and truths conjoined.
(10.) The first state of this new Church is its coming to the good of truth and the truth of good such as are of the initiation into the knowledges of good and truth, in which state there is grief, because now another state is to be induced upon the natural, and the scientifics therein are to be otherwise arranged, thus what man had before loved are to be destroyed, wherefore also he must undergo temptations, after which comes an end of the grief.
(11.) The good of the Church apperceives the grief in the first state, namely, of initiation, that it is the grief of scientifics before they are initiated into the truths of the Church: such is the quality of this grief.
(12.) The effect according to influx is (13) that the Church is transferred from the state of scientifics to the state in which the Ancient Church was, and is resuscitated therein, in the beginning of regeneration, with those who receive the truth and good of faith and suffer themselves to be regenerated, as to quality and quantity.
(14). Afterward comes the life of the internal celestial, and of the truths of faith in scientifics, and of all things which conduce to regeneration, when the Church resuscitates.
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(15.) The things alienated from good and truth now apperceive that the Church is awakened, and they reject the internal, wherefore punishment impends over them according to desert.
(16.) By influx from the internal and thence perception it is known to those alienated from the Church that it is from the command of the Church, from the Divine.
(17.) They perceived from the internal what ought to be done, namely, that there ought to be supplication and penitence for that they are averse to the good and truth which inflow; hence they ought to repent and acknowledge the Divine things of the Church, when they will be received from love:
(18.) Wherefore the things in the natural now submit themselves under the internal, so that they are no longer at their own disposal.
The establishment of a spiritual Church is treated of in this chapter; in this place the submission of those things which are in the natural under the internal is treated of; respecting this submission it is to be known that the' spiritual Church cannot in any wise be established wit any one, unless those things which are of the natural or external man be submitted to the spiritual or internal man; so long as the truth alone, which is of faith, predominates with man, and not the good which is of charity; so long the natural or external man does not submit to the spiritual or internal; but as soon as good has dominion, the natural or external man submits himself and then man becomes a spiritual Church; this is known from the fact that he does from affection what the truth teaches, and that he does not act contrary to that affection howsoever the natural desires it.
(19.) When this submission has been made then those things which had been before alienated are re- Created from the internal, for so God provides.
(20.) They who are alienated from truth and good intend nothing but evil, but the Divine turns it into good, for this is according to order from eternity, that they may have life who are in the truths of good.
(2L) But they who are in the truths of good ought not to be solicitous, for they shall live by the internal from the Divine, by truth which is of the understanding, and good which is of the will- That is, spiritual truths in the natural, and the innocence which is in them, will live by internal truth and good from the Divine, wherefore there is hope and trust.
(22.) The scientifics of the Church now have life from the internal and its goods, whence their state and quality.
The Church established is here treated of. With the man, who is a spiritual Church, there is life from the internal in the scientifics of the Church; for scientifics with him are made subordinate, and are reduced into such an order that they receive the influx of good and truth, so that they are receptacles of influx from the internal.
(23.) The Church is established as to the intellectual an its derivatives, and as to the voluntary and its derivatives, by good conjoined with truth from the internal.
(24.) It was predicted that the internal of the Church would cease, and that the last time would come, namely, of the Old Church, and the first of the New, which shall come to a state of the Church in which the Ancients were.
(25) But there was a binding that when the last of the Church should come, there should be the representative of a Church, not a Church, which also shall be in the internal.
(26.) The internal ceased as to the state and quality of the life of scientifics from the internal, but was still preserved from the contagion of evil by concealment in the scientifics of the Church.
The Internal Sense of the things contained in the Book of Genesis have now been treated of. But because in this book all things are historical, except in chapters xlviii and xlix, where are also prophetical things, it can scarcely appear that what has been expounded is the Internal Sense; for historical things hold the mind down in the literal sense and thus remove it from the Internal Sense; and the more so because the Internal Sense differs altogether from the literal, inasmuch as the former treats of things spiritual and celestial, and the latter of things worldly and terrestrial. But that the internal is such as has been expounded is evident from each of the things which have been explained, and especially from this, that it has been dictated to me from heaven (quod ille e coelo mihi dictatus fuerit).
Lord, by His Divine Providence 1893
The Lord, by His Divine Providence, leads the affections of a man's life's love, and at the same time, also the thoughts from which is human prudence.-D. P. 200.
ORDINATION AND INSTALLATION IN LONDON 1893
SUNDAY morning, July 23d, 1893, was a memorable time for the congregation worshiping in Burton Road, Brixton. It witnessed the first ordination and installation into the sacred office of the Priesthood, which have taken place in the Church of the Academy of the New Church, or of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, in this country.
Bishop Benade officiated, clothed in the rich vestments marking the highest degree of the Priesthood. The Rev. R. J. Tilson assisted in the greater part of the service.
As the Bishop and Pastor entered, all rose and an introit was sung. The Bishop opened the Repository and placed the Sacred Books upon the altar, then
kneeling, prayer was offered, followed by the LORD'S Prayer. The short Anthem, "Arise, O LORD," was then sung. The Faith of the New Church, from The True Christian Religion, was read, and the third Psalm, set to music by Mr. C. J. Whittington, was sung. The Bishop then read the first lesson (T. C. R. 244 and 245). The second lesson was read by the Rev. R. J. Tilson (John x), and was followed by the singing of the eighth Psalm.
The Bishop then conducted the service of Ordination, introducing Mr. Glendower C. Ottley, and Mr. John Stephenson, into the Priesthood of the New Church.
The ordination service opened with selections from the passages from the Writings (A. C. 10,760-6, 1728, 2015, 9809; Charity vi, 1-6; H. D. 314; A. C. 10,793; H. D. 315; A. C. 10,794; H. D. 316; A. C. 10,795; H. D. 317; A. C. l0,796-7; H. D. 318; A. C. 10,798; H. D. 319; A. C. 10,799; Canons, H. Spirit, 4-5, chap. III, 2 and 3, chap. IV, 5, 7, 8, 9; A. C. 9805, 878, 6292; D. L. W. 150, 220; A. E. 79; T. C. R. 146, 155).
After the reading of brief extracts from these portions of the opened WORD, the Bishop said,
"By the Divine Mercy of the LORD the rite of inauguration into the Priesthood of the New Church is now to be performed in the presence of this assembly. Our brothers, Glendower Coghill Ottley and John Stephenson are now presented in order that they may declare openly before the LORD, and in the hearing of this assembly of the Church, their desire and intention to devote themselves to the ministries of the Priesthood, and in order that they may thereupon be duly and solemnly inaugurated into the office of the Priesthood in the New Church of the LORD."
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The following questions were then put the Candidates: First, "You sincerely believe that it is of the Divine Providence of the LORD that you are called to the Priesthood of the New Church?" Second, "You desire and propose to enter upon this sacred Office, to the end that you may therein serve the LORD in His Divine Work of saving human souls, and that you may perform for your fellow-men the spiritual and eternal uses for the accomplishment of which the LORD has instituted the Priesthood in His Church?"
To each question the candidates responded, "I do."
The Bishop then requested each candidate to declare his faith, which was done by Mr. Ottley in the following words:
"I believe that the Sacred Scriptures are the Word of God- The Divine Truth Itself- The infinite source of light and life to angels and men- And that their divinity lies concealed in the internal or spiritual sense.
"I believe that the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem are a Revelation of interior Divine Truths-of that Spiritual Sense which treats of the LORD alone and of His Kingdom, and which is the sense in which His Angels in heaven are, for it is His Divine Truth there, and that in this Spiritual Sense now unfolded to the rational perceptions of men living In this world, the LOD- The Infinite God and Saviour JESUS CHRIST-in whom is the Divine Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-now appears in His Glorified Human, with power and great glory.
"I believe that salvation is attainable only by a life according to the Commandments of the LORD.
"I believe that now is the time of the Second Coming of the LORD foretold in the Word of the Old and New Testaments, and that this Second Coming has been effected by means of a man-Emanuel Swedenborg-before whom He manifested Himself in Person and whom He filled with His Spirit to teach the, Doctrines of the New Church, and that from the first day of his call he did not receive anything pertaining to the Doctrines of the New Church from any Angel, but from the LORD alone while reading the Word.
"I believe that by means of a Revelation of Truths from His Mouth or from His Word and by inspiration, the LORD has begun to raise up a New Church, which will be the crown of all the Churches that have existed on this earth, and which wilt last to eternity- A Church into which will be gathered the 'remnants' of the first, but now utterly consummated, Christian Church.
"It is the inmost desire of my heart, in humble reliance upon the LORD-my God- To be guided all the days of my life by the Divine Truths revealed by Him in His opened Word- The Writings- And also, as a Priest of His Church, to teach those Truths in their purity and integrity, so that I may become in the Hands of the LORD the means of leading men by truth to good- The only way in which they can be regenerated, and therefore be made eternally happy."
Mr. Stephenson then made his declaration as follows:
"I believe that the Sacred Scripture is the Word which is God with God, and that it is the Eternal Living Truth of the Infinite Divine Good. I believe that the Doctrines of the New Jerusalem and the Spiritual Sense of the Word make one, and that the Divinity of the Word resides in the Spiritual Sense. I believe that in the Word now opened, the LORD JESUS CHRIST our Redeemer and Saviour appears as the Infinite Jehovah in His own Divine Human, and that He is the one God of Heaven and earth, in Whom is the Divine Trinity of love wisdom and operation, which are called in the Sacred Scripture, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
"I believe that Salvation which is life eternal can only be attained by Faith in the LORD, God, and Saviour JESUS CHRIST, and by a life according to His Commandments.
"I believe that now is the time of the Second Coming of the LORD which was foretold in the Gospels and the Apocalypse, and that this Coming of the LORD is a Coming not in person, but in the power and glory of the Spiritual Sense of the Word, which is the LORD Himself now manifested. I also believe that the LORD effected this- His Second Coming-by the instrumentality of a man, His servant, Emanuel Swedenborg, to whom He manifested Himself, and enfilled with His Spirit to teach the Doctrines of the New Church by the Word from Him atone.
"I believe that the LORD has begun to raise up a New Christian Church upon this earth in place of the former Christian Church which has passed away, and that this New Church will be the crown of all Churches, and will remain forever, since it will acknowledge the LORD JESUS CHRIST as the visible God in whom is the invisible, and approach Him immediately in worship.
"I believe that this New Church now being raised up by the LORD was seen by John in a representative form, when he beheld the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of Heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
"It is the earnest desire and fervent prayer of my heart that by the Divine Mercy of the LORD, I may at all times be enabled to look to Him for Light and Guidance along the path of duty, and that I may from Him be filled with an affection for the Truth, and the love of all that is good. And I pray that by humbly confiding in the LORD I may receive from Him the power to teach and preach the Spiritual Truths of the eternal Gospel of His Kingdom, and so lead men to the food of life, in which is salvation and eternal conjunction with the LORD. AMEN."
The declaration of faith having been made, the Bishop said, "Having thus declared your faith and your purpose in appearing here at this time, will you now be inaugurated into the Priesthood of the LORD'S New Church, with the solemn determination by the Divine Mercy of the LORD, honestly, sincerely, and faithfully to perform the duties of this sacred office?" Receiving an affirmative reply from each candidate, the Bishop offered a most impressive prayer, followed by the LORD'S Prayer; after which the following passages from the Letter of the WORD were read, Matthew xxviii, 18-20; Luke x. 2, 3, 16; John xx, 21 and 22.
The candidates then knelt and the Bishop, placing his hands upon their heads, said, "In the name of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, and by His authority thou art ordained a Priest, in the first degree of the Office of the Priesthood of the New Church of the LORD; and thou art charged with the sacred duty of preaching the WORD, according to the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, of ministering in public worship, of administering the Sacrament of Baptism, and of leading men by truths to the good of life."
Then followed the Blessing from Numbers vi, 22-26.
Each candidate was then' received on to the chancel area of the Hall of Worship and was clothed with the representative garment of his office, viz., an inner and an outer robe of fine white linen, and a white silk stole.
The Bishop then delivered the following
CHARGE AND EXHORTATION.
"And now, my brothers, that you have been solemnly inaugurated into the office of the Priesthood of the New Church of the LORD, let me charge you in the holy name of Him whom to know and to follow is life eternal, that you be ever mindful of your accepted duties, and ever faithful to the sacred trust committed into your hands. To you it is given to teach and to preach the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, as they are revealed by the LORD out of His WORD, in the divinely inspired Writings for the New Church.
"Look to the LORD in them, and as He Who is the Truth Itself and the Good Itself appears to you in them, let Him be your Light, your Guide, your Helper, and your Defense.
"In a love of the Truth for its own sake, learn the Truth from the LORD; in a love of saving human souls, preach and teach the truth from the LORD, without fear and without favor, to the sole end that men may be reformed, regenerated, saved, and conjoined with the LORD in the life of Heaven from Him.
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"And that you may be a good shepherd of the flock, ever seek the Divine help to overcome your self-intelligence and your self-love, so that they may not enter into the performance of the duties of the office which is adjoined to you as the representative means and agency of the Heavenly Father's work of seeking and saving His human creatures.
"Be true to the Truth, be sincere and loving to the Good; be honest to man, and humble before the LORD. Thus will you serve Him, into whose service you have this day entered; thus will you minister to men the things of His Divine Law and Worship; and thus will you come to stand before him as a Priest, in the place of His Holiness, watching for the peace of Jerusalem, and praying for the hastening of the day when the Tabernacle of GOD shall be with men, and He shall dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and GOD Himself shall be with them, their GOD. AMEN."
The two novitiate priests then took their places on the Chancel, one each side of the Repository. The Te Dominum (Liturgy, p. 376), was then sung, and at its close the Bishop commenced the service of
INSTALLATION,
announcing that the Rev. Robert James Tilson, who had for some time been fulfilling the duties of Pastor in that place, was now to be formally installed into that office as a Pastor of the particular Church of the Academy of the New Church in the City of London.
The service of Installation was commenced with the following
ADDRESS.
"All the laws of Order by which the LORD governs the Universe as King, are Truths; but all the laws by which He governs the universe as Priest, and by which He also rules Truths themselves, are Goods; for government from truths alone would condemn every one to hell, but government from goods raises out of hell and elevates into Heaven (A. C. 2015).
"In the heavens and in the Church the LORD has instituted the Priesthood to be a representative of Himself as to the Divine Good of His Divine Love, in other words, as to every office which He discharges as Saviour (A. C. 9809). It is from the LORD that the Priests are governors over those things among men which are of Heaven, or over things ecclesiastical. Concerning the representatives of a Church, which prefigured the true Church of the LORD, we are taught that the people of Israel represented Heaven and the Church, but Aaron with his sons, and with the Levites, represented the good of love and faith, which makes heaven and the Church, thus the LORD from whom that good is derived; therefore, the land was ceded to the people for an inheritance, but not to the Priests, for the LORD is in them, but not amongst them as one and distinct (A. C. 9809). So the office of the Priesthood is an office to the LORD in the Church, and not of the Church as one and distinct from it. To separate the office from the Church, and to make it, with its functions and uses, one and distinct from the Church, is to take the LORD out of the Church and to consign the Church to destruction.
"The LORD, who is the Divine High Priest, ordinates and governs all things in Heaven and the Church from Divine Good by Divine Truth. From Him are the goods and truths, by which all things in the Church are ruled and ordinated. These internal things of His Divine Love and Wisdom come into the exercise of their life and power in the Church by the Office of the Priesthood, which is the LORD'S instrumentality for the doing of His Will on earth as it is done in Heaven; and when Priests teach men according to the Doctrine of the Church from the WORD, and lead them to live according to that Doctrine, and so bring them to the LORD, it is said of them that they are good shepherds of the sheep whose voice they hear, because it comes to them' as the voice of the LORD, in following which they go in and out and find pasture (H. D. 815; A. C. 10,794). The men to whom is given the sacred duty of governing, teaching, and leading the people of the LORD'S pasture, need of all things to feel and realize the responsibility of the high office adjoined to them, and, giving all dignity and honor to the LORD alone, they ought to cherish and cultivate the wisdom of humility for the gift of a holy work by which the LORD effects the salvation of souls.
"In the strength of this humility they can go to the LORD to be taught the way of life in which to lead the men of the Church, and, having learnt from Him, they can bring gifts of eternal life to their fellow-men. He who learns well and faithfully from the Divine Master, is prepared to teach His Word. If this preparation be made from an earnest and honest love for the Truth, and for the salvation of souls by means of the Truth, there will be in the gift the warm love of giving, inflowing from the Divine breath breathed on the disciple who hearkens to his Master's voice and opens his heart to the coming of the Holy Spirit, who so opens it, that all which enters from the Divine sphere, in giving forth as freely as it has been received, partakes of the good of Infinite Love that has come in, and brings with it a sweet benediction from Him Who is Blessed forever. What is a duty without a heart in the doing of it? What is a heart without the warmth of a fire glowing with a spark of the ardor of that Divine Love which burned to the very heart of Heaven, and coming down to earth in Human Form, brought life and immortality to the light of feeble finite minds? In His Love and in His Pity He redeemed us, in His Love and in His Pity He saves us. He is the Good Shepherd to Whom the sheep are to be led, Who knows His sheep, and Who is known by His own, for whom He prepares a place in His Kingdom of the Heavens. In that kingdom reigns love to the LORD, and love toward the neighbor, and in that kingdom every love is a living good of use to the kingdom of the LORD in heaven and on earth. As the Divine took on a human form in the womb of a virgin, for the liberation of angels and of men from the powers of darkness, so the Divine comes into human forms of use by influx into the affection of truth represented by a virgin, and made active in the hearts of pastor and people. Let both then cherish this blessed virgin affection to the establishment of the Church, as the Divine means of conjoining heaven and earth."
The Bishop, addressing the Pastor more particularly, then said:
"Robert James Tilson, you have been for one year since your ordination into the second degree of the Priestly office, engaged in the work of constituting a particular Church in the city of London, and the time has come for the formal recognition of your pastoral relation to the people whom you have brought together and organized into a Church. You entered upon this work as a Priest of the Church of the Academy of the New Church, with the sanction of the ecclesiastical authorities of that Church, and to those authorities alone will you be subject hereafter in the administration of the affairs of this particular Church.
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You will stand under subordination to the Chancellor of the Academy in the selection and introduction of members into this particular Church and inasmuch as such selection and introduction will constitute them members of the Church of the Academy they will come under the regulations established by this body. You are charged to perform the duty of such selection with a wise and prudent regard to the order and needs of the Academy and with an especial respect to the use of the same as they shall from time to time be made known to you. To the end that your relation to the Academy, and the relation of this particular Church to the Academy may be clearly seen and known of all, and rationally understood by the members of this Church, and of the larger body of which you will form a part, I ask you to make your declaration of faith and purpose in this act, in the hearing of this assembly of the Church."
In response to this request, the Rev. R. J. Tilson then made the following
DECLARATION.
"I do solemnly declare my unequivocal acceptance of the Doctrines of the WORD of the LORD in Its Spirit and in Its Letter, as revealed in the WORD of the Writings, of the Old Testament, and of the New Testament.
"I recognize that the LORD is in them in His Divine Human, and that they are the supreme and unfailing Law of the Church. I do also solemnly declare it to be the end and purposes of my life, by the LORD'S help, to devote my strength to the fulfilling of those duties which pertain to the office of a Pastor in the LORD'S Church; and I most earnestly pray that I may be enabled to govern the Church over which I am set, wisely and well, in loyal subordination to him to whom the highest of the trine of degrees in the Priesthood is adjoined; and in the constant endeavor to lead men by truth to good, and thus to conjunction with the LORD."
Having heard this declaration the Bishop continued in the following words, "This then is the first formal establishment of a particular Church of the Academy, and this is the first formal installation of a Pastor of such a Church. May it prove the auspicious beginning of a new era in the movement of the Church of the Academy by the completion and more perfect organization of that body, bringing with it a new life and a new capacity to perform the important spiritual uses assigned to that body, in the' Divine Providence of the LORD.
"As order among men is necessary to the accomplishment of substantial ends of good, so the perfection of the means and appliances of orderly action must needs carry such ends forward to grander results, and to the production of effects having an ever-widening bearing and more uplifting tendency.
"The Church is to be the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, and as the Kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom of uses, when to these there is given a wider ground in the extension of knowledge of the LORD and His WORD, in the spirit and in the letter, and a deeper soil in the true love of the LORD, and the neighbor, we shall gain in very deed the greater hope that rests on man's filling every province of use full of the love of good that comes down from GOD out of Heaven to seek and to save that which is lost, in the natural plane of human existence."
Addressing the congregation more particularly the Bishop said:
"To you, Brethren of this particular Church of the Academy, let me speak a word of admonition and counsel. You knew your Pastor, you have passed with him through seasons of trial permitted by the merciful Providence of the LORD for his and for your purification from evils and preparation for other and greater uses. As you have stood by him whilst he led you in the way of duty, and in the path of right understanding and faithful practice of the laws of spiritual life, now revealed from GOD out of Heaven, for the Church of His crowning mercy to the human race: as you have upheld his hands in the struggles of the past, and comforted him in the sore afflictions of the natural life, I would pray you to stand by, and to uphold him in the further trials and afflictions that may, and undoubtedly will, come to him in the future. Have confidence in him, so that he may confide in you, and your charities may become one, to be conjoined with the Divine Love and make of your earth a heaven, and your heaven a pure presence of the LORD to be a blessing to you and generations new-born, and yet unborn. May you and your Priest be true to your duties, and in them true to each other, with a love void of self and the world, but full of all the sweet and gracious affections and deeds that descend from Infinite Mercy out of Heaven to all who obey His WORD, and do His Will in sincerity of faith and the devotion of a pure life that lifts its heart to the mountains of Zion and is made a dwelling-place of the Most High.
"And now receive the Divine Benediction."
The Bishop then pronounced the blessing from Numbers. When pronouncing the blessing on the newly-installed Pastor, the Bishop empowered him "to select members for the particular Church, to call meetings of members of the Academy, to preside at them, and to perform such other functions of the Church as the exigencies of time and state may require."
At the close of the Installation, hymn 90 of the Liturgy was lung, the Offertory was received by the Pastor in the usual manner, and the Bishop pronounced the Benediction from Revelation xxii.
Thus ended a most memorable service- A service which, it is believed, opens a new era of life for the Church which is seeking to be true in every detail of its organization to the Divine Doctrines which are themselves the Church Itself.
The Hall of Worship was full and the sphere attending the whole service was most intense and pleasant. We thank the Great LORD of the Harvest that thus early in the more orderly Church's life He has in His mercy, sent forth more laborers into the Harvest.
All contingencies are of Providence 1893
All contingencies are of Providence, and Providence acts silently and secretly for many reasons.- A. C. 6485.
LAYING OF THE CORNER- STONE OF THE PARKDALE SCHOOL- HOUSE 1893
THE Corner- Stone for a new school- House in Parkdale was laid on Sunday, the 27th of August, the Pastor, the Rev. E. S. Hyatt, officiating. After the regular morning service in the Parsonage (in which the lessons were Divine Providence, number 91, and Psalm cxviii, and the sermon being on the 22d verse of the latter), the congregation proceeded to the adjacent lot, the Pastor, in the robes of the priestly office, bearing the three forms of the WORD in their original languages; and on reaching the southeastern corner of the excavation, he introduced the ceremony as follows:
"We are assembled here to formally lay the Corner- Stone for the, foundation of the new building which is to be dedicated to the uses of school and worship.
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It is not necessary to add much to what has just been said in the sermon concerning the representation of the Corner- Stone. The one to be used is a hard, unhewn boulder, found upon this ground. It is of angular shape, which most fitly represents the same strength and stability which its position in the 'corner' of the foundation will. In the Latin of the Writings the word for 'angle' and corner is the same- Thus a corner-stone is there called an angular one (angularis). The corner selected for it is that at the southeast of the foundation, as representing the conjunction of the good to which the east corresponds, and the truth to which the south corresponds. It is also the corner nearest to which worship will be conducted in the building. It will be so laid as to extend somewhat lower than the rest of the foundation, and thus will be as fully as possible the lowest ultimate of the whole, representing that acknowledgment of the LORD upon which alone the New Church can be founded. Concerning the Corner- Stone hear this further teaching of the LORD given in the Writings in which He has come anew."
The Pastor then read Heaven and Hell, number 534, at the conclusion of which he offered the following prayer:
"O LORD JESUS CHRIST, our Father in the Heavens, grant that this stone, with the building about to be erected upon it, may be like the stone standing at the meeting of the ways which lend to heaven and to hell; grant that they may be instrumental in warning many to shun the broad way leading to hell, and in pointing out the narrow one leading to heaven; and that the children here taught may be so prepared that they may see that stone, and not fall thereon and perish. Bless now, O LORD, the act of laying this Corner- Stone, that both it as the first act, and also all the uses which may hereafter rest upon it, may truly be done in Thy Name: Amen."
The Pastor then laid the stone, which, although it was heavier than two men could lift, was so placed that a little pressure of the hand caused it to all into its position." In laying it, he said: "In the name of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, I lay this Corner- Stone, to the end that it may be the ultimate foundation for the use of educating children for heaven, and for a House of Worship wherein the LORD in His New Advent maybe the sole object of love and adoration; and wherein He Himself may be the Foundation or Corner- Stone- Thus the First and the Last thereof."
The congregation then repeated in unison with the Priest:
[Hebrew]
("The Stone rejected of the builders is become the Head of the Corner.")
The Pastor:-"Such is the most ultimate form of Divine Revelation as made in the Word of the Old Testament. In the Word of the New Testament it is written." Here Luke vi, 46-49, was read, and then the congregation repeated in unison:
[Greek]
("Glory in the highest, to God, and upon earth peace; among men, good-will.")
The Pastor:-"Such is the ultimate form of the WORD given by the LORD at His First Advent. These forms of the WORD, as receptacles of genuine truth, have been rejected by the Old Church; and thus the consummation of the age is effected."
The congregation then read in unison from the Book of Doctrines, page 343, concerning "The Consummation of the Age, the Advent of the LORD, and the New Heaven and the New Church."
The Pastor:-"Thus in His New Advent the LORD has come in the new form of the WORD which we call the Writings, upon two copies of one of the books of which was written, Hic Liber est Adventus Domini-scriptum ex mandato. ('This Book is the Advent of the LORD-written by command.') Thus the Writings are the LORD in His New Advent; and together with and resting upon the two more ultimate forms of the WORD they form the Foundation, the Corner- Stone of the New Church."
The congregation in unison with the Priest, who held one of the books of the Writings, together with a fee simile of the original writing of the words, repeated: "Hic Liber est Adventus Domini-scriptum ex mandato."
The Pastor:-"Thus the reading together of the actual expressions of the three literal forms of Divine Revelation, in which the LORD has come, to be the foundation of the Faith of the New Church, has been the first act performed here after the laying of the Corner- Stone. May that first act enter into and give quality to all that follows"
The Pastor then pronounced the benediction, and returned with the WORD to the place where Worship will be continued until the new building is completed. The latter will be 42 feet square, with one story and basement, so planned that another story can be added when necessary.
He who believes 1893
He who believes that he governs himself is in continual inquietude.- A. C. 2892.
PROMISED LAND 1893
ALONG the southeastern angle of the Mediterranean Sea lies a little country, which, small as it is, has, nevertheless, been the theatre of the most important events in the history of the Church. This country is the Land of Canaan. In the most ancient times the whole tract between the Nile and the Euphrates was called by that name, but that part which the Sons of Israel chiefly occupied was much smaller, extending only from the Wilderness of Paran to Mt. Lebanon, a distance of one hundred and forty miles. It was bordered on the east by the River Jordan, and on the west by the "Great Sea." When the Sons of Israel had subdued this part of their inheritance they made further conquests north and south, until their power extended "from the River of Egypt to the Great River, the River Phrath," as the LORD had promised to Abraham. The Sons of Israel had now reached the pinnacle of their power, but they were not destined to hold it long. David conquered these lands, but during the reign of Solomon, his son, these conquests were again lost. Thus the land, occupied by the Sons of Israel was, strictly speaking, limited to that small strip of land reaching from Dan to Beersheba, a country so small that it is scarcely one five- Hundredth the size of our own country.
But the smallness of the Land of Canaan did not in the least affect its use and peculiar fitness to represent the LORD'S Kingdom, and to be the seat of all the Churches before the LORD'S Coming; both by its situation as well as by its peculiar conformation, it was eminently fitted to represent the LORD'S Kingdom, on which account it was "called the Holy Land, as also the heavenly Canaan"
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The name "Canaan"-[Hebrew]-means the "Land of Merchandise" or of "Trading." Now it is generally called the "Holy Land" or "Palestine." The former of these names came into use during the Middle Ages. It does not occur in the Word. The term "Palestine" is a misnomer, as it means the Land of the Philistines, which it never was. The Philistines occupied only a comparatively small space in the southwestern part of Canaan, and never ruled over any but a small part of the land beyond their own territory. The name "Canaan" is the oldest. Originally applied to the whole country lying between the Euphrates and the Nile, it was later used to designate that smaller tract to which it is now given. Whether the nation called the "Canaanites" ever inhabited the whole land is not certain. Indeed there is strong evidence that such was not the case, for all the nations who occupied the land, at the time of the Exodus are called Sons of- Canaan (with the single exception of the Perizzite, whose origin is not stated in the Word), the Canaanites being only one of the Seven Nations of Canaan.
The term Canaan is also supposed to mean "low land," and as the Canaanites lived in the plains along' the Sea and the River Jordan, they are thought to have been so named from this circumstance. This may be one of the meanings of that name, but the only signification given in the Writings is that of the "Land of Merchandise." This meaning must have attached to the name in earlier times, at least when Canaan embraced the cities of Sidon and Tyre, for "Sidon" and "Tyre" signify the cognitions of goods and truths from the Word, and "merchandise" has a similar signification (A. E. 721; A. C. 4453). Moreover, these two cities were the principal cities of the Phoenicians, who were a maritime nation, whose chief occupation was trading with other nations, far and near. The Phoenicians called their country likewise "Canaan," evidently with the meaning given it in the Writings. Their country was a narrow strip of land along the Mediterranean about one hundred and fifty miles in length, reaching as far south as Mt. Carmel, thus bordering on Asher and Manasseh. Thus we find the name Canaan used in three different meanings, being originally applied to a country of considerable extent, but in later times to two small sections of that country.
The Land of Canaan must have been much more productive in ancient times than it is now, for then it supported a population four or five times as large as at the present day, larger indeed in proportion to its size than does any country in Europe or Asia. And it was more densely populated than any country in the world now, with the single exception of Belgium. And the land must have been able to support the whole population, as the Sons of Israel had little if any intercourse with other nations, their laws prohibiting it. This, at least, in earlier times. Then the Sons of Israel must have depended entirely upon the resources of their own land. Indeed, we are taught that the state of the land was according to the state of the people. "When the Sons of Israel lived according to the precepts, the earths gave their produce; in like manner the flocks and herds, and when they lived contrary to the precepts, the earths were barren, and it is said accursed. In place of harvests they gave thorns and briars, and the flocks and herds miscarried, and wild beasts broke in" (D. L.
W. 345).
The present population of Palestine is about six hundred and fifty thousand. When the Sons of Israel left Egypt the number of those who were able to bear arms was nearly as large, so that the above estimate may be rather below than above the actual size of the population at the time of its occupation by the Sons of Israel; for, besides themselves, there still remained for a long time some of the former inhabitants of the land.
Reasoning 1893
Reasoning . . . from man's own intelligence and from his own love is reasoning from mere fallacies, and thick darkness concerning causes.- A. C. 10,409.
GEOMETRY 1893
(Delivered by Mr. Charles E. Doering, A. B., on the occasion of his receiving the diploma of Bachelor of Arts.)
"ALL geometrical forms are the ultimate of the Divine Love in Creation." All matter has these forms. But whether these forms were studied as a science by the most ancients may be doubted, for they had little concern for material things, immediately seeing the spiritual things represented by them. That they were studied by the ancients I think can be of no doubt, for they must have used that science in making the representative figures of their worship, which were of wonderful forms. Egypt, corresponding to the natural or natural scientifics, probably cultivated it more than any other country, and from them, by commerce with other countries, it was finally carried to the Greeks, from whom we first know anything of it historically. Here it was developed by Thales in the seventh century before the Christian era and after him still further by Euclid, Archimides, Appollonius, and others who were the founders of nearly all of the propositions found in our elementary geometries. In fact, so much was this science sought after that Plato wrote over the door of his school: "Let no one enter here who is ignorant of geometry." With the decline of Greece geometry seemed to be at a standstill, and when Alexandria was destroyed it was altogether lost to European countries. Although for the time lost to Europe still it was not lost in other countries, for it was taken up by the Arabs and zealously studied by them for over seven hundred years, especially that which could be applied to astronomy. From the Arabs, after their conquest by the Turks, it was again transferred to Europe, and in the seventh century it seemed to have reached its highest perfection, great advances having been made by Leibnitz, Descartes, Newton, the Bernoullis, and others.
From this vast storehouse Swedenborg drew his knowledge of this science, and to find to what extent he applied it, one need only look into any of his scientific works.
But let this brief sketch of the history of this noble science suffice, and let us now see what it really is.
The root-meaning of the word will give us this, namely: ge the earth, and meter measure, hence the earth-measure or measure of the earth; and as all things are in a certain form, and, hence, figure, geometry may be called the doctrine of natural forms and figures. For when we form an idea of anything, however small, as soon as we consider it as limited we regard it as something geometrical, because it possesses figure and quantity according to its peculiar dimensions; it may also be considered as subject to the laws of proportion in itself because it possesses distance between its limits, and between one point of that distance and another, exists proportion. Thus not only motion but every finite thing in a state of rest possesses attributes which are purely geometrical.
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Geometry therefore accompanies the world from its first origin to its last, and is inseparable from it, and thus the same beginning is to be assigned to geometry as to the world. And as all things came into existence successively, for nothing is such as it is capable of becoming except the Infinite, and as each finite thing acknowledges some cause prior to itself until at last we arrive at some simple as the origin of entities not simple, which may be called the natural point, so also does geometry acknowledge a certain simple and first ens of its existence which it calls its own or mathematical point. This point is said to be without extension and incapable of division, and yet of such a nature that by its fluxion lines, areas, and bodies may be produced; that by its fiuxion and multiplication into itself space may at length be filled; and that by its fluxion, degrees and moments exist whereby composites may be finited and limited. In a word geometricians ascribe the origin of all their figures and bodies to such a point, yet not as belonging to the science itself, because that is incapable of defining it in a geometrical manner.
"Thus geometry seeks for its origin out of itself, deriving this point not from itself but from rational philosophy." What, then, is this point that is prior to geometry and that cannot be measured by it? We find the answer in the Principia in these words: "It is a simple ens, and the first existing from the Infinite by means of motion, and thus that in respect to existence it is a kind of medium between what is Infinite and what is finite" (p. 50), for it originates in the Infinite and gives origin to what is finife. This simple ens is the first simple of things finited and the cause of the first limit or boundary among such finites; but, being a simple, it is not limited or finited, as is ordinarily understood, except that it may be said to have one termination or limit, for there must be one boundary before there can be several.
Nevertheless, as what is produced bears some resemblance to that which produces it, and vice versa, so this point has in itself something analogous and similar to what exists in things limited, inasmuch as it consists in motion, but a motion which is pure and which cannot be conceived of according to any laws of geometry. And, as whatever is produced by it is most uniform and perfect, it must necessarily resemble a circular or spherical figure, titan which nothing in finite nature is more perfect; and if the most perfect figure be circular, then the most perfect figure of motion must be the perpetually circular or spiral.
But of this motion, or form of motion, we shall speak hereafter when we have treated of the more imperfect forms, which, being more or less known to us, may by analogy aid in our understanding of the more perfect forms.
The form which is lowest, most ultimate, and most important is the angular; this also is the terrestrial and corporeal form, inasmuch as it is peculiar to bodies having angles and rectilinear planes. In this form all the lines, drawn perpendicularly from every point in the plane do not meet in a certain centre, but intersect each other perpetually, meeting each other more obliquely or more directly, so that in each point of meeting progression is stopped, a fluxion is terminated, and forces extinguished; and hence it arises that such forms in themselves are unsuited for a continuation of motion, and are the very forms of rest and inertia. Not only by such a meeting of lines is there produced the completest rest in the internal structure itself, but also among many forms when they are mutually turned toward each other; for in the external form they are in like manner angular, and there are as many hindrances to motion as there are angles, and there are as many coherings as there are planes.
But there are degrees of perfection in these forms. The triangle in planes, or the tetrahedron in solids, is the most simple of all the angular forms; for all the rest, however composite they may be, refer to these. Of the triangles the equilateral is the most perfect and the scalene the most imperfect. The quadrangle in planes, or the octohedron in solids is the second of the angular forms and is immediately composed of the first. The square, being equilateral and equiangular, is the most perfect of these, and the rest- All those in which the sides and angles are more or less unequal- Are less perfect. To these succeed many-sided figures, which in like manner are regular and irregular, consequently more perfect and more imperfect, the last of which exceed all number.
The form next higher than the angular is the circular, which may be called the perpetual- Angular, since the circumference of the circle involves neither angles nor any rectilinear planes, and, respectively to what is limited in the angular forms, it is like something perpetual and unlimited. What is perpetual is also one; thus, when there are no more angles nor planes, there is in this figure, as it were, one common angle or one common plane.
Since this form has no angles and no planes thus no hindrances, it is the form itself of motion; for many spherical forms or globules are rotated around their axis most freely in one volume and circumscribed space, nor does one move another from place, nor does it touch another except in the smallest and in a similar point. This form also is more potent of resisting, because all the lines as so many radii, which are indefinite in number, meet in one common centre in which is absolute opposition of each and all, so that one cannot be moved from its place except another at the same time, and thus the one protects the other.
It was said that this form is perpetually angular, and being such it is the measure and form of all angular forms, and thus as it were the universal type and complex of these; for that which is infinite and perpetual gives law to the changing and finite things, and judges these as to their quality and quantity, as we see exemplified in trigonometry.
As there are various kinds of angular forms, so also there are of the circular more or less perfect. For there are ellipses, parabolae, hyperbola, cycloids, and others both geometrical and arithmetical, the essential determinations of all of which are not indeed directed to one fixed centre, but to two or more; but the directions of these determinations do not meet as in the angular forms, but they run together in a certain line or plane, thus, these are simply more imperfect and more inert than the circular, but more perfect than the angular forms.
Let us now, instead of taking a fixed point for a centre, take a circle or orb, and instead of straight lines' for radii, spires for radii directed to this central circle. In this case there will be no fixity or concentration of any of the radii, but a perpetual circumvolution emulating a kind of infinity in its fluxion, which gives us the perpetual circular or spiral form; for its determinations are not in continuous concentric circles nor directed by right lines to any common centre, but by continual spirals toward another middle circle, as was said; holding the place of centre, they strive to flow to its periphery or surface, by which circular surface they continue or strive to continue their fluxions; and from this centre of its sphere through radii ,they are centered as in a perfect circle.
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Swedenborg tells us "that this central sphere if not dissimilar to our terraqueous globe, swimming in its atmospheres, which revolves around its axis and in the surface of which continual spirals of the etherial atmosphere, as it were, are terminated" (E. A. K, Part III, p. 122). This form is prior and more perfect than the circular, belonging properly to active forces, and being such it is evident that it is a form of motion most adapted to simples. For while the circular form can only be revolved about its axis, the spiral is revolved around a centre, which central gyration is perpetually axillary. And for the same reason that the circular form is more constant and permanent than the angular so the spiral is more constant and permanent than the circular, for the more perfect a form is the more constant it is, and the more nearly does it approach to the perfection of the firsts of nature, which also agrees with the doctrine "that the more yielding a form is, the more firmly its stands" (S. D. 241), for the pressure being removed the form returns to its original state.
If now, instead of a simply circular circumference for a centre (as is the case in the fluxion of the intestines in snails, which forms the most simple spiral) we consider that all possible curves may serve it as centres and that it may evolve its spires into all possible species of cycloids, we may easily conclude what an immense number of variations and consequent changes of state the spiral may assume. Its perfection principally consists in its power of varying itself infinitely, and yet, in every change, of still remaining constantly in its essence, for thereby it is capable of accommodating itself to all kinds of use. Thus this form is most universal; and into it the parts and volumes of ether flow and represent their modifications.
There are, however, forms still more pure, prior, and perfect than the spiral-viz.: the vortical, which constitutes the great vortex in which the planets of our solar system move perpetually; the perpetual vortical, or celestial, which is the highest of all natural forms and belongs properly to the stellar universe; above this is the spiritual, which is altogether removed from earth and pertains to spiritual substances, thus is properly of Heaven; but the highest of all forms, and from which all other forms must derive their essence in order that they may be anything, is the Divine Itself, which is pure Essence, Intelligence, Wisdom, Love and Life, and altogether without spaces, times, or changes. But as geometry hardly leads us to the threshold of the spiral forms, how much less can it give us any knowledge of those forms which are indefinitely above that, and therefore is it not folly to attempt to describe by geometry the Nature of the Infinite, which is not subject to geometry and which can only be known by Revelation?
But since no science is worthy our attention which does not aid us in our civil life, it may perhaps be asked of what use is geometry? To this question we would say that the applications of geometry are so many that it would be difficult to number them. For what workman or what mechanic does not use it? since whatever be their work, it has to do with forms and thus with geometry. What natural science does not use it? Let us take physics and chemistry. "What is their nature if not mechanical? and what is there new in nature-which is not geometrical? What is the variety of experiments, but a variety of position, figure, weight, and motion in particles? And since there are thousands of experiments indicating the nature of various metals, salts, and elements, and since these bodies consist of groups of particles varying in shape and position and thus in a certain geometrical arrangement," may we not conclude that these subjects are to be demonstrated by geometry? If we take the science of anatomy, the noblest of natural sciences, is it not evident that geometry, with its lines, proportions, and analogies, is required for the proper understanding of the relation of the parts to each other? and thus form a conclusion, from those things which are evident and can be perceived by the senses, concerning those things which are hidden from our sight although aided by most powerful magnifiers; for geometry confirms the teaching that the Divine is the same in the greatest and least things, consequently nature also must be the same in its greatest and least things, thus in the invisible and smallest elementary figures there is the same mechanism as in the visible and greatest.
But not only is this science of use in man's civil life, it also may be of use to him in the formation and perfection of his intelligence if he be in the affirmation concerning the Doctrines of the Word which are truths continuous from the LORD. If he be firmly grounded in this affirmation he will be able to confirm the truths of Doctrine; for the truths of nature and the Truths of Doctrine, although separate yet agree, and a conjunction of the Truths of Doctrine with the truths of nature serves to elevate the mind into higher intelligence.
On the other hand, if man be not in affirmation toward the Truths of Revelation, there is probably no science, because none so exact as mathematics, which more confirms atheism. For such men as these confuse cause and effect and thus think that nature has self- Creating power, "or as a learned realist has said that he sees in all matter the form of potency and life" (N. C. Life, VI, p. 88). With such men the "science of geometry concentrates the mind and impedes it from advancing into universals, besides that it supposes nothing to exist but what is geometrical or mechanical, when nevertheless the extension of geometry does not go beyond terrestrial and corporeal forms" (S. D. 769).
Although this science may thus erroneously be misapplied in order to exalt the proprium of man, it only confirms us the more (because there is no evil which has not its opposite good), "that there is no line of study in the natural sciences which so prominently brings the LORD before us as the wisdom of all things" (N. C. Life, VI, 88). And to the one who will look behind the symbol at the thing symbolized and in the effect see the cause, will mathematics tell of an Infinite Wisdom, Infinite Love, and Infinite Life. But as yet the glimpses of the internal are dim, because the self-luminous made atmosphere obstructs, but when this becomes dissipated by the Light of the Divine Truth being shed on it, then instead of the exact sciences being vehicles for self-exaltation they will become vehicles of Divine Adoration.
Notes and Reviews 1893
THE Children's New Church Messenger, of which the Rev. A. Binder was editor and publisher, has been suspended indefinitely, it not being self-supporting.
Le Royaume du Seigneur also, another journal published by the same editor, has been discontinued, as L'Eglise d l'Avenir now performs the use for which the former paper was started.
THE Seventh Annual Joint Reports of the Young People s Societies of the New Church in America is now published There were twenty-one Societies represented at the Conference. The Treasurer reported a balance in hand of $20.51.
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BRADSHAW'S Continental Guide contains the following: "The Sodermalm, or south suburb [of Stockholm], deserves a special visit on account of the house NO. 24 Hornsgatan, formerly inhabited by the great necromancer Swedenborg." The New Church Evidence Society wrote to the publisher and received a reply from Mr. W. Bradshaw, in which he says: "I have endeavored to trace the origin of the unwarrantable word 'necromancer' applied to Swedenborg but have not been successful. I was quite unawares that such a word had ever appeared in our book and much regret that it should have been inserted."
THE New Church Pacific for August deals briefly with the suggestion of a correspondent. The correspondent, "imbued with a laudable desire to universally disseminate Divine truths, recommends the formation of a universal religious Society, to which the conditions of membership shall be a promise to learn and obey Divine laws, and to be content with the ruling of Providence." The Pacific says further: "The conception is grand, but it seems as yet considerably in advance of our trudging column. We may reach it some day."
If a unanimity in regard to learning and obeying Divine Law, which leaves out of consideration any definite revelation of that Law, is so far in advance of the New Church Pacific column, that column must be trudging backward.
THE Cleveland Leader gives a statement made by the Rev. Percy Billings to its reporter: "The church of which I have been the pastor is composed of a few people who hold views which have been, not systematically, but little by little, adopted by a majority of ministers. That being the case, I do not feel that the views can be longer considered peculiar to any one denomination, or that can make the best of my opportunities by preaching them in a back street to a small congregation. Indeed, I would be prepared to accept a call to a Congregational pulpit should I receive one." The New Christianity, commenting on this says:
"This purpose to take advantage of the broader [!] scope offered for ministerial effort is certainly wise and commendable." This teaching is consistent with the general position of The New Christianity; but it is not that of the Writings.
THE Rev. Joseph Ashby; writing in Morning Light for August 19th, on "Our Young People and the Sacrament of the Holy Supper," says "The age of ten appears to me too early and to postpone it to the age of twenty injudicious," so he splits the difference and recommends the age of fifteen. The time and state of preparation required to fit one for the sacred rite of the Holy Supper are not to be determined in this superficial manner. The Writings, which are the sole source of light on such subjects, teach that while the uses of Baptism are initiatory, those of the Supper require the exercise of rational freedom, which begins only at adult age, i. e., at about twenty.
In the same journal the Rev. W. T. Lardge contributes to the correspondence which has been taking place on the subject of "What is at Fault?" relating to the growth of the Church. He says: "Not one has referred your readers to the Writings of our Church for confirmation of the views expressed. And this is the more remarkable since the question has special reference to the Church." It is, and it is not, remarkable.
SEVERAL ministers of the General Convention have been at work for some years on a new translation of the Arcana Coelestia, the first two volumes of which are now published. They form part of the Rotch Edition of the Writings, and are, therefore, printed and bound uniformly with The Apocalypse Revealed, The Divine Providence, The True Christian Religion, The Four Doctrines, and Heaven and Hell, published by the Rotch trustees. These two volumes embrace no more than the first volume of the New York edition, and the new set of the Arcana will, therefore, probably consist of twenty volumes. The price per volume is $1.25. This would make the entire set come to $25.00. High as this seems in comparison with the $6.00 edition, published by the American Swedenborg Printing and Publishing Society, it cannot be said to be too expensive for so handsome a set of books as this, especially if the standard of excellence which these two volumes reveal in point of translation is maintained throughout the eighteen that are yet to come. Mr. Potts has furnished the edition with the subdivisions of the paragraphs which he has adopted for the Concordance.
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
PRACTICAL EFFECT OF "WOMAN'S RIGHTS." 1893
THE meetings of the Board of Lady Managers of the World's Fair, early in August, as reported in the daily papers of that time, furnish a striking "object-lesson" on the "Woman Question," confirming the teaching that the duties of women are not those of deliberative judgment and administration-i. e., not "forensic." Any one open to conviction may see in the chaos of clamor, vituperation, hysterics, and total arrest of effective action that characterized those remarkable proceedings, only the logical result of "putting the garment of a man upon a woman." (See Conjugial Love, n. 175; also the sermon in the August New Church Standard.) He can also foresee what would happen should "Woman's Rights" be generally enforced; for if departure from their legitimate feminine sphere could make a women of birth and culture so far forget themselves, what might we expect from undisciplined women of the masses when contesting in the arena of business, of litigation, or of practical politics?
Men are forms of judgment, women of feeling; judgment concludes and acts, but affection is blind and leads to no action, except by judgment, and woman's judgment is limited to her own sphere of action, defined so clearly in the Writings. When she goes outside of that the impulses of her affection, unless guided and qualified in so me ways by masculine judgment, do not produce practical results. For illustration: under the heading, "Lady Managers in Tears- Hisses and Hysterics Punctuate an Angry Four Hours' Debate," a morning daily says: "Then trouble began, and for three hours one parliamentary question after another was raised, until even the man [!] who sits as parliamentary expert at Mrs. Palmer's side and advises her, was bewildered" (Philadelphia Record, August 8th).
While sympathizing with the expert, and smiling at the "adjournment sine die" by which the demoralized Board of Lady Managers virtually went to pieces, one cannot shut the eyes to the graver side which would be presented in such. a war of opposing wills were the commercial, economical, or political welfare of the community at stake.
READERS of the Word 1893
READERS of the Word and the Doctrines according to the Calendar issued by the General Church, who avail themselves of the benefits to be derived from reading the Word in the original tongues, have found very convenient the Hebrew reprint of Genesis, just completed in the Calendar reading. To afford similar facilities in the ensuing reading of Exodus, etc., the Agent of the Book Room has written to England for a number of copies of the Hebrew Pentateuch, which he will be able to furnish at a reasonable price. He hopes to have it on hand shortly and will be glad to receive orders in advance.
160
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH.
TERMS:-One Dollar per annum, payable in advance.
FOUR SHILLINGS IN GREAT BRITAIN.
THE EDITOR'S address is Huntingdon valley P. O., Montgomery Co., Pa.
Address all business communications to MR. CARL HJ. ASPLUNDH, No. 1821 Wallace Street, Fairmount Station, Philadelphia, Pa.
Subscriptions are also received through the following agents:
UNITED STATES.
Chicago, Ill., Mr. A. B. Nelson, 553 West Superior Street.
PITTSBURGH, Pa., Mr. Wm. Rott, Tenth and Carson Streets.
CANADA.
Toronto Ont., Mr. B. Carswell, 20 Equity Chamber.
Waterloo. Mr. Rudolph Roschman.
GREAT BRITAIN.
Mr. B. W. Misson, 20 Paulet Road, Camberwell, London, S. E.
PHILADELPHIA, OCTOBER, 1893=124.
CONTENTS
Editorial Notes, p. 145.- A Summary of the Internal Sense of the Book of Genesis, p. 145.-Perception (a Sermon), p. 145.- The Establishment of the Spiritual Church, and its End (Genesis I). p. 150.-Ordination and Installation in London, p. 151.-Laying of the Corner-stone of the Parkdale School- House. p. 154.- The Promised Land, p. 153.-Geometry, p. 156.
Notes seed Reviews, p. 158.
Communicated- A Practical Effect of "Woman's Rights," p. 159.
News Gleanings, p. 160.-Births, Marriage, and Deaths, p. 160.- Announcement, p. 160.- Academy Book Boom p. 160.
AT HOME.
Pennsylvania.-By mistake, in the September Ltfe, on pages 138 and 144, the name of the late Mrs. Anna Aitken was given as "Mary."
Maine.- THE Maine Association held its fifty-eighth annual session at Fryeburgh on August 26th and 27th. The Rev. G. H. Dole was chosen president pro term, the Rev. S. F. Dike, D. D., being absent. There were eight ministers and eleven delegates present. Five of the latter were women. A service was held in memoriam of the late Rev. William B. Hayden. The Association voted that a missionary be provided for the State as soon as practicable. The Rev. S. F. Dike's resignation as President of the Association was received and placed on the file. He was afterward re-elected president. The question: "What can the New Church do for its young people?" came up for discussion.
Virginia.-FIVE or six New Church Lending Libraries have been established in as many different parts of Virginia with satisfactory results.
Illinois.- THE attendant at the New Church exhibit in Chicago, writing in the Messenger, says: "Even with care to prevent their being wasted, three hundred of Swedenborg and ties New Christian Church and one hundred and fifty of Man as a Spiritual Being go in a day; while we can get rid of nine hundred in a day by posting a card saying, 'Take one.'" This demonstrates the prevalence of curiosity, even in religious matters. Yet curiosity, in common with even lower affections may serve as providential means for working good.
Oregon.- THE Oregonian has for two months printed in its Monday's issue a synopsis of the Rev. F. L. Higgin's sermon to the Portland Society.
THE Portland Society now holds worship in the Temple on the corner of Second and Taylor Streets.
California.-DURING the illness of the Rev. John Doughty The New Church Pacific will be under the editorship of the Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Pacific Coast New Church Association.
ABROAD.
Great Britain.- THE Rev. W. Westall, of Middleton, ordained Mr. J. Howarth, leader of the Embsay Society, on August 6th.
THE Rev. Isaiah Tansley, B. A., commenced his ministry at the New Jerusalem Church in Heywood, on August 6th.
MR. S. J. C. Goldsack, late a student of the New Church College, London, commenced his permanent ministerial work, on August 6th, in Keighley.
Bohemia.- THE Rev. Wenzel Pazdral has been forced to emigrate from Bohemia, as the religious intolerance, on the part of the Government, has become too oppressive. He has directed his face to America, and expects to find a field of usefulness as New Church minister among Germans or Bohemians, in Chicago or vicinity.
Brazil.- AN effort is being made in Paris, France, to introduce the Doctrines into Brazil.
India.-MR. Kelly reports that a New Church Society has been formed in Bombay under the title of "The First Bombay City Society of the Church of the New Jerusalem;" that Mr. L. Rushworth, of England, had been appointed leader, and that a Constitution would be ready in October which it was thought would be signed by from twelve to twenty people. Not having received sufficient funds to support his work in India, Mr. Kelly has left to join his son in South Africa.
ANNOUNCEMENT 1893
Philadelphia.-MRS. Anna Myers desires to announce to the members of the Academy and of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, the approaching nuptials of Mr. Charles E. Forsberg and her daughter Katie Elisabeth, which will be celebrated on Tuesday, October 24th, at the place of worship 1828 North Street, Philadelphia.
DIRECTORY 1893
Schools of the Academy of the New Church.
Philadelphia, Pa.- Theological School and College, and School for Girls, 1821 Wallace Street. School for Boys 1826 North Street. Bishop Benade, Superintendent; Rev. Eugene J. E. Schreck, Dean of the Faculty.
Chicago, Ill.-434 Carroll Avenue. Rev. Wm. H. Acton, Head-Master.
Pittsburgh, Pa.-Wallingford St., Shady Side. Rev. Andrew Czerny, Head-Master.
Berlin, Canada.-King Street. Rev. F. E. Waelchli, Head-Master.
London, ENGLAND.-Burton Road. Rev. Edward C. Bostock, Head-Master.
Parkdale, CANADA.-Rev. Edward S. Hyatt, Head-Master.
Places of worship of the Academy of the New Church and of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD.
Philadelphia, PA.-1826 North Street. Bishop Pendleton in pastoral charge. Services on Sundays at 10.44 o'clock A. M.
Berlin, CANADA.-King Street. Rev. F. E. Waelchli, Pastor.
Chicago, ILL.-434 Carroll Avenue, between Ada and Sheldon Streets. Rev. N. D. Pendleton, Pastor. Services will be held every Sunday during summer at 11 A. M.
London, ENGLAND.-Burton Road, Brixton. Rev. Robert J. Tilson, Pastor. Services morning and evening.
Pittsburgh, PA.-Wallingford St., Shady Side. Rev. Homer Synnestvedt, Minister.
Renovo, PA.-Rev. Ellis I. Kirk, Pastor. Services every Sunday.
Greenford, O.-Regular monthly visits by a Pastor.
Allentown, PA.- Hersh's Building, Hamilton St, corner of Lumber. Services conducted every Sunday by a visiting minister.
Brooklyn, E. D., N. Y.-172 Broadway. Services every Sunday, with occasional visits by ministers.
Colchester, ENGLAND.- Services every Sunday, with regular visits from a minister.
Liverpool, ENGLAND.- Services every Sunday, with occasional visits from a Minister.
Denver, COLORADO.
Erie, PA.- Services at 109 West Ninth St.
Milverton, CANADA.
JUST PUBLISHED 1893
ARCANA COELESTIA, Rotch Edition, Vols. I and I (See Notes and Reviews, p. 156). Price, per volume, $1.25.
PHOTOGRAPHS OF SWEDENBORG.-Photographs of the oil painting of Swedenborg, in possession of the Academy, now on sale.
Silver print, size 5x7. Price, 30 cents.
Platina print, size 5x7, mounted on cardboards, 8x10. Price, 50 cents.
The above-mentioned oil painting, hung in Swedenborg's own bedroom, and is by competent judges considered the best likeness extant.
Our photographer has succeeded remarkably in the difficult task of taking a good likeness of the old painting, of which no other photograph has been taken in many years.
SWEDENBORG'S RULES OF LIFE. On cards. 7x9.
We have recently obtained some copies of the above cards, tastefully printed. Price, 25 cents.
1821 Academy Book Room,
Wallace Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
161
theology in the universal Christian world 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII, No. 11. PHILADELPHIA, NOVEMBER, 1893=124. Whole No. 157.
The theology in the universal Christian world is founded upon the worship of three Gods.- De Just. 65.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE "World's Parliament of Religions," which convened at Chicago, in connection with the World's Columbian Exposition, was attended by representatives of most of the denominations of the Christian world,-including the General Convention of the New Jerusalem,- and by representatives of some of the leading Gentile religions.
The avowed object of the Parliament, as stated in the official programme, was,
"To unite all religion against all irreligion; to make the Golden Rule the basis of this union; to present to the world in the Religious Congresses, to be held in connection with the Columbian Exposition of 1893, the substantial unity of many religions in the good deeds of the Religious Life; to provide for a World's Parliament of Religions, in which their common aims and common grounds of union may be set forth, and the marvelous Religious Progress of the Nineteenth Century be reviewed; and to facilitate separate and Independent Congresses of different Religious Denominations and Organizations, under their own officers, in which their business may be transacted, their achievements presented, and their work for the future considered."
There is a fascination about such a proposal, arising from a common sentiment, which men have from influx out of the other world, that all men should be brethren, and this sentiment has frequently found expression in and about the Congress, in the phrase, "The Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man."
To the Newchurchman, who knows from Revelation that the good of all nations, no matter what their religious teachings, constitute one man in the sight of the LORD, the proposed union of all religions has an especial charm. It promises the fulfillment of the desire that all nations shall he united on earth as they are in heaven. There actually is an internal union arising from the common descent of all the good, from one spiritual Father, the LORD JESUS CHRIST. Those who are of the genuine Church, who have the Word and from it know the LORD, are in a direct line of the descent, while those who are not of the Church, as those nations that have not the Word, are in a collateral line of the common stock.
The good of those among the Gentiles who are of the LORD'S Church universal, differs from the good of a common stock in a direct line, in this, that genuine truths are not conjoined with their good, but that they are mostly in external appearances which are called fallacies of the senses, for they have not the Word, from which they can be illustrated. Good, although essentially one, assumes a quality from the truths which are implanted in it, from which it becomes various. Where truths of the Word have not been presented, good cannot be qualified by them, and therefore it becomes genuine only in the other life, when genuine truths are presented and received, as in the case with the upright Gentiles, who, in the other life, when instructed about the LORD, receive Him, and acknowledge and worship Him thenceforth.
It is very different with those who have the Word and do not acknowledge the LORD; yet this is the status of the Christian world at the present day. There is no love to the LORD, for the LORD is not acknowledged, and where there is no love to the LORD, there is no charity toward the neighbor, and not a single knowledge of genuine truth. However surprising this statement may seem to some, it is nevertheless the solemn truth, revealed throughout the Word of both Testaments, when these are read and understood according to the internal sense. JESUS CHRIST is no longer acknowledged in the Christian denominations, but false Christs, a false charity, and falsified truths, are abroad in countless numbers, and so apparently genuine and good and true are they that they deceive "even the very elect." This pseudo charity, proclaiming the Golden Rule, and masquerading under the guise of "good deeds of the Religious Life," was the basis and bond of the Parliament of Religions. The great majority of the Parliament was drawn from the ranks of professing Christians. They all have the Word, but not one, with the exception of the Convention, acknowledges the LORD.
This neglect and denial of the LORD is what vitiates all the cant about the "Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man." "God" to them is an empty sound. It does not mean the LORD JESUS CHRIST and Him alone. The many speeches of the Parliament proved this ad nauseam, and in one way, at least, a sort of unanimous consent was given to this denial of God, in what professes to be His Church. Accompanying the official programme of the Congress, was a collection of hymns, contributed from all parts of Christendom, for the purpose. Those were selected, so avows the Committee, I which "voice the sentiments of the universal heart, rather than those which are special to any individual sect or a particular historic faith." An examination of these hymns shows that the "universal heart" of the Parliament has no love for the name of the LORD JESUS CHRIST: the "sentiments" of the individual sect known as Swedenborgians, or of the particular historic faith of the New Church, have not been voiced. The hymns are essentially Unitarian. It is known in the New Church that the Name JESUS is most holy, involving the full Divinity of the LORD'S. Human. In this compilation of hymns the LORD is not once addressed by His Name JESUS CHRIST.
Deceived by the false appearance of a reign of love and good-will, which, in its conception, is of a purely Universalistic nature, and, in practice, only on the external plane of decent humanitarian behavior, there are those who look upon the fact that the Congress was originated and presided over by a professing Newchurchman, as a sign that the Congress forms part of that fancied universal outpouring and reception of grace and truth, which they look upon as being the New Church. But the sincerity of that Newchurchman's profession of the sole Divinity of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, and consequently of his view of the source of unity of the Congress, may be gauged by his action in signing the following formula of the "Brotherhood of Christian Unity":
162
"For the purpose of uniting with all who desire to serve God and their fellow-men under the inspiration of the life and teachings of JESUS Christ, I hereby enroll myself as a member of the Brotherhood of Christian Unity."
A man, possessed of the intellectual vigor which, undoubtedly, is needed to carry out so great an undertaking as the Parliament of Religions, and one who has not a mean knowledge of the Doctrines of the New Church,- The principal contention of which is that the duality and trinity of God is the most destructive of falsities- Here subscribes to a formula which makes a distinction between "God" and "Jesus Christ." When such insincerity and faithlessness to JESUS CHRIST as the One God, reign, thought concerning the ONE LORD cannot enter into the conception of the "World's Parliament of Religions." Yet this thought alone opens heaven to man.
Where, as the LORD Himself reveals, He is absent from the Church no amount of union with professing Newchurchmen and honest Gentiles can bring Him present.
To worship three Gods 1893
To worship three Gods is to worship no God.-De Just. 65.
IDEA OF GOD IN THE NEW CHURCH PENDLETON 1893
"And these are the names of the Sons of Israel."-Exodus i, 1.
THE Book of Genesis treats of the Glorification of the LORD, and the Book of Exodus, of the Institution of the Church; the latter is the subject that will be before us for thought and meditation for some time to come, in the daily readings of the Calendar; the former subject has been under consideration for several years past, in the reading of the Book of Genesis, as that Book is unfolded in the Arcana Coelestia.
In the Internal Historical Sense,-which is the Spiritual Sense as applied to the Church, its state, its existence and progress, its rise and fall, with and in any given nation or nations in the world-in that sense the Book of Genesis treats first of the Ancient Churches in this world, and then of the preparation for the establishment of a representative of a Church with the Israelitish nation; and the Book of Exodus, together with the historical Books which follow, treats of the Institution of the representative of a Church with the descendants of Jacob, and of the state in which they were while this representative was with them.
In the first Chapters of Genesis the Most Ancient Church is described; its rise, in the account of the Creation; its glory and exalted state, in the description of the Garden of Eden; its decline and consummation, in the chapters which follow. This Church was a Celestial Church, its members were in love to the LORD, and in mutual love, and lived together a simple patriarchal and pastoral life on the mountains of the land of Canaan.
The Ancient Church, which followed the Most Ancient, of Noah, and his sons, and their posterity. This Church was a Spiritual Church, its members were in love to the neighbor, and from that in love to the LORD. The Ancient Church was also in the land of Canaan, and extended to the neighboring nations in Asia and Africa, and, in some form, even over the whole world. This Church also suffered a decline and consummation; but in its decline there was a reformation, and something of a restoration, and a second Ancient Church was instituted, and extended from the land of Canaan and Syria into various parts of the world. The second Ancient Church is described in the account of Heber and his posterity, and its members were not so much in a spiritual love of the neighbor as the first Ancient Church had been, but in a spiritual natural love, or in natural good, in which was something = of a spiritual principle. In this Church animal sacrifices were first instituted.
The preparation for the institution of the representative of a Church with the Israelitish nation, is described in the historical account of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the twelve sons of Jacob. This Church is called the representative of a Church, because it was not a Church; it was not even a representative Church, for there was no state of the Church with them, but it was merely the appearance or external form of a Church, as exhibited in the representatives of their external worship; their ritual was taken from the ritual of the second Ancient or Hebrew Church-which was a representative Church- And formed anew with the sons of Israel by the LORD through Moses. No Church was with them, nor any state of the Church, because they were in no love to the LORD, nor love to the neighbor, nor in any spiritual truth whatsoever; nor were they capable of receiving any, for they were wholly saturated with the love of self; and the love of the world, the sordid love of gain, and all filthy natural and corporeal loves. This their state is treated of in the Internal Historical Sense, in their history throughout as a nation.
In the Internal Sense, the Book of Genesis treats of the LORD, His Combats with the Hells, and the Glorification of His Human. In this sense, the Book of Exodus treats specifically of His work of Redemption, and of the Last Judgment, and from this, of the Institution of a new Spiritual Church in the place of the former vastated Church, and more particularly of the regeneration of the man of the Church and the formation of a New Heaven out of such regenerated men, the end for which Redemption is effected, the Judgment is accomplished, and the Church instituted.
We note then the series: the vastation of all the former Churches, the Coming of the LORD, His Combats with the Hells, the Glorification of His Human, His work of Redemption, the Last Judgment which He performed, the formation of a New Church and a New Heaven,- A mighty work, executed by the hand of Omnipotence alone or without the help of man. "And I looked and there was no one helping, and I was astonished, and no one was supporting; therefore Mine Arm brought salvation to Me, and Mine anger sustained Me" (Isaiah lxiii, 5).
As we read, therefore, in the Arcana Coelestia, the unfolding of the Book of Exodus, as to its Spiritual Sense, in its treatment of the subject of the Institution of the Church, and of the means by which it is instituted- let us bear in mind that the Church in the natural world, formed among men and in men, and formed in the degree that a plane is prepared by means of the efforts of men, cooperating with the LORD, in obeying the LORD'S Commandments,- That the Church so formed is but the effect of the LORD'S work already done in the spiritual world without the help of man,-is but the appearing, the manifesting, the ultimation of the work of Redemption and Judgment, effected a together outside and beyond the sphere of man's conscious knowledge and conscious perception, altogether above the plane of his actual work and co-operation, concerning which man would never know, would be in utter darkness, except from Revelation, given of the LORD'S mercy in the unfolding of His WORD.
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And further than this, that even the Church itself is formed, and must be formed, with spirits in the world of spirits, before it can be formed with men in the natural world, to be with them the very Palladium of human life, by which their regeneration is effected, and their salvation assured; from which we learn how very small and insignificant is the part which man performs in the work, when yet he is prone to believe that he does all, and that he is needed to do it; this appearance existing because it is essential that he do faithfully and well that which is given him to do, or he can have no part in, and be no recipient of, that which the LORD alone has done for all.
The Church in the world of spirits is established in the interior sphere of that world, close to the confines of Heaven, where the good are gathered after death, and instructed and prepared for Heaven. The Church, in this interior sphere of the world of spirits, was inaugurated by the LORD Himself, after the Last Judgment, in the calling together of His twelve Apostles, on the 19th day of June in the year 1770, and in His sending them forth to proclaim the doctrine that He Himself reigns as the GOD of Heaven and Earth. After this, the Church began, and could begin, in the natural world; but it did not begin, and could never have begun, with men in the world until it had been inaugurated and established in the world of spirits.
It will thus be seen that the Church in the world of spirits is one with the Church on earth, in the performance of the common use of preparing men for Heaven by instruction; though the Church there, in its work and state, is interior to the Church here-is as the internal of its own external. Into this two-fold Church, the Church in the spiritual world and the Church in the natural world, man is introduced simultaneously, in the act of Baptism; and this is what is meant when it is said that man by Baptism is inserted among Christians in the spiritual world. The state of the Church there is what is called the third state of man after death, which is a state of instruction; this also is what makes the state of the Church here, and the state and quality of the Church is according to the state and quality of its instruction in the Divine things which make the Church; if pure and genuine truths are taught, the Church becomes a true Church, but if truths are accommodated to appearances and fallacies in the world, so that the true becomes mingled with the false, the Church becomes contaminated and corrupt, and men cannot be led by truth to the good of life, and thus to the LORD; and the Church is then not one with the Church in the interior sphere of the world of spirits, which is preparing men for Heaven, but conjoins itself with certain imaginary appearances of the Church in the external and lower sphere of that world, where men are being prepared for Hell, and where the Judgment comes from time to time, and the good are separated from the evil, the evil cast into hell, and the good taken to the places of instruction, and introduced into the genuine Church, where they are prepared for Heaven.
The true and genuine Church of the LORD is established in the world of spirits, and is there doing its work faithfully and well, and is never again to be overturned and destroyed, as it was previous to the Last Judgment, and this insures the establishment in permanent form of a true and genuine Church of the LORD upon the earth, a Church that is to endure forever, the New Jerusalem.
How then is the Church in the world to become one with the Church in the world of spirits, that it may become its own external and thus co-operate on the natural plane in the LORD'S work of saving souls, giving itself a reason to exist, and to continue to exist? The answer is ready and simple, as given us in the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, which is, that a Church is a Church according to its idea of God, inspiring and enlightening the understanding to think truly and rightly concerning GOD and things Divine, and moving the will to do the things that are true and right in the sight of GOD. With the true idea of GOD so fixed and established, the Church is one and becomes more and more one with the Church in the world of spirits, and will proceed to grow, and enlarge, and increase, and multiply its wisdom, and fructify its uses; and the LORD'S kingdom will be established upon the earth, as it is in Heaven.
What is the true idea of GOD in the New Church, which is so supremely essential to its existence and growth? First, the idea of GOD as a Man, the idea of a Divine Man, the idea of a GOD Who, though Infinite in His qualities and attributes, is yet visible, accessible, and approachable, and with whom there can be conjunction, and who can thus gift with salvation and eternal life. The idea of GOD not as a Man, the idea of an invisible GOD, is not an idea; it can be uttered in the words of human speech, and sounded upon the air, but it cannot enter the interior thought of man; no man can in reality think that GOD is not a Man, that GOD is invisible; and though men in the world can say it, no angel in Heaven can utter it, there are no words of angelic speech that can possibly be twisted to give expression to it; the very atmosphere of Heaven would react and explode, were it uttered there, and he who uttered it would be thrown into convulsions, and east out as something poisonous and contaminating; nor is it
permitted to give expression to it in the Church in the of spirits. This is the reason that man, while he can say it, cannot think it; for the interior thought of man is one with the thought of the Church in the world of spirits, and with the thought that reigns in Heaven. The exterior thought of man, which is near his speech and in it, when it is not governed by his interior thought, Is one with the thought that reigns in Hell, where every devil spurns and vomits the idea of GOD as a Man.
The thought of GOD as a Man, is Heaven, and the rejection of it is Hell; for in the rejection of it man attributes all things to himself and his own prudence, and confirms himself in the persuasion that he lives from himself, and in this confirmation, is Hell. No human being can believe that any good and truth, any quality or faculty, or manly attribute, is from any other source than from himself, who does not think of a Divine Man Who has all true and good human qualities in infinite perfection, and Who is the infinite Source and Fountain of all truly human qualities with angels and with men.
The idea of GOD as a Man is the saving quantity in every Gentile religion, and it conjoins the man of the Church with the good in all lands, in every nation, and in every earth of the universe, and makes him a member of that grand communion, called the Communion of Saints, composed of the good everywhere; and it conjoins him with the Church in the world of spirits, to be and to co-operate with that Church in its work of leading souls to Heaven, in which and by which he himself is led to the same eternal goal; and it conjoins him with the angels of Heaven, and introduces him into his own society there, where he is to live a truly human life forever.
Second, the true idea of God in the New Church is the idea of GOD in His Human, GOD manifest in the flesh, GOD the Redeemer of the world, and the Saviour of men, the LORD JESUS CHRIST, in whose Divine Person is the Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the only object of love and adoration in Heaven and in the Church, without Whom there is no regeneration and no salvation.
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He is the visible GOD, in whom is the invisible; He is GOD accessible and approachable, with Whom alone there is conjunction, and Who alone can impart the gift of eternal life. He alone is the Divine Man Who has been worshiped, and is worshiped, by the good in all ages, in all lands, and in all earths; but Who revealed Himself in external form as Man, to the Christian Church, by clothing Himself with a human body, thus impressing the Divine Manhood upon the very sensorium of men in the world, that the idea of GOD as a Man, might never perish from the human race.
In the Christian world the idea of the LORD JESUS CHRIST as the one only Divine Man, is what makes Heaven, and the rejection of it, Hell; and the rejection of it is what has consummated the first Christian Church, and made the institution of the New Church necessary; and that idea in the New Church constitutes the very inmost and most universal principle of its faith and life, and conjoins the LORD with the Church and the Church with the LORD; and conjoins the Church with Heaven, and Heaven with the Church; and the Church in the world with the Church in the world of spirits; and the men of the Church with each other, and with all the good in the Christian world who read the WORD and believe in the Divinity of the LORD.
Third, the true idea of GOD in the New Church is not to remain a natural idea, but is to become a spiritual idea; the thought of the man of the Church is not to remain in the natural idea of a Divine Man, such as is with children and the simple, but is to enter into the spiritual idea of a Divine Man, that the Church may not remain a natural Church, but become a truly spiritual Church; for a Church is a Church according to its idea of GOD; if that idea be natural, the Church is natural, but if that idea be spiritual, the Church is spiritual; it is, therefore, of supreme importance that the New Church come into a spiritual idea of GOD, that it ma fulfill its end and use, and become the Church of the ages.
What then is the idea of GOD as it is to be in the New Church? It is still the idea of a Divine Man, but a spiritual idea. The natural idea of a man is that of a person, and an external personality, but the spiritual idea of a man is of that which essentially makes a man, love and wisdom; without these a man is not man, but the mere form and appearance of one. It is, indeed, said in the world that it is the mind that makes the man, and this contains the truth; for the mind is not the understanding alone, but will and understanding together, and love and wisdom are what make the will and understanding; and a man is but the image of the Divine Man. The LORD, indeed, appears in a personal form as Man, and to see Him thus is the beginning of all faith; but the faith must not tarry here, but must pass on to the idea of that which is essentially the LORD, Divine Love and Divine Wisdom. Without the idea of the LORD as Love and Wisdom, no spiritual Church is possible; without this idea there is no understanding of the LORD'S Second Coming, as a spiritual Coming to the rational sight of man, as His first Coming was a natural Coming to the sensual sight of man. So long as the thought of the man of the Church rests in the idea, primarily, of the Lord as a Man in the external form, and secondarily or remotely in the idea of Him as Love and Wisdom, his thought is of the LORD in His first Coming, rather than of the LORD in His Second Coming. Love and Wisdom are the LORD; Love and Wisdom accommodated to men is the Divine Human. The LORD comes when Divine Love, by Divine Wisdom, appears to men. To see this with the rational mind is to see God under a spiritual idea. A true idea of the LORD in His Second Coming, which is a spiritual idea, is, therefore, essential to the faith and life of the New Church.
If the LORD'S Second Coming is a spiritual Coming, which is admitted by every one who has any belief in the Doctrines of the New Church, then that Coming is to be seen spiritually, for to see the LORD spiritually, or a spiritual Coming of the LORD, must be done from a spiritual ground in man, or from a spiritual idea, and to see Him spiritually, or under a spiritual idea, is to see Him clearly; it is to see Him as actually and manifestly as He was seen by the bodily eyes of men when He appeared in the world of nature; but in the one case He is seen by the rational mind, as Man, and in the other by the bodily senses, as Man; in the one case He is seen as the Divine Wisdom, in which is the Divine Love; in the other, as a Man in personal form. It must be fixed in the mind that the LORD'S Second Coming is an actual appearing, and that He is actually seen in His Coming; a Coming of the LORD that is not seen, that is invisible, is not a Coming of the LORD to the man of the Church; the Church must see its GOD, or it is no Church; and an invisible GOD is no GOD. To say that we see the effects of the Second Coming of the LORD in the great improvements in the arts and sciences in the last century, and not at the same time to point out and show men the living LORD Himself, who has come, and not see Him in His Coming, is to cultivate a belief in an invisible GOD, and this is but an interior form of naturalism, which has its origin in modern unitarianism. We repeat that the Church must see its GOD in order to live as a Church, and the New Church must see its LORD, as He appears to it in His Coming, that it may become, the New Church, which is the New Jerusalem.
The Doctrines of the New Church teach, as plainly as language can give expression to it, that the Second Coming of the LORD is the appearing of the LORD in His WORD; for the LORD is the WORD, and the opening and revealing of its Spiritual Sense, which is the WORD itself as viewed from the light of Heaven, is the appearing or coming of the LORD Himself, who is the WORD. The WORD is the Divine Truth, or the Divine Wisdom of the LORD'S Divine Love, and the appearing of the Divine Wisdom or of the Divine Truth,- The revealing of it to men,-is nothing less than the appearing of the LORD, the revealing of Him, such as He is in Heaven, to the spiritual or rational mind of man while he is still in the world, and this is nothing less than the Coming of the LORD, His Second Coming. For, keeping in mind that Love and Wisdom are Man, it is clear to see that the revealing of the Divine Wisdom or the Divine Truth, or the Internal Sense of the WORD, as has been done in the Writings of the New Church, is the appearing of the Divine Man, the LORD JESUS CHRIST, to all men in the world who are able to receive Him in His Coming. Such is the spiritual idea of the LORD in the New Church, and the New Church exists where this idea is seen and acknowledged, and according to the measure of its reception in the understanding and life of the Church.
A man is a man according to his idea of GOD, and a Church is a Church according to its idea of GOD; for the idea of God forms all things of the understanding from itself, and according to itself; and the man of the Church from his understanding governs his life, and so the idea of GOD is the all in all things of man.
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The Church begins therefore when the true idea of GOD is received; and it progresses in the degree that the understanding is instructed according to this idea; and it is established when man brings his life under obedience to his understanding; for then there is present in man, and in the Church, spiritual good, the good of truth, or the good that is done in obedience to the truth, which also is called the good of charity; and where spiritual good is, or where charity is, there the Church is, and it is to be found nowhere else. This is the good that is represented by Israel, who is mentioned in the opening words of the Book of Exodus, a good that has its origin in the LORD and in a true idea of Him, and, when it is present with man, institutes the Church with him. And spiritual good in the Church gives birth in its turn to truths, and the Church by them enters into the fullness of its life and has its quality according to them. And these are the names of the sons of Israel.
As we now have one God in the Church 1893
As we now have one God in the Church, Who is God-Man, and Man-God, it is called the crown of all Churches.-Inv. 53.
STATE OF THE CHURCH NOW ESTABLISHED 1893
EXODUS I.
IN this first chapter the state of the Church established is treated of; when good acts the first parts, and is fructified by the multiplication of the truths of faith.
Afterward, the infestation of those truths by falses and evils in the natural is treated of; and that by that infestation Good is still further fructified by truths; to the end of the chapter it is continued concerning that infestation and its increase in the series in which it was done, and concerning the implantation and confirmation of truth from good thence.
(1.) The quality of the Spiritual Church after truths were initiated into scientifics, as to truths and as to good, is now treated of. Inasmuch as chapters xlii to 1 of Genesis, treat of the initiation of truths into scientifics, and the Church was not established until that initiation was effected, therefore, according to the series of things in the internal sense, the establishment of the Church is here treated of, and how it is continually infested with scientifics and falses, for although truths have now been initiated and the Church established with man, still scientifics and falses continually rise up and assault the things which are of the Church with him.
(2, 3, 4.) According to a process from beginning to end-namely, of the establishment of the Church- All things of good and truth- That is, all things of love and faith-were initiated according to an order now arising.
(5.) All things which were from general truth- That is, the man of the spiritual Church in the general sense, but in the Internal Sense truth and good from heavenly marriage,-were in a full state when the Internal Celestial was in the natural.
(6.) It was now otherwise with the internal of the Church, and also with the external, in particular and in general;
(7.) For now the truths of the Church grew as to good by continual derivation; they grew most as to truths from good, even to the fulness of the Church. Truth is here said to grow as to good, because now the Church established is treated of. While the Church is establishing, then man is in truths, and by them good grows, but when the Church is established with him then man is in good and from good in truths, which then grow continually.
(8.) But in this state of the Church scientifics separated, which are contrary to the truths of the Church, arise, such as are altogether alienated from the internal. Scientifics alienated from the internal are such as are opposite to the Church, for the good and truth which make the Church inflow by the Internal; if these are not received by the natural, the internal is closed, and thus the man is alienated from good and truth, and then no other scientifics which are in the natural are acknowledged for scientific truths than those that are falses; these, then, are multiplied and the truths themselves are exterminated.
(9.) But those subordinate scientifics perceived that the truths of the Church would prevail over alienated scientifics; (10.) wherefore, they resort to cunning, lest the truths of the Church prevail if they increase, and lest thus their associates be strengthened, who bring evil to them- That is, lest subordinate scientifics, which are falses, be cast back into hell, and thus the Church be established.
(11.) In this state falses, which drive the men of the Church to serve, increase their grievance by servitude, by doctrines from falsified truths in the natural where alienated scientifics are, whence is their quality and state.
(12.) But according to the infestations suffered by the man of the Church truths increase and are strengthened, whence alienated scientifics are affected with greater aversion for them.
(13.) Wherefore, alienated scientifics intend to subjugate the truths of the Church by unmercifulness. They who are in alienated scientifics, thus in falses from hell, desire to subjugate those who are in truths, with all malice, all cunning and fraud, all deceit, and all cruelty. They have no mercy, because they have no love of the neighbor, but only of themselves.
(14.) The intention of subjugation becomes an infestation, on account of the evils which they invent, and the falses which they feign, against those things that are of the Church, by many methods from unmercifulness.
(15.) In this state separated scientifics flow into the natural, where scientifics which are of the Church are, according to its state and quality.
(16.) Such scientifics, when they apperceive truth and good, from the internal, inflowing from the internal into the scientifics of the Church, attempt, if it be truth, to kill it by every method in their power, but they do not do so if it he good. When the infernals infest, it is allowed them to assault truths but not goods, for truths are what may be assaulted but not goods, for these are secured by the LORD; and when the infernals attempt to assault goods they are cast down deep into hell, for they cannot stand at the presence of good, inasmuch as in all good the LORD is present.
(17.) But scientific truths, because they are from the Divine, are guarded, so that it cannot be so done as they who are in falses intend- That is, to destroy truths by every method in their power; but truths, because of good, are preserved.
(18.) But they that are in falses enter into counsel against them that are in scientific truths in the natural, and they are in anger because truths are not destroyed.
(19.) The man of the Church apperceives concerning scientific truths in the natural and concerning false scientifics in general, that the scientifics of the Church are not of such a quality as are the scientifics contrary to them, for the former have spiritual life in them, but this the natural does not know before they have life.
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(20.) The natural, when its scientifics have life, is blessed from the Divine, and truths are produced therein continually and thereby grow.
(21.) Because scientific truths are guarded by the Divine, they are arranged into a heavenly form.
(22.) There is a general influx into the scientifics contrary to the truths of the Church, that they should immerse all truths which appear in falses, but that they should not assault goods.
There can be no conjunction 1893
There can be no conjunction with an invisible God.- T. C. R. 786.
TRUTH DIVINE 1893
EXODUS II, 1-10.
IN this chapter, in the Internal Sense, Truth Divine is treated of; its beginnings and successive states with the man of the Church.
In the Supreme Sense the LORD is treated of; how He, as to the Human, was made the Law Divine, which is the Word; in the respective sense, truth Divine with the man of the Church.
(1.) When the LORD was made the Divine Law as to the Human, He conjoined truth, the origin of which was from good, with good.
(2.) The first birth of this conjunction was the Law Divine in its origin, and good perceived that it was by heaven, but there was a full time in which the law did' not appear. That the Law Divine was by heaven is a secret that cannot be known unless it be uncovered. The LORD, when He made His Human Divine, did this from the Divine by transflux by heaven; not that heaven contributed anything from itself, but in order that the Divine Itself might be able to inflow into the Human, it inflowed across [trans] heaven. This transflux was the Divine Human before the coming of the LORD, and was Jehovah Himself in the heavens, or was the LORD. The Divine which cross-flowed by heaven was the Divine Truth, or the Divine Law, and this Divine is also good, whence the apperception that it was by heaven.
(3.) When the time arrived when the Law ought to appear, it had something vile which was round about it, but which was still derived from truth, and the good was mixed with evils and falses; but in mostly therein was the Law Divine in its origin, although at first it was among scientific falses.
(4.) From this state of the Law Divine the truth of the Church is far off, but makes observation.
(5.) But the religiosum from false scientifics, worship from the false, and the ministries of that religiosum from the false, apperceived the truth which is vile among false scientifics, and a thing of service, and accepted it from the curiosity of knowing what was the quality of that truth.
(6.) The religiosum from the false, therefore, investigated the quality of it, and apperceived that it was truth from the Divine- That is, the Law Divine or Truth Divine-wherefore, there was sadness and admonition from the Divine, in an influx of charity from the LORD, for it was perceived that it was truth from the Church itself.
(7) The truth of the Church near to the religiosum from the false, perceived that good from the Church itself was to be insinuated.
(8.) The religiosum, therefore, consented that the good of the truth of the Church should adjoin those things which are of the Church.
(9.) Since that religiosum consented, the Church adjoined the Law Divine in its origin, to itself in order to insinuate therein good suitable to that religiosum; recompense follows when good from the Church is insinuated into Law Divine.
(10.) The Law Divine now increased from good, and the Church brought it into the affection of scientifics, whence that affection had first truths; the quality of the state, then, was one of deliverance from falses; this quality in the Supreme Sense involves that the LORD, in order that He might be made the Divine Law as to the Human, delivered it from every false which adhered to His Human from the mother, and this even until He was made the Divine Law- That is, the Divine Truth Itself- And afterward when glorified He was made Divine Good, which is the Esse of Divine Truth or is Jehovah.
All who come into heaven 1893
All who come into heaven obtain a place there . . . according to their idea of God.- T. C. R. 621.
RE-OPENING OF THE ACADEMY SCHOOLS 1893
PHILADELPHIA.
THE Academy Schools in Philadelphia opened on the morning of October 2d, with a service similar to the usual morning one, but appropriately enlarged, especially by the address of the Vice- Chancellor. The keynote of this was the following passage in n. 23 of The True Christian Religion, which was read as the usual Doctrinal Lesson: "The truth is that to implant in infants and children an idea of three Divine Persons, to which inevitably adheres the idea of three Gods, is to take away from them all spiritual milk and afterward all spiritual food and lastly all spiritual reason, and to induce upon those who confirm themselves in it, spiritual death."
The Vice- Chancellor said, in substance:
The teaching of yesterday's service presented the importance to man, of a true idea of God. According to its quality with him is determined his place in heaven, or, according to his rejection of it is determined his place in hell. Hence it is of supreme importance to implant a true idea and conception of the Divine, for from that spring the benefits of eternal life, while, as we read in the number of The True Christian Religion constituting our lesson this morning, a false idea of God, if confirmed in later years, induces spiritual death. Such a state of spiritual death now prevails in the consummated Christian Church, in consequence of the doctrine and worship of a false god, a god in three persons, which is nothing else than the worship of three gods.
Upon this teaching of n. 23 of The True Christian Religion is based our authority for the institution of New Church schools, where, from earliest years, children shall be taught to know that God is One, and that He is the LORD JESUS CHRIST,- To refer everything of human life to Him as its Source, and thus to render back to Him those gifts which make for eternal life. This is the Universal which covers and runs through the whole use, for as all things of human life must be conjoined with their source, which is God, and thus become living, so must all things of education conduce to the knowledge, and to the more and more rational understanding and acknowledgment, of the Divine Father in the Heavens.
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CHICAGO.
THE opening exercises of the Chicago School of the Academy of the New Church were held on October 2d. The order of worship was as follows: The Headmaster, in the robes of his office, entered the Schoolroom bearing the Word and one of the Writings. After these had been laid open on the altar, all united in repeating the LORD'S Prayer. [Hebrew] was then sung and the Ten Commandments repeated in the Hebrew. This was followed by the singing of [Hebrew].
A new pupil was then introduced into the New Church, through the gate of Baptism. The Headmaster, after referring to this sacrament as a sign of admission into the Church, and of association with New Church spirits, spoke of the use of signs in this world and placed upon the breast of the new pupil the badge of the Academy Schools. He then briefly explained to her the meaning of the red and the white, and formally received her into membership in the School.
All then joined in singing the First Psalm. This was followed by reading in the Word and the Writings. The Eighth Psalm was sung, after which the Headmaster delivered an address on the vision of Jacob's Ladder. This was followed by a prayer, invoking Divine aid and blessing upon the work about to be renewed.
[Hebrew] was sung, and the worship concluded with the benediction.
The School has lost one scholar and been increased by three new ones, making the present total, nineteen pupils.
Brother 1893
It is not read that the disciples called the Lord "brother," because "brother" is the good which is from the Lord.- A. R. 32.
RESUMPTION OF ACADEMY WORSHIP IN PHILADELPHIA 1893
THE first service of the Academy in Philadelphia since vacation, was held, as usual, in the Assembly Hall, on North Street, October the first, Vice- Chancellor Pendleton officiating. The doctrinal instruction, which, in addition to the Lessons, consisted in selections from The True Christian Religion, treated of the Constitution and Establishment of the Church. This general treatment of the subject was intended to be a preparation for its more particular exposition in the daily reading of the Book of Exodus, according to the Calendar prepared by the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, which is generally followed in this congregation. It may be added that in their case the great value of this means of consociation in daily worship and instruction, has been much enhanced by the practice which has largely prevailed among the several priests who successively officiate, of expounding, on Sundays, prominent points of doctrine occurring in the daily lessons.
On this occasion the subject was subdivided as follows: 1. The Church is from and according to the Understanding of the Word (T. C. R. 243-5). 2. The Church is according to the idea of God, with man (n. 133,163, 776-7). 3. Repentance, the first thing of the Church with man (510, 511). 4. The Church is the Neighbor that is to be loved (415, 416). 5. The Church is established by the power of Divine Truth (224, 267). 6. By the Divine Truth a New Church is to be instituted (182, 787).
ON October 8th, the Holy Supper was administered to about seventy-five persons, Bishop Pendleton officiating, assisted by Pastors Schreck and Price. It is the practice now, in the service of the Holy Supper, to subordinate everything to that, omitting the sermon, and for the Lessons selecting passages preparatory for that sacred rite. In this particular service the unisonal reading from the Book of Doctrine was Chapter xix (page 341) on "The Holy Supper;" the First Lesson was n. 721 of The True Christian Religion, treating of the same; the Second Lesson was Exodus xvi, verses 1 to 16, describing the gift of Manna, or heavenly bread; the congregation read the Ten Precepts, and the Vice- Chancellor read Chapter xv of the Book of Doctrine, concerning Repentance, and then offered a prayer, followed by The LORD'S Prayer, repeated in unison.
After the administration of the Supper, Psalm xv was sung, to the exquisite music written for it by Mr. Whittington. Psalms i and iii were sung, also, during the service. No one can realize, except by actual experience, how powerfully the exquisitely adapted expression of the ideas and affections contained in the Psalms thus rendered contributes to the sphere of worship, where this music is introduced. It is thankfully accepted as one of the good gifts of the LORD, in the making firm of His Church in the ultimates of external order.
They who are in the good of love 1893
They who are in the good of love to the Lord and in the good of charity to the neighbor, are His sons.- A. E. 746.
CONGREGATIONAL MEETING AT BRIXTON, LONDON 1893
A MEETING of the Congregation worshiping at Burton Road, Brixton, London, was held in the Hall of Worship, Thursday evening, September 21st. Bishop Benade, Pastors Bostock and Tilson, and Ministers Ottley, Stephenson, and Robinson, officiated. Addresses were made by the Bishop and by Pastors Bostock and Tilson. After expounding fundamental principles of order, for the establishment of the Church, by means of the Priesthood, the Bishop announced that for the sake of order, and for the greater distinctiveness and thence the more perfect development of the uses of education and those of church and social life, hereafter, in London, the School and the Church are to have each in its own priestly head and government, the head-mastership being occupied by the Rev. E. C. Bostock, and the Pastorate, by the Rev. R. J. Tilson.
Pastor Tilson, in his address, declared that in view of his acceptance of the pastorate of this Particular Church of the Academy of the New Church, the Particular Church of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD he had begun to form prior to his installation, is now dissolved. He referred to the termination of his period of preparation and qualification for Church work on Academic lines, as also of subordination under Mr. Bostock's supervision, and to his advancement to a position of personal responsibility; he also defined the respective uses of the Academy and of the General Church, and also the three-fold nature of his ministrations, as a Pastor of the LORD'S New Church, as a Pastor of the General Church, and as a Pastor of the Academy; and concluded with an outline of work proposed, inviting from his hearers their cordial co-operation with the Church and with each other, mutual confidence, and a cheerful affirmative attitude toward the doctrine and administration, of the truths of order.
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Mr. Bostock's address was directed to enlisting and stimulating the interest of the members, including those not having families, in the work of education, and cooperation therein. For the better understanding of this work he invited free visiting of the school, and attendance upon the weekly class on education.
"The Bishop announced that, as the Rev. E. C. Bostock had declined the nomination and choice to the Episcopate of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD, the Bishop had withdrawn his resignation of that office, and resumed the administration of the same. In consequence, all assignments to other functions of that, office have lapsed, those functions remaining with the office as now held." Thus the Superintendency of the General Church in Great Britain is returned to the Bishop, who has appointed, however, an advisory Council in that country, consisting of the Rev. R. J. Tilson and the Rev. G. C. Ottley, who will forward to the Bishop, with advisory remark, all applications for membership in the General Church in Great Britain.
The Bishop further stated that the Rev. T. F. Robinson, under his supervision, would take charge of the work in Colchester, and that he should call upon the Rev. J. Stephenson to assist in the work at Liverpool.
The Bishop's address, which, with the able addresses of Pastors Tilson and Bostock, appears in the October New Church Standard, is commended to the careful consideration of all who study the principles of order by which the LORD administers on earth His Priestly office of saving souls, and, to that end, establishes His Church.
What trust is to be had in councils 1893
What trust is to be had in councils whilst they do not go immediately to the God of the Church?- T. C. R. 176.
NEW JERUSALEM CHURCH CONGRESS 1893
A GREAT meeting, unique in the history of mankind, has lately been held in Chicago, in connection with the World's Fair,- A "Parliament of Religions," in which believers in the One God have mingled in worship and thought with the believers in three gods, many gods, or no god. Disregarding or forgetting the Divine command to make no covenant with the nations, and deceived by fallacious appearances, Newchurchmen have hailed this vast concourse of Gentiles, Jews, and Christians as an harbinger of that universal brotherhood of Charity and Faith which will reign among men when, in the far distant future, the New Church shall become triumphant upon the earth.
This "Parliament of Religions" consisted of general, meetings of representatives of the various faiths or religiosities, and of special "Congresses" of the particular denominations.
At the general meetings the New Church was represented by the Rev. S. M. Warren, who read a paper on "The Soul and its Future Life;" by Mrs. L. F. Dickinson, who read an essay on "The Divine Basis of the Co-operation of Men and Women;" by the Rev. Frank Sewall, in a paper on "The Character and Degree of the Inspiration of the Sacred Scriptures;" by the Rev. J. K. Smyth, in a discourse on "The Incarnation of God in Christ;" and by the Rev. T. F. Wright, presenting a paper on "Reconciliation Vital, not Vicarious."
The special Congress of the New Jerusalem Church was held from the 13th to the 18th of September. The general attendance at the meetings was good, though not as representative as had been expected, no speakers from abroad being present. One of the most peculiar and novel features of the Congress was the pronounced forensic part taken by women of the Church. At many of the meetings a woman presided by the side of the chairman. A majority of the papers presented were written by women, but as these, almost without exception, treated of the "woman question," repetition will be avoided by omitting many of the titles in the subjoined account, which is extracted from the report in the Messenger for September 27th.
The Congress was opened on Wednesday afternoon, September 13th, by Mr. C. C. Bonney, a member of the Chicago Society, who first originated the idea of a "Parliament of Religions." After short religious services, conducted by the Rev. Frank Sewall, addresses of welcome were delivered by Mr. Bonney, the Rev. L. P. Mercer, and Miss A. E. Scammon. The foreign visitors, M. P. Mozoomdar and Miss Serabji, of India, and Dr. Carl von Bergen, of Sweden, their expressed their sympathy with the aims of the Congress, though they did not claim to be receivers of the Doctrines. Papers were then read by the Rev. F. Sewall, on "One LORD, One Church, with its Successive Ages," and by the Rev. J. K. Smyth, on "The Mission of the New Church to the Christian Denominations."
At the evening meeting the chairman, the Rev. J. Fox, introducing Mrs. S. D. Hibbard as the first essayist, referred to the position as "a tower amongst us" which had been occupied by her father, the late Rev. Richard De Charms. Mrs. Hibbard then read an essay on "The True Relation of Woman's Work to Man's." This was followed by papers on "The Church of the First Advent," by the Rev. James Reed, and on "The Church of the Second Advent," by the Rev. L. H. Tafel.
On Thursday morning the Rev. T. F. Wright presided over the meeting. Papers were read by the Rev. John Goddard, on "The Doctrine of the LORD the basis of a universal faith," and by the Rev. T. A. King, on "The catholic spirit of the New Church."
The afternoon sessions of the Congress were less formal than the morning sessions, and were called "Round Table Talks." They were presided over by a man and a woman conjointly,-in no case by a married couple. The first of these "Talks" was held on Thursday afternoon, at which the Rev. C. H. Mann and Miss A. E. Scammon presided. Papers, dealing with the various phases of the "woman question," were read by a number of ladies.
In the evening the Rev. L. H. Tafel and Miss Scammon occupied the chair. A sensible paper on "Woman in the New Church," was read by Miss M. L. Barton. She was followed by papers on "The Science of Correspondences and the Word of God", by the Rev. John Worcester, and on "The Opened Word in relation to Gentile Religions," by the Rev. Adolph Roeder.
The Rev. J. B. Parmelee presided over the morning session on Friday. Papers on "Redemption," by the Rev. John Presland, of London; on "The New Church in Africa," by the Rev. W. Winslow, of Copenhagen; and on "Swedenborg's Writings, and his disposition of them," by the Rev. C. J. N. Manby, of Gottenberg; were read to the meeting. Other papers were presented by Mrs. Houts, on "The position, power, and influence of women in the religious world;" by the Rev. A. F. Frost on "The Mission of the New Church to the Gentiles;" and by Mrs. E. S. Mussey, of Washington, on "The duty of the New Church to the African race.
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The Rev. J. C. Ager and Mrs. L. F. Dickinson presided over the afternoon session, which was occupied entirely by the reading of papers prepared by women, and treating, with few exceptions, of the all- Absorbing "woman question." The most radical paper was that communicated by Miss Alice Thatcher, who answered in the affirmative the question: "May women be called to the preaching office?" In the evening the Rev. J. C. Ager read a paper on "The Mission of the New Church to Bible Criticism." Signor Scocia, of Florence, communicated a paper on "The Mission of the New Church to Art."
The Saturday morning session was presided over by the Rev. J. C. Ager. Papers were read on "Salvation," by the Rev. S. S. Seward, on "The Mission of the New Church to the Historian," by the Rev. P. B. Cabell, and on "The Silent Missionaries," by the Rev. G. L. Allbutt. Some papers by women were also presented.
In the afternoon, extempore remarks were made by a number of ladies and gentlemen, on the use and delights of these meetings. A resolution was adopted, looking to the permanent organization of the movement begun at this Congress.
At the, evening session papers were read by the Rev. T. F. Wright, on "The Mission of the New Church to Literature;" by the Rev. C. H. Mann, on "The Mission of the New Church to Sociology and Government;" and by Miss E. C. Silver, on "The Ministry of Gentleness."
No sessions were held by the Congress on Sunday, but the members attended the services conducted in the various places of New Church worship in the city.
On Monday morning, the Congress listened to a paper communicated by the Rev. J. J. Thornton, who described the planting of the New Church in Australia. Papers by the Rev. G. N. Smith on "The Church before Christianity," and by the Rev. H. C. Dunham on the "Teaching of the New Church on the future life," were read also.
At the meeting on Monday afternoon, Mr. Mercer and Miss Scammon presided during the first half of the session, and Mr. F. A. Dewson and Mrs. Ager during the latter half. A number of papers were read by ladies.
This closed the last session of the Congress. The Messenger's reporter makes the well-grounded remark that this was "the most remarkable convention of New Church people that has ever assembled."
Gentiles of every worship are averse to Christianity 1893
The Gentiles of every worship are averse to Christianity, solely on account of the faith of three Gods there.- T. C. R. 183.
WARNING FROM HISTORY 1893
A REMARKABLE feature of the decaying civilization of ancient Rome, was the great toleration of foreign religiosities. A liberal spirit was abroad, including in one great brotherhood all the idolatries and philosophies of the classic world. There was only one particular sect that took no part in this universal paean of religions- An obscure sect of men called "Nazarenes" or "Christians," who, in consequence, were vigorously hated and persecuted, as narrow-minded, uncharitable, and dangerous fanatics. They persistently proclaimed that they alone worshiped the only true and living God, and they preferred death to mingling in worship with the adorers of Jupiter, Isis, or Baal. There was not, at that time, any "new influx" of truth invisibly permeating the various religiosities, descended from the fallen Ancient Church, but the Christian Church survived and conquered solely by its uncompromising faith in the ONE LORD and SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST, embodied in its strong and exclusive external organization. But when, through worldly motives, the Church opened its portals to the secret worshipers of many gods, it fell. Has the New Church of the LORD nothing to learn from the history of the Old?
Notes and Reviews 1893
Light on the Last Things, by the late Rev. Wm. B. Hayden, has been published, in a new edition, by James Speirs, of London.
THE "New Church Book Association" of Stockholm, has lately published a lecture on Heavenly Marriages, by the Rev. A. Bjorck, and a new translation into the Swedish, of The Nature of Spirit, by the Rev. Chauncey Giles.
THE Journal of the late meeting of the General Convention, has been published. It contains, as a new and interesting feature, a list of the places where previous conventions have been held, together with the dates of the meetings.
A POCKET EDITION of the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Concerning Faith, with a number of extracts from the Doctrine Concerning Charity, has recently been issued by the American Swedenborg Society. The work is being presented gratis to old- Church clergymen, by Dr. John Ellis.
AT the late meeting of the New Church Congress in Chicago, sixty- Three addresses and papers were presented. Of these, twenty-seven were by gentlemen and thirty-six by ladies. After this, surely, there ought to be no more talk about women not having an opportunity to be heard. Was there ever a time when they did not?
"De mortuis nihil nisi bene." The flattering reference to the late Rev. Richard de Charms, at the New Church Congress in Chicago, as having been "a tower among us," sounds peculiar now that thirty years have closed over the grave of this uncompromising but unpopular champion of sound doctrine. In his life he was repudiated by almost the whole Church. Have his principles become any more popular?
THE Messenger is shocked at the statement of a Presbyterian paper that "Christianity is light; Mohammedanism and Mormonism and Unitarianism are darkness. 'What fellowship hath light with darkness?'" Has the Messenger, in its enthusiasm over the late "Congress of Religions," entirely lost from sight the very first essential of all truth, the doctrine of the LORD, which is the source of all light, and without which all is darkness?
THE New Church Standard for September contains some very instructive editorial teachings on the true significance and necessity of subordination, and on the difference between the two kinds of love of exercising rule, applying these teachings to the present deplorable state of the New Church in Great Britain. In the same issue the readers are presented with the first of a series of articles on "The Writings and their Authority." This subject, which has engaged the attention of the Church for over a century, is by no means a "dead issue" yet, but requires to be presented in a continually more and more clear and unmistakable manner, the need of which is evidenced by the appearance of such teachings as those of the Rev. E. A. Beaman, in the Messenger, and by the growing uneasiness in the Church at large, on this subject. The Standard contains also the account, which has appeared in New Church Life, of the recent installation and ordinations in London.
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THE New Church Magazine for October opens with a highly interesting and instructive essay on "Colors, Tints, and Shades: their spiritual cause and significance," by Mr. J. Stuart Bogg. The article is of a distinctively New Church character, and is a gem, whether regarded from a doctrinal, historical, scientific, or esthetic point of view. Highly educational, it is well worth reading in the advanced classes of our New Church Schools, and deserves special attention by students of art in the Church. The same number of the Magazine contains a pleasing little story called "Felicia: a story of the Hereafter," by Felix Marsh, being a description of the experiences of a novitiate spirit in the world of spirits, and his final happy reunion with the wife of his life on earth, in their heavenly home.
IN the October number of The New Jerusalem Magazine, Mr. J. S. Bogg contributes another interesting article on the Science of Correspondences, this time on "The Spiritual Side of Natural Sciences." The Writer here traces certain natural phenomena, such as trade-winds, oceanic currents, the chemical formation of acid, alkali salts, crystals, etc., to their spiritual and corresponding causes, in the spiritual world, and in the human mind. In the same journal the Rev. A. L. Kip, of Chicago, presents his ideas of" The correspondence of the Squirrel," a subject which would seem quite seasonable now that this playful and toothsome rodent occupies especial attention. According to this writer the squirrel "represents a love for learning practical views of life, whether as the result of the personal experience of others, or as embodied in the maxims and proverbs of the human race." This, certainly, looks like "jumping at conclusions," a characteristic which the writer associates with the movements of the mental "squirrels" he describes. The science of correspondences ought, indeed, to be cultivated, but it must be done with the greatest care and reverence, divested of mere speculation least the destructive affections of self-intelligence be permitted to build nests in the noble trees which are the perceptions of this holy science. The evolving of correspondences from the "inner- Consciousness of man," can find no justification in the Writings.
THE Journal of the twenty-sixth annual meeting of the American New Church Sabbath- School Association, has been received. Much of the time of this meeting, which was held in New York city, May 6th, 1893, was occupied with the discussion of the various uses and features of The Sower, the new Sunday School paper, which is published at Chicago by the Western New Church Union. This is now the only juvenile Journal published in the New Church, and it can be made to perform important uses. An improvement may be suggested in the elimination of articles of a frivolous nature, such as the story in a recent number about the little boy who "grabbed it quick." Stealing, like other evils, is not naturally abhorrent to a child of our race; jocular treatment tends to make it even less repulsive.
THE New Church Pacific feels assured that "among New Churchmen there is a general acceptance of the belief that the growth of the New Church on earth is universal, and not at present limited to the proper organization of the Church itself. Indeed, so well grounded is this belief that there is no need to go to the Writings for ample confirmation of this statement." Indeed, so entirely groundless is this belief; that, were Newchurchmen to go to the Writings, not for confirmation of preconceived notions, but for instruction from the LORD, they would come to realize the hollowness and unreality of that fascinating soap-bubble known as the "permeation- Theory," which the Church has been vainly chasing for more than a hundred years.
THE present discussion in Morning Light on the burning question "What is at fault?" is becoming more and more interesting. All parties seem agreed that there is "something rotten" in the state of- The General Conference,-but are not at all agreed as to the cause of existing conditions. Some startling disclosures have been made. Thus one communicator asks, concerning another who dislikes oft-recurring references to "the Writings," and the introduction of New Church "phraseology" in sermons, "does your correspondent know that in our largest Societies there are not half a dozen persons who read these holy and most precious books, and that in the smaller societies of the Church oftentimes not a single reader is to be found? Now this is actually so, as the writer knows from a long and varied experience." The same communication closes with these words: "Your correspondent evidently does not sympathize with the late secessionists from the General Church but does he not see that by his negation he is doing valiant service for them, and that if he holds on, many more must soon seek a home in a communion where the Writings are not discounted if not denied."
THE Concordance to the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg has, as it were, reached a culminating point of importance, in the entry under the heading "LORD," which began in the sixty-sixth issue, occupies the whole of the sixty-seventh, and is finished in the sixty-eighth.
The last-named issue contains, further, a series of most interesting teachings on the "LORD'S Prayer," which ought to command the greatest attention. One remarkable passage is this: "At this day a New Church is being instaurated by the LORD'S Prayer, . . . in which there will be the worship of the Lord alone, as there is in Heaven; and thus will everything be fulfilled which is contained in the LORD'S Prayer from beginning to end" (A. R. 839).
The entry under "Louis IV" is the more remarkable, in that, when it was written, that king was still in this life.
The information given concerning the correspondence of the "louse" explains many things of painful interest to the watchful housewife. The "house-lice" and "wall-lice," which are mentioned as having an evil odor, are evidently the same as "bed-bugs," which, in the Swedish, are called "vagg-loss" ("wall-lice")
The sixty-eighth number of the Concordance contains, besides the beginning of the entries under "Love," "Love of dominating," and "Love of self," all articles of eminent importance.
ANENT the "New Church Congress" which has lately been held in Chicago in connection with the "World's Columbian Exposition," it may be of interest to call to mind that a similar meeting was held forty- Two years ago in connection with the first International Exposition, held in London in the year 1851. This great New Church meeting took place in Freemason Hall, in London, on the 19th of August, of the same year, and was attended by 1,500 persons. Addresses, describing the general principles and objects of the New Church, were delivered by prominent ministers and members of the Church, in Great Britain and from abroad. Among the latter were Dr. J. F. I. Tafel, of Germany, Baron Dirkinck- Holmfeld, of Denmark, MM. Le Boys des Guays and OEgger, of France, and Dr. Merriman, of Michigan, U. S. A. A full report of the meeting was published in a pamphlet of 64 pages, which may be found appended to the October number of the Intellectual Repository for the year 1851. The object of this gathering was, in general, the same as that of the late meeting in Chicago, viz.: "to place before the public the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem more prominently than had ever before been accomplished." It is, however, doubtful whether meetings of this character are adapted to produce a lasting impression upon the mind of the "public," held as they are in the sphere of an unusually excited interest in the things of this world. Efforts at evangelization under such circumstances would, indeed, seem to be "fishing in muddy waters." And is there not danger of lowering the true dignity and usefulness of the Church by making its meetings and objects the appendages of a worldly show? Will the world receive the spirit of truth now any more than at the time of the LORD'S First Coming? Will the kingdom of God come with "observation"?
man shall take hold of his brother 1893
"A man shall take hold of his brother in the house of his father," is to acknowledge anything for good.- A. C. 3703.
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HISTORY OF THE ARCANA COELESTIA 1893
THE ORIGINAL EDITION.
THE life of Swedenborg may be divided into three general periods or states, viz.: First, The state of his preparation, by means of the Natural Sciences, for the holy office to which the LORD subsequently called him. This state lasted from his birth to the year 1743, when the LORD first manifested Himself to him. Second, the state of his illumination, or spiritual enlightenment in the Doctrine which is in Heaven. This illumination took place by means of the gradual opening of his spiritual eyes to the light of Heaven, and his progressive introduction into more and more interior societies of spirits and angels. In this state he continued from the year 1743 to the year 1747, when he had received a full understanding of the Doctrines concerning the LORD and when "there was a change of state in him into the celestial kingdom in an image." He then resigned his natural office as Assessor in the College of Mines in order "to go abroad to a place where he could finish the important work upon which he was now engaged." This marks the end of his state of transition and the beginning of his state of inspiration, in which the LORD through Swedenborg spake His Word to the New Church, and thus effected His Second Advent.
The "important work" which he had now begun was the revelation of the "ARCANA CELESTIA, or Heavenly Mysteries, which are in the Sacred Scriptures or the Word of the LORD"
It seems that Swedenborg began writing this, the first and largest of the inspired Writings of the New Church, in the early part of the year 1747, when he was still at his home in Stockholm, and finished the manuscript of the first volume in Holland in the fall of the year 1748. In the Spiritual Diary, which he was writing at the same time, there is a memorandum under this date of a general glorification of the LORD in Heaven, and of the inexpressible joy of the angels on account of His Advent, which had now begun to be ultimated on earth through the revelation of these Heavenly mysteries (S. D. 3029).
From Holland Swedenborg now traveled to London in order to have his completed manuscript published there, in the centre of the Christian world. Having made the necessary arrangement with his publisher, Mr. John Lewis, for the regular appearance of the Arcana Coelestia, he returned to Holland, spent a winter at the watering place of Aix-la- Chapelle, and then returned to Stockholm, where he remained eight years occupied with the continuation of the great work.
The first volume appeared in London in the year 1749, in the form of a stout quarto volume of 630 pages, which contained the Internal Sense of the first fifteen chapters of the book of Genesis, in 1885 paragraphs. Between the chapters were inserted accounts of the "Mirabilia," or wonderful things which had been seen by the writer in the World of Spirits and in the Heaven of Angels.
The second volume of the Arcana Celestia (Nos. 1886-2759, Gen. xvi-xxi) was published in London in the year 1750, in both the Latin and the English tongues. A lengthy advertisement of this volume was inserted in the London Daily Advertiser by John Lewis (concerning whom see the Spiritual Diary, n. 5987) on February 5th, 1750. From this interesting document we learn that the author had expended four hundred pounds in publishing the two volumes, and that he had ordered that all money returning from the sale of the work should he given to "the charge of the propagation of the gospel." The announcement contains also a letter from a Mr. Stephen Penny, of Dartmouth, who expressed in it his great satisfaction in reading the first volume of this anonymous but wonderful work.
It is of interest to note here that this Mr. Penny, who was the first known reader of the Doctrines in England, became the means of introducing these to the knowledge of Mr. William Cookworthy, a Quaker, who subsequently formed a personal friendship with Swedenborg himself, and became the translator and publisher of the first English editions of the Doctrine of Life (in 1763), and of Heaven and Hell (in 1777).
The English edition of the second volume of the Arcana Coelestia is said to have been translated, at Swedenborg's expense, by a Mr. John Merchant, "a literary gentleman of good character." It appeared in six numbers, the first three with special prefaces, and each paged independently of the others. This edit ion is now exceedingly scarce. Only two copies are known to exist one belonging to the Royal Library in Stockholm, (Swedenborg's own copy), and the other to Mr. James Speirs, of London. At least one person is known to have been introduced into the New Church by means of this, the first of the Heavenly Doctrines in the English tongue, Mr. James Adkin, who died at Leigh, in Lancashire, in the year 1846. He had been present at the opening of no fewer than ten places of worship in the New Church, both in England and America.
The indifferent reception which met the Arcana Coelestia on its first appearance, is noted by Swedenborg in the Spiritual Diary, n. 4422 (written at the end of the year 1749), where he states that he "had received letters that no more copies than four had been sold. This was made known to the angels, who indeed wondered; but said that it must be left to the Providence of the LORD."
In the other life, however, where the Second Advent of the LORD in the Internal Sense of the Word also seems to have ultimated itself in the spiritual form of the same works which Swedenborg published on the earth, the Arcana Coelestia seems to have been received with greater honor. Swedenborg thus relates, in a memorable relation in The True Christian Religion (n. 461), that once in a Paradise in the Spiritual World he saw a cedar tree, upon which was a book, under a green olive tree, whose trunk was entwined with a vine. He looked, and behold, it was a book written by, him, and called "Arcana Coelestia."
The third volume was published in London in the year 1751. It contained the exposition of Genesis, chapters xxii to xxx, in 643 pages, the paragraphs numbered from 2760 to 4055.
The fourth volume, like the succeeding ones, appeared also at London, and was published in the year 1752. It contained 559 pages, explaining Genesis xxxi to xl, in paragraphs 4056 to 5190.
The fifth volume was published in the year 1753. It contained Genesis xli to l (Nos. 5191-6626; pages 585).
The first volume of the Arcana Coelestia, which are contained in the Book of Exodus, was published in the year 1753. (Exodus i-xv. Nos. 6627-8386, pages 580).
The second volume of this new series appeared in the year 1754 (Exodus xvi to xxiv; Nos. 8387 to 9442, pages 521), and the third and last, in the year 1756. (Exodus xxv to xxxix; Nos. 9443 to 10,837; pages 695). The original edition was thus completed in eight volumes, a number which signifies "conjunction to the full" (A. C. 9659), and "the beginning of another series" (A. C. 2866).
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THE LATIN REPRINT.
THE Arcana Celestia was re-edited in the original tongue by the learned and indefatigable Dr. Immanuel Tafel, of Tübingen, during the years 1833 to 1842, this work beginning the series of Latin reprints of the Writings, which was interrupted only by the death of the editor in the year 1863. The means for publishing this second Latin edition were provided, in part, by a Herr Frank, of Potsdam, in Prussia, who bequeathed about $600 for this purpose. Pecuniary assistance was received also from the British Swedenborg Society, and from the three Conventions of the New Church then existing in America. The edition was, therefore, a result of the united efforts of the whole New Church. Respecting the editorial labor bestowed upon this work Dr. Tafel stated, in the year 1835: "I not only read myself the text with the corrections three times at least, and occasionally still more frequently, examining every word and every number, and comparing them with the Hebrew and the Greek text, but I have also engaged four other persons to assist in the correction."
At the end of each volume of this edition a long list of the emendations is printed. Dr. R. L. Tafel, who, in the year 1869 compared Dr. Im. Tafel's edition with the original MS., preserved in Stockholm, states that not one of the errors which are found in the original London edition exist in the MS., which in every case is in agreement with the Tübingen edition. A future reprint of the Latin of the Arcana Coelestia will therefore require comparatively small editorial labor, thanks to the care of Dr. Immanuel Tafel. The following table shows the years of the publication of the various volumes of this edition, together with the distribution of the text:
The sixth volume contains, as an appendix, the Latin text of Swedenborg's letter to the Rev. Th. Hartley, entitled "Responsum ad Epistolam ab Amico ad me Scripiam," the original of which was published by Mr. Hartley, at London, in the year 1769.
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
NEW CHURCH NUPTIAL CEREMONY 1893
THE progress of the Church in its external rites and ceremonies, of late has been very rapid. This is shown especially by the recent nuptials described below. When compared with the service in general use in the New Church, this will be seen to have been in every respect unique. It was at once impressive and beautiful, doubtless owing chiefly to the fact that it was based on the nuptials of a heavenly pair, described in the first part of Conjugial Love. Thus this wedding resembled a heavenly ceremony more than anything of the kind heretofore. The marriage service which is in common use has still clinging to it traces of the form of the Old Church ritual, from which it was taken; but the teaching that all things are to be made new applies to the external forms of worship and of ceremonies, as well as to doctrine and subjects of an internal character. The News Jerusalem must have new and distinctive rituals, in order that these may be correspondential, and may thus be true continents of the internal embodied in them. In the nuptial service above alluded to there was more full instruction concerning conjugial love than is usually given. Besides the ring other pledges were given, as was the case at the heavenly nuptials. Another feature which is a departure from the beaten track was the drinking of wine and the eating of cake as a part of the ceremony. This did not in the least jar upon one as an innovation, but only enhanced the sphere of completeness and holiness.
The nuptials were celebrated at the house of the pastor, in a room now in use as a temporary place of worship. It presented quite a festive appearance. Upon the walls and over the entrance and windows, sprays of leaves and evergreen were tastefully arranged, while the mantel was a perfect bank of wild flowers. The guests sat in a double semicircle opening toward the chancel, and in the midst of the curve thus formed stood a table bearing the bridal cake and the wine to be used in the ceremony, and adorned with a handsome pyramid of flowers.
The picture was completed by the tropical plants grouped about the altar and reading desk. At each scat was a programme, neatly printed in red, on white paper.
The service opened with a period of silence, to prepare the mind, by abstraction from worldly affairs, for the solemn occasion to follow. Then as a voluntary, the instrumental accompaniment composed by Mr. Whittington, for the 27th Psalm, was read, and after the entrance of the priest and the opening of the WORD, the 15th Psalm was sung to the new music, which so beautifully expresses the affection of the conjugial by its antiphonal passage for the two sexes.
At the conclusion of this psalm, the bride and bridegroom entered, and advanced to the altar, where the bridegroom laid the pledges, and all knelt in prayer. All having arisen and taken their seats, the bride and bridegroom in chairs provided for them before the chancel, the priest gave instruction concerning marriage. He said:
"In the Writings it is prophesied that Conjugial Love will be resuscitated by the LORD after His Advent, of such quality as it was with the Ancients, because that love is from the LORD alone, and is with those who by Him, through the WORD, are made spiritual" (C. L. 81).
"Marriage is the state which alone is receptive of the activities of that love, and it must be desired and sought by all who would be of the New Church; for only in the degree that that love is appropriated is the Church received, and therefore only in the same degree can heaven be received, the reception of all of which progresses only by means of regeneration. In order to realize that true marriage is heaven, it is necessary to contrast it with its opposite, and to bear in mind that adultery is hell." As a further teaching the priest gave the doctrine on this subject contained in numbers 981 to 984 of Time Apocalypse Revealed, after which the first Psalm was sung, which treats, in the general internal sense, of man's regeneration, thus aptly supplementing the doctrine just given; for "man is born into the love of the evil and the false," and this love must be changed into heavenly love, else the covenant entered into by the husband and wife will never become true marriage.
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After a short interval of silence, the priest announced that the bride and bridegroom, having been solemnly betrothed, now desired to be initiated into the full state of marriage, according to the LORD'S words in Conjugial Love (n. 306). "In heaven a priest does not officiate at the nuptials, but on earth we are taught that, as the minister of those things which belong to the LORD'S Love and blessing, he should be present, should hear and accept the mutual consent of those betrothed and accept and confirm it" (C. L. 308).
The bride and bridegroom advanced toward the chancel, but before hearing their mutual consent, the priest instructed them about the state into which they were to enter, by reading number 310 of Conjugial Love. Addressing the bridegroom by name, he said:
"Do you solemnly purpose thus to marry this woman, that you may live with her and her alone, to eternity, according to the laws which the LORD has revealed in the Writings?" The bridegroom answered: "I do solemnly so purpose." The Priest, turning to the bride, asked the same question, but in order to ultimate the teaching that man is the active and woman the passive; for the word "purpose" he substituted "consent." Mutual consent having thus been declared, all knelt while the priest made supplication for the Divine Blessing. The congregation then seated themselves, and after a short interval of silence, the bridegroom rose, together with the bride, and placing a ring upon her finger, and clasping a bracelet upon her arm, said, "Accept these pledges, pledges of eternal love," and kissing her, he said: "Now thou art mine, my wife." They then exchanged places, according to the usual form, the bridegroom, now the husband, standing on the right, and the bride, now the wife, on the left. This being done, the priest, in the name of the LORD, confirmed their union.
Then each of the guests, and afterward the whole congregation in unison, said: "May there be a blessing!" The husband and wife, kneeling, received the Divine Blessing from the priest. After all had knelt in silent prayer, the husband, for himself and for his bride, made an offering to the LORD, through the priest, His earthly representative,- At the same time expressing their thankfulness and gratitude for the Divine gift of Conjugial Love to the New Church.
All remained seated in silence while the music of the 23d Psalm was played, and the cake and wine were distributed by the ushers. The priest read from numbers 355 and 356 of the work on Conjugial Love, and as he concluded, all rose to their feet and read in unison the first paragraph on page 167 of the Liturgy (Matt. xix, 4-6), and drank the wine as a toast to what was there expressed.
In conclusion the ninth Psalm was sung, a psalm of celebration and praise of the LORD, and after the closing of the WORD, the priest retired. The people remained seated while the organist played the new music for the 19th Psalm, thus quietly and restfully terminating the ceremony.
After disrobing, the priest returned. This was a signal for the festive part of the celebration to begin. The pastor proposed the following toasts, which were responded to by various ones of the company, the bridegroom responding to the last:
1. Conjugial Love.
2. Victory in Temptation.
3. Duties of Marriage.
4. Happiness of Marriage.
5. The Bride and Bridegroom.
At the completion of this part of the programme, the room was cleared, and the new consorts led in a waltz, after which they retired; but the rest of the company continued the social for the rest of the evening.
The sphere of the whole evening was delightful. The special use of nuptial ceremonies, to those who witness them, is the cultivation of the conjugial. Heaven is then most near, and the minds of those present-elevated by the sphere of celestial love from the LORD- Are rendered more open and receptive for the storing up of remains, to be brought forth in some future need. Truly, as was expressed by one of the guests, "The angels were present."
On the evening following that of the nuptials H. F 1893
On the evening following that of the nuptials, a reception was held at the house of the bride's father. Nearly all the former guests were present and proffered their congratulations and kind wishes to the newly-married consorts. There were speeches, toasts, and conversation, but all were characterized by this, that they centered upon Conjugial Love. Thus the resemblance to a marriage celebration in Heaven (C. L. 316) was carried out to the fullest possible extent. H. F.
man signified truth 1893
A man signified truth, and a brother good, between which the veriest mutuality exists.- A. C. 4725.
ARCHITECTURE AT THE WORLD'S FAIR 1893
"THE White City "is one of the most imposing sights to be seen anywhere in the world. The buildings must be seen before one can form an adequate conception of their size and grandeur. Size is always imposing, and here we have size combined with symmetry of proportion and a considerable display of taste. But above all, the arrangement of the buildings shows the artist, who knew how to utilize the space at his command, and to assign to each building that position where it would show to the greatest advantage. But probably no other city in this country could have offered so suitable a spot for that purpose, as Chicago. The Lake, and a series of balloons distributed over the grounds, wonderfully brighten the general effect. The arrangement leaves nothing to be desired.
There are some strange combinations, it is true, in the architecture of the buildings. A building in the Ionic style, surmounted by a cupola, and decorated by a frieze from a Doric temple, is a novel sight, indeed. But the most fastidious taste will forgive such incongruities, where there is so much that is really admirable. The facades of the buildings are fine; though there has, perhaps, been too much preference given to the Corinthian style. The general effect of the Main Building would have been considerably enhanced had it been decorated in the more massive Doric style. As the largest of the buildings, the Doric style would especially have been adapted to it, as it would have given it an additional strength and dignity.
The most striking thing, however, about these buildings is that all which really adorns and beautifies them is borrowed from sacred edifices. This is a fact which deserves notice. Art is from the Spiritual Heaven, we are taught; "especially the architectonic art. From that heaven many arts in the world derive their laws and harmonies." Modern architects, it would seem, receive little inspiration from that source, since they are incapable of producing anything which is at all equal in beauty and gracefulness to the better productions of former ages.
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There was an excellent opportunity at Chicago for some genius to present to the world an entirely new and original style of architecture, which, if not superior to the great works of antiquity, would at least compare favorably with them. But the Muses are, after all, propitious to him only who can elevate his mind above the senses; hence, it has ever been that the most sublime efforts of genius have been consecrated to the service of the Church or of Religion. And the reason of this is obvious. Beauty is the outward form of truth from good; accordingly, the impulse to produce such forms must come from above. The materialism of the present age has destroyed that plane through which the influx from heaven could operate, and ultimate itself in corresponding forms. The buildings at the Fair seem beautiful because they appear in borrowed plumes. Strip them of all that is borrowed, and they will remind you of the well-known fable. Still the architect, although he cannot he said to have much claim to originality, has at least shown that he is not devoid of taste. He has, in a graceful way, shown his appreciation of the superiority of ancient over modern architecture; but by employing it on buildings which are intended as proofs of the greatness of our nation, he has but too well illustrated that in this particular art, at least, we must yield the palm to others.
Brotherhood 1893
Brotherhood [with those who are in the doctrine of faith and without the life of charity] does not derive its origin from the Lord but from themselves.- A. C. 3803.
WAS SWEDENBORG INSPIRED? 1893
THAT Swedenborg was not an inspired writer has often been asserted by men professing to be Newchurchmen, and even by men occupying positions as ministers of the Church. And the same assertion has often been published in professedly New Church periodicals and books.
But it is the universal testimony of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, that they are a Revelation of Divine Truth from the LORD. And can a Revelation of Divine Truth be given without inspiration?
When we consider what Swedenborg has said respecting the state in which he was while writing, it seems a strange perversity on the part of those who profess to believe in his Writings, to deny that he was an inspired writer. For to do this is nothing less than to stigmatize Swedenborg as an impostor. It is to deny that he speaks the truth concerning himself, as to his relation to the Writings. And if this be denied, the Writings cannot be regarded as a Revelation of Divine Truth from the LORD. It is also a clear case of spiritual theft: because Swedenborg attributes every jot of the Writings to the LORD; and for any one to deny that they were given by inspiration, and thus to ascribe them to the man, is to rob the LORD of that which is due to Him alone.
Swedenborg declares that "the books" which we call "the Writings" were written by the LORD through him. And this we may well believe; for he could no more have written them from his own intelligence than he could have created a universe by his own power! And certainly no man of any enlightenment can imagine it possible that the LORD could give such a stupendous system of Divine Truth as the Writings are, "by means of a man," except by inspiration. Accordingly we read:
"The Second Advent of the LORD is effected by means of a Man, before whom He has manifested Himself in person, and whom He has filled with His Spirit, to teach the Doctrines of the New Church through the Word "from Him" (T. C. R. 779).
The Man here mentioned was none other than Swedenborg; and the declaration that the LORD filled him with His Spirit, to teach the Doctrines of the New Church, is certainly equivalent to saying that he wrote under inspiration. And another point in the passage just quoted is that the expression, "to teach the Doctrines of the New Church through the Word from Him," is equivalent to saying that the Writings are the Word. For the Doctrines are taught in, by means of, and through the Writings; which is the same as saying, and which is meant by the expression, "through the Word from Him."
But those who deny the inspiration of Swedenborg, and attribute to his Theological Writings only a human, and not a Divine authority, will also deny this legitimate conclusion, and will call it sophistry. Nevertheless, they who are in a state of enlightenment, and are willing to see the truth of it, are able to see it clearly. And the truth is that the Writings are a Revelation of the Internal Sense of the Word; and in the Arcana Coelestia we are told
"That the Internal Sense is the Word itself" (A. C. 1540).
And the Writings, as being the Internal Sense of the Word, are the Word Itself, are also the LORD Himself who is the Word, as is plain from the following passage:
"This Sense [the Internal] is the soul of the Word, and is the Truth Divine itself proceeding from the LORD, thus it lathe LORD Himself" (A. C. 9349).
But what is here said does not imply the separation of the soul of the Word from its body, which is the letter; for they cannot be separated; and there is no thought of setting aside the letter, which is "Divine Truth in the ultimate of order" (A. C. 9430).
An instructive passage, as to the nature and uses of the Word, is the following:
"To the end that the LORD might be constantly present, He has disclosed to me the Spiritual Sense of His Word, in which Divine Truth is in its light, and in this He is continually present; for His presence in the Word is only by means of the Spiritual Sense: through the light of this He passes into the shade in which the sense of the letter is; comparatively as it happens with the light of the sun in the day- Time, by the interposition of a cloud. That the sense of the letter of the Word is as a cloud, and the spiritual sense glory, and the LORD Himself the Sun from which is the Light, and that thus the LORD is the Word, has been demonstrated above" (T. C. R. 780).
The assertion has also been made by those professing to be Newchurchmen that Swedenborg has nowhere said that he was inspired. But as already shown above, his inspiration is clearly implied in what is said in no. 779 of The True Christian Religion. And there is at least one passage in the same work, in which Swedenborg states that he spoke from inspiration, namely in no. 135. It was on an occasion when he preached very earnestly to a number of people in the world of spirits, who had given expression to the most enormous falsities concerning the God of Heaven; and his discourse was so full of profound and heavenly wisdom that he could not have uttered such words unless he had been inspired. Let any man of spiritual intelligence read the passage, and see whether he does not find it to be so.
The Swedenborg Concordance, compiled by the Rev. John Faulkner Potts, and now being published, is a great help to enable the men of the Church to learn what Swedenborg has written, and to acquire knowledges concerning things spiritual, heavenly and Divine.
175
The article on "Inspiration," in number 54 of that work, like all the rest, is intensely interesting. Some passages in which the inspiration of Swedenborg is mentioned may here be quoted, as follows:
"Although it is so dangerous to investigate and explore spiritual and celestial things by means of natural knowledges, it has been granted me of the Divine mercy that I dare do these things; not from my own daring, but from the inspiration of God Messiah" (Adv. 2, 1281, 2).
"The things which have now been written appeared Divinely inspired; for the very words, although not dictated, were still sensibly inspired. . . I sacredly confess, that not a syllable . . . . is from me" (Ibid. 3, 3764).
"But this I can sacredly asseverate-who am inspired- That there is not the least of a word; there is not a jot which is not inspired; but it is varied a little, according to the gift of him who sets the things forth; but still so, that even then there is not a jot which is not inspired" (Ibid. 3, 6965).
Now these are very definite statements on the point under consideration. And the passages quoted from the work entitled Adversaria are just as authentic as anything that is written in any of the other works. These declarations are no stronger than those made by Swedenborg in The Apocalypse Revealed and The True Christian Religion and other parts of the Writings. The reader is frequently warned against attributing anything contained in the Divine revelation, made in the Writings, to the Man, and is instructed Co ascribe the whole and every part of it to the LORD alone.
"Every one can see that the Apocalypse could no how be explained except by the LORD alone. . . . It must, not, therefore, be supposed that anything there given is from me, or from any angel, but the LORD alone" (Pref. to A. B).
"I testify in truth, . . . that I have not received anything which pertains to the Doctrines of that Church from any angel, but from the LORD alone, while I read the Word" (T. C. R. 779).
One other impressive passage may be quoted, as follows:
"The Spiritual Sense of the Word has been disclosed by the LORD through me. This sense has never before been revealed since the Word was written among the sons of Israel. This sense is the very Sanctuary of the Word; the LORD Himself is in this sense with His Divine, and in the natural sense with His Human. Not an iota of this sense could be opened except by the LORD alone" (Inv. to N. C.).
The questions now become pertinent: Since the letter of the Word was given by inspiration of God, how could the Revelation of the Spiritual Sense, which is the "very Sanctuary of the Word," the "verimost Word," the "soul"- That is, the very life of the Word"- How could the Revelation of this sense, contained in the Writings of the New Church, be given without Divine Inspiration? How could that which "surpasses all the Revelations that have hitherto been made since the creation of the world," be given without the inspiration of the human instrument Divinely employed for the purpose? And why, therefore, should men who profess to believe in the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, deny that Swedenborg, the Servant of the LORD, was an inspired writer? Surely the angels of the heavens do not deny this, and why should the men of the Church do so, and publish it in their periodicals and books? Or, are those who do deny it as yet really of the Church?
Those who really acknowledge the LORD, and are wise, and consequently are of the Church of the New Jerusalem, from joy of heart, and with profound gratitude, acknowledge all that the LORD, in His Divine mercy, has done to accomplish His Second Coming, to perform the work of the Redemption of the world anew. Every enlightened man of the Church is aware that unless the LORD had come again into the world in Divine Truth, which is the Word- Thus, that unless the LORD had given a New Revelation of the Divine Truth, in the Writings of the New Church, which are the Spiritual Sense of the Word, and hence are the Word, and the Coming of the LORD as the Word-no one could have been saved. What a momentous truth is this to the Newchurchman!
But let it be known that there are myriads of malignant spirits of the Dragon, who put forth their sphere, in order so far as possible to prevent men from fully acknowledging the LORD in His Second Coming, and by a reception of the truth and a life according thereto, becoming faithful members of His New Church. Many false notions are infused into the minds of men by those spirits; and it is certain that one of these notions is that Swedenborg was not an inspired writer. And when this notion is once insinuated into the mind of the reader of the Doctrines, his perceptions begin to be obscured. He is led into a state of self-derived intelligence, instead of heavenly wisdom. The Divine authority of the Writings is invalidated, and a person is, unconsciously to himself, led away from the LORD, and becomes a follower of the man. In the course of time he is quite liable to be led into the conceit that he has progressed beyond Swedenborg, and therefore why should he believe all that he says. He imagines that Swedenborg was mistaken in many things; that he wrote for the age in which he lived; that he explained things according to the light he then had; that if he were to live and write in the present advanced period of the nineteenth century, he would write very differently, etc.
Such remarks are made every day. Men say that the LORD comes not only in the Writings of Swedenborg, but in many other ways. Men say they have lost their interest in Swedenborg; or, that they cannot read the Writings, because "they are so dry and doctrinal."
Of course, people must be in freedom either to believe in or to reject what the Writings teach.
But that Swedenborg was "gifted with a perfect inspiration" while he wrote, as he himself declares, is unquestionable to any one whose reason is enlightened by those glorious Revelations made in the Writings, and who is therefore capable of judging rationally. For the human understanding is opened by means of the truths of the Word, so that a person is able to see spiritual and heavenly things with the understanding, as clearly as he can see natural objects with the bodily sight. In the Word as now opened as to its Spiritual Sense, in the Writings, by the LORD Himself, through the LORD'S prepared and inspired Servant, Emanuel Swedenborg, is fulfilled that which is written in the letter of the Word, saying:
And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see together; for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken (Isaiah xl, 5). J. E. B.
presence of the Lord 1893
The presence of the Lord is perpetual with every man, but His Coming is only with those who receive Him.- T. C. R. 774.
176
NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
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CONTENTS.
Editorial Notes, p. 161.- The Idea of God In the New Church (a Sermon), p. 162.- The State of the Church now Established (Exodus I). p. 165.- Truth Divine (Exodus II, 1-10), p. 186.-Re-opening of the Academy Schools, p. 166.-Re- Assumption of Academy Worship in Philadelphia, p. 167.- Congregational Meeting at Brixton, London, p. 167.- The New Jerusalem Church, Congress, p. 168.- A Warning from History, p. 169.
Notes and Reviews, p. 169.- History of the Arcana Coelestia, p. 171.
Communicated- A New Church Nuptial Ceremony, p. 172.- Architecture at the World's Fair, p. 173.-Was Swedenborg Inspired? p. 174.
News Gleanings, p. 176.-Births and Marriages, p. 176.- Academy Book Room, p. 176.
AT HOME.
California.- THE Oakland Society has withdrawn from the Pacific Coast New Church Association.
Pennsylvania.-GEORGE A. Macbeth, for himself and others, filed exceptions to the decision of the Court, in the suit for the possession of the property of the Pittsburgh Society, and has now appealed to the Supreme Court of the State of Pennsylvania.
Washington, D. C.-"THE lot on which the dilapidated building [used by the colored New Church Society] stands (in the midst of the colored population) has been purchased for $7,000, and an effort is now to be made to secure funds to pay the sum, and to build a proper church and industrial home, as a centre for the work there, and for the colored people of the whole South and in Africa as well." (New Church Messenger.)
Massachusetts.- THE Yarmouth Society celebrated its fiftieth Anniversary on the 20th of September.
THE semi- Annual meeting of the Massachusetts Association was held on October 12th, at Elmwood. A minister present read some extracts from the Writings which he thought might perhaps have suggested the idea of the Parliament of Religions. "One of these was to the effect that in the Most Ancient Church there was but one doctrine because men were in mutual love."
The Oneness of doctrine, from which is mutual love, is from the Oneness of the LORD, Who is Doctrine itself. Where the LORD is denied, either by separating Him from the Father or by open rejection, what becomes of doctrine and of mutual love?
Illinois.- THE Rev. Wenzel Pazdral, late of Bohemia-who was forced to emigrate on account of the religious intolerance of the Government,-was baptized into the New Church, together with his family, on October 1st, in Chicago.
Indiana.- THE Rev. T. F. Houts has been obliged to resign the pastorate of the La Porte Society owing to ill health.
ABROAD.
Great Britain.- THE Rev. J. J. Woodford, of South Side, Manchester, has accepted a call to the pastorate of the South Side Society, Glasgow, to commence in March, 1894.
THE Society at Anerley celebrated the fourth anniversary of its pastor's ministry on the 8th of October.
A SERVICE for the inauguration of Mr. G. W. Wall as leader of the Bradford Society was held on September 26th.
THE Ynismeudwy New Church Society, the only one in Wales, held its third anniversary service on Sunday, September 17th, "the officiating minisers- Two being employed, according to the custom of the Principality-being the Rev. Wm. Rees, of Llechryd, and the President of Conference." The services were conducted in Welsh and English. The Society "necessarily use the collections of hymns prepared by other denominations, and they are inevitably hampered in their selection by the impossibility of singing many of the verses and hymns in New Church worship."
A RELIGIOUS service was held in the Church of the Keighley Society on September 2d, for the purpose of inaugurating Mr. S. J. C. Goldsack as leader. The service was conducted by the Rev. Redman Goldsack. In the evening a public meeting of welcome was held. One of the speakers echoed the almost forgotten conjugial heresy by comparing "the meeting to the marriage of Mr. Goldsack to the Church- A beautiful bride both externally and internally-both the building and the glorious truths it possessed- And he looked forward to a long period of happy union."
The heavenly marriage is not between the Church and the Pastor, who merely represents the LORD, but between the Church and the LORD Himself: let no man step in between!
THE Camden Road Society has engaged the services of the Rev. S. C. Eby, of Peoria, Ill., for a further term of twelve months
THE Rev. W. Gelly (Primitive Methodist), on September 10th, gave "a very excellent address" to the Sunday-school of the Blackburn Society.
MR. W. J. ADCOCK has resigned the pastorate of the Liverpool Society.
THE North of England New Church Evidence Society held its first annual meeting in South Manchester on September 20th. The report is an interesting account of the work of correcting misrepresentations of the New Church by the press, etc.
ON Sunday, September 24th, Bishop Benade assisted by Pastor Tilson and Minister Robinson, administered the Holy Supper to the Circle at Colchester, twenty-seven persons partaking. In the evening, at a social meeting held in Mr. Gill's studio, the Bishop, "in a remarkably clear and vigorous speech, addressed the company at considerable length on Church matters of great interest". He differentiated the uses of the General Church of the Advent of the LORD and the Church of the Academy, as being, respectively, the Evangelization of the Second Coming of the LORD, and the Education of children and youth, and the training of young men for the Priesthood. He put the question to the Colchester friends whether they wished to be organized into a particular body of the General Church, or of the Academy; desiring not an immediate answer, but that each would think over the matter and decide for himself individually, without haste; and when the time was ripe they could be organized according to the general conclusion. In the meantime he presented to them the Rev. T. F. Robinson as their Priest, "who would work among them as his priestly conscience might dictate, under the Bishop's supervision."
Then followed an instructive address by Pastor Tilson and remarks by others, accompanied by toasts and interesting conversation, the Bishop replying to various questions on points touched upon in his address. (See The New Church Standard, for October.)
Austro- Hungary.- THE Society in Budapest has issued "An appeal to all friends of the New Church and of its doctrines to assist in the promulgation of those doctrines in the Austrian capital, Budapest, in Hungary, and the neighboring countries. Donations should be sent to the Treasurer, Karl Albrecht, IV. Bez. Schiffgasse, No. 6, I Stock, Budapest (Hungary) Austria."
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177
only receptacle of good 1893
New Church Life
Vol. XIII, No. 12. PHILADELPHIA, DECEMBER, 1893=124. Whole No. 158.
The only receptacle of good is truth.- H. H. 371.
Title Unspecified 1893
INFATUATED with the desire to see the New Church universally and rapidly established, many search industriously for evidence among the changes that take place in the Christian world, and the results of their search are carefully recorded in the periodicals of the New Church. So, not long ago, the New Church Messenger quoted freely from The Outlook (the new series of the Christian Union) expressions which bear so striking an external resemblance to statements in the Doctrines, that the Messenger was at some pains to compare them, and drew the conclusion that within the past century the world has moved very near to Swedenborg's position.
But the Messenger failed to include in its quotations the very statement which manifests utter contrariety to the Divine Truth taught in the Doctrines- A statement which determines the value of all the seeming truths which have proved so captivating.
The central doctrine of the New Church- That which distinguishes it from all other churches and from all religiosities-is the doctrine that the LORD JESUS CHRIST is the God of Heaven and earth: that He alone must be worshiped, because He is the Visible God in Whom is the Invisible: that His Mediation is rendered necessary because the essential Divine, which dwells within Him, is in Itself unapproachable.
The Outlook's position is the very opposite: "JESUS CHRIST is the Mediator between God and man in this, that He reveals what the eternal heart of God is to humanity-not a Mediator because God is so far off that He cannot be approached." In the light of the words which we have italicized, what means such a phrase as, that " Jesus Christ is the Mediator between .God and man in this, that He reveals what the eternal heart of God is to humanity"? Does it mean that JESUS CHRIST is the one God incarnate? That in the Person of JESUS CHRIST the Infinite and Eternal God heard and talked with men? Rather, does it not mean what the Unitarian world maintains, that JESUS CHRIST- An exemplary man, but only a man- Taught and showed by his life that God is love and loves mankind?
When JESUS CHRIST is not accepted as the Mediator "because God is so far off that He cannot be approached"-while yet it is claimed that God "transcends our thinking of Him"-what is the difference between this position and that of the Unitarians, "Corner Stones" of whose faith are: belief in one Supreme Being, our Heavenly Father, to whom love, worship, and obedience are due." . . . "Jesus, the Christ, shows to us the way, the truth, and the life, by which the world shall build the kingdom of heaven"?
Title Unspecified 1893
WHAT is there, short of infatuation, that causes Newchurchmen at once to herald the apparent discarding of tri- Theism as an advance toward the New Church, when in reality it is an advance toward Arianism? Or, is Arianism the half-way house from tri- Theism to the worship of JESUS CHRIST as the sole God? Surely the Messenger is seduced by high-sounding, but vague and empty phrases-such as that "the Son of God is the Mediator in that He reveals the open heart of God and shows us that there is always access to God;" but when it actually extols such utterances as teaching the Mediatorship of the LORD'S Human, it is time that its attention should be called to such a crime. Under the influence of Arianism, The Outlook's editorial states even more baldly than in the words quoted above, "he it misunderstood or not, we are coming to see that not even to the Son of God must we come instead of coming to God." (Italics copied.)
Since the Son of God is not acknowledged by that Journal, as being "one with the Father," in any New Church sense of this phrase, its assertion is a plain repudiation of the Divinity of the LORD'S Human. That the Messenger ignores this can be accounted for only on the ground of infatuation with the decaying process of a dead theology, the activities of whose disintegration are mistaken for the activities of a new life. The Outlook says, "God flings wide open the doors of access to Himself; the Son of God is the Mediator in that Re reveals the open heart of God and shows us that there is always access to God, because God is everlasting love;" but the god which it thus proclaims is not the God of Love of the New Church, but an idol of gold, the work of man's hands- A god of a love of its own creation. The Outlook frankly acknowledges that men are the authors of this new theology, when it repeatedly introduces the statements of its faith with the assertion, "We have settled."
Title Unspecified 1893
FROM the greater order which exists in the spiritual world since the Last Judgment, and from the resulting greater freedom which men enjoy, they have assumed on the natural plane a state of goodness from which to the extent in which it is still fashionable to acknowledge God at all- They look upon Him as good and loving, and discard the conception of angry attributes. This sentiment crops out in educational circles, where it is held that children must be governed entirely love, and that their evils must never be met wit even the appearance of anger. It is the sentiment which agitates for the abolition of capital punishment, regards crime as a disease, and generally minilles the virulence of evils and the venom of falses. Good alone is simply another form of faith alone, which banished God from the Church. When it is said, "it is settled for all Christian believers that no one stands between God and man, that access to the heart of God is direct and immediate,"- Adoration is thereby expressed for an Invisible God: for, Love cannot be seen or felt without the mediumship of the Truth. The Truth is not acknowledged. There is no God in the Church, and consequently no religion, and no Church.
Title Unspecified 1893
THE Messenger's infatuation extends further than to the delusive acknowledgment of God: to the apparently new conception of the religious life.
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It hails The Outlook's utterances that religion . . . "is to fit a man for life hereafter by fitting him for life here," "religion is life, goodness, love, truth." It exultantly compares this with the initial statement in the Doctrine of Life for the New Jerusalem, "that all religion is of life, and the life of religion is to do good." Yet here again The Outlook does not differ from the Unitarians, another of whose "Corner Stones" it is "that Heaven is a condition of character, and that to realize it we must repent of wrongdoing, live unselfishly and seek perfection."
Such statements appeal to the natural morality of every man, but they should not be mistaken for the Doctrine that "all religion is of life, and the life of religion is to do good." Though true in themselves, they are essentially not genuine, because the essence of the true Christian religion is lacking.
The statement from the Doctrine of Life is commonly misused by professing Newchurchmen; for, as a rule, they place it before the world without the very important definitions which follow: "No one can do good which is good from himself. As far as man shun evils as sins, so far he does goods, not from himself, but from the LORD; so far does he love truths; and so far has he faith and is spiritual. The Decalogue teaches what evils are sins. He who shuns evils from any other cause than because they are sins, does not shun them, but only causes them not to appear before the world."
Compare these statements, especially the first ones, with such statements as these, again quoted from Corner Stones of the Unitarian Faith: " We believe that man is of divine origin, as yet imperfect, but immortal in nature and capable of endless development." Or, compare them with the self-satisfaction of The Outlook, which, in the name of progressive Christianity, says of the truths of Christianity and the secrets of the religious life: these-"WE have settled."
In the Church no other truth is given 1893
In the Church no other truth is given than what is of the Lord; truth which is not from Him is not truth.- A. C. 2904.
STORY OF SAMSON Rev. C. TH. ODHNER 1893
JUDGES XIII-XVI.
THE WORD of the LORD is the universal medium of salvation for angels and men. Salvation is the reception of eternal life from the LORD, who is Life itself and the only Life. This Life is Love Itself, and salvation is, therefore, the eternal reception of the Infinite Love of the LORD by finite human beings. Such reception can be given only by the conjunction of the finite with the Infinite, and this conjunction can be effected only by the accommodation of the infinite to the receptivity of the finite. In this accommodation, therefore, resides the whole of the LORD'S Power of saving men, which is the Divine Omnipotence, and this accommodation, in all its infinitely various forms, is what is called Divine Truth, Revelation, or the Word. The Word is the Infinite, accommodated to the finite, by taking upon itself finite forms. It is therefore the common plane upon which God can meet man, can make Himself seen, known, understood, and loved by man, and thus conjoin Himself with man. In the Divine Word, therefore, resides the whole of the LORD'S Power of saving men.
The LORD loves all His human children with an equal, unvariable, unchangeable Love. He wills and seeks the eternal salvation of all without difference or distinction. His love is the burning desire to draw all unto His Divine Bosom, the highest, noblest, and wisest of men no more than those living in the lowest, vilest, most ignorant and degraded states of human existence. "If I go up into the heavens, Thou art there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, Thou art there. Even there shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right hand hold me" (Pa. cxxxix 8, 10).
As the Divine Love is thus universally extended to all that live, even so is its ultimate form and efficient Power, the Divine Truth, universally extended and accommodated to all states of human receptivity. To the celestial angels the LORD reveals Himself as the Divine Truth in its first, highest, or inmost ultimation. Still, being finite and ultimate beings, even the celestials can perceive Him only in "the clouds of Heaven," in celestial or inmost appearances of Truth, which to them are the Word in its ultimate or literal form. So also with the angels of the spiritual and natural Heavens He reveals Himself as the Word in literal forms or ultimate appearances of truth, accommodated to the respective planes of their minds. The lower it descends, through the scale of humanity, the more comprehensive becomes the Divine Power of the Word in saving human souls, until, when it is revealed to natural and sensual men in this world, it is all-inclusive, containing within its last literal form all other forms, expressions, or senses of the Divine Truth, and extending its omnipotence to the last and lowest of human minds.
This last or most ultimate accommodation of the Divine Truth was given in the Word revealed in sensual forms of the Jewish nation, and, finally, in the human body of flesh and bones, which the LORD made Divine in this world. In this body, the Divine Truth reached even down to the lowest hell, effecting, not salvation, but subjugation and reduction into order. This Human, now glorified, is therefore the last ultimate of the Divine Truth, and in it the LORD is omnipotent in Heaven, on Earth, and over the Hells. And this Divine Human is still with us on Earth in the literal sense of our Word, which was from Him, and concerning Him, and which He made one with His Human, by fulfilling in this world the Law and the Prophets even to the least jot and tittle. For in the Word all classes and conditions of men, sensual as well as rational, can, if they be willing, see the form and hear the voice of the LORD, through their understanding, and be saved forever by following Him. Thus, in the Letter of the Word, which is the LORD'S Divine Natural Human, the "Divine Truth is in its Fulness, in its Holiness, and in its Power."
This general truth is the teaching contained in the internal sense of the wonderful narrative in the Word concerning Samson, his superhuman strength and miraculous works. How well does this story illustrate the Power of the Word in its ultimate sense! What Christian has not read the story in his childhood, and who, that has read it, can ever forget it? Who cannot remember the first impressions received from this marvelous tale, the interest and sympathy aroused in the childish mind for this the most wonderful of the heroes of Israel? Yet, while the child is filled with these thoughts and affections, the spiritual angels associated with him, are at the same time occupied with thoughts concerning the combats of the regenerating man by means of the ultimate truths of the Word against the falses and evils of the proprium, whilst the celestial angels with the child are simultaneously in perception of the combats of the LORD in His Human against all the Hells, and His victories over them.
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And the celestial and spiritual affections of love to the LORD and to the neighbor, which the angels then feel from the contemplation of these things, are secretly communicated to the child, and stored up in his inmost as remains, in which the LORD throughout his life will operate for his regeneration and salvation. Such is the use and power of the historical parts of the Word (A. C. 3665, 3690).
The whole history of Samson is the history of the combats and victories of the LORD in His Divine Natural. Samson was a man of the tribe of Dan. The name Dan signifies a "Judge," and this tribe signifies "truth in the ultimate; which is contained in the sense of the letter" (A. E. 355), and which is the sword that comes with judgment, and in the beginning of regeneration separates the most external falsity and evil from man. This tribe, which dwelt at the extreme western and northern boundaries of Canaan, signifies, further, "the affirmative of truth, which is the first in time with him who is to be regenerated" (A. C. 8923). "The affirmative of truth," this is the acknowledgment of the Divine Authority of the LORD'S Truth. Before this acknowledgment has been established, the Church is in slavery under the hand of the Philistines, and is barren as was the wife of Manoah before she bare Samson. The story of the appearance of an angel to the woman, and the promise of a son, as in the story of the birth of Isaac, and of Samuel, is, in the letter, an evident prophecy of the birth of the LORD, which was similarly announced to Mary.
"No razor was to come upon the hair of the child that teas to be born, for he was to be a Nazarite unto God from the womb." And when the woman bare the son, she called his name "Samson."
This name, in the original Hebrew, is Shimshon which means "Sun-man," being evidently derived from the word Skemesh (Hebrew), "the sun," especially the activity or effective power and potency of the sun. This is in agreement with the spiritual signification of Samson, who, from the womb, was dedicated to the service of the LORD- The Sun of Heaven- And who, as a Nazarite, represented the Power of the Divine Human in ultimates. Among the representatives of the Israelitish Church, the Nazariteship was instituted especially for this representation. The Nazarites were a class of men "separated" or "set apart" (Hebrew) for this purpose, and they were called Nazarites, or "hairy" men, from the length of their "hair" (Hebrew), which they were not to cut during "the days of their Nazariteship" (S. S. 36). Such "Nazarites" were many of the prophets, as, for instance, Elijah, who was called a "hairy' man, and John the Baptist, the last of the prophets, who was clothed in raiment of camel's hair (A. C. 8301). This was to represent the Divine Human of the LORD in its ultimate revealed forms, which are truths of doctrine, expressed either in a sensual or natural rational manner.
Hairs are the most external outgrowths and ultimate coverings of the body, more ultimate even than the skin. In them all sensation and all human and animal life terminates and ceases, even as all communication of Divine Truth is ultimately terminated in external words, sentences, and expressions. Consisting of horny substance, hairs, similarly with the horns of an anima, signify the power of the literal forms of the Word. Even naturally, an abundance of hair is generally understood to indicate a state of physical vigor, while in sickness or in old age the hair is often diminished. Even so is the Divine Omnipotence of the LORD'S Truth contained in the very ultimate expressions of the literal sense of the Word. In themselves dead and of no more importance than the hair of the head, yet, from the Divine life of the internal Word, these expressions are all-important, because ultimating in one common containent all the Divine Truth and all the Divine Power. What efficient power is there in the thoughts of a man who is dumb and without hands or means of expression? Of what use to us is an abstract truth or principle before it has been reduced to an actual and intellible statement? The more perfect the statement of a truth, the more powerful is the truth. And thus, in the LORD'S own Divinely perfect and correspondential statement of His Infinite Truth, there is Divine Omnipotence. This is what is represented by the superhuman strength of Samson being contained in and dependent upon his unshaven hair (A. C. 9838).
The enemies of Samson, the Philistines, are "those in the Church, who, indeed, possess truths from the letter of the Word or from another revelation, but who still remain in the filthy loves of the natural man" (A. E. 817)- That is, those who are in the faith alone, without the life of charity. Of such Philistines the world of spirits and the Church on earth was full when the LORD came to this world, and by His combats against them effected a universal redemption from their overwhelming dominion. Such Philistines again possessed the world of spirits and the Church when the LORD effected His second advent, with a last Judgment and a second Redemption through the revelation of His Internal word, expressed in rational, but still ultimate and literal statements of Doctrine. And from such Philistines all and each can be delivered only by admitting Samson, the mighty Hero, the LORD in His Heavenly Doctrines, as Judge and Ruler over his faith and life.
Samson begins his work by going down to the land of the Philistines and marrying one of their daughters. The LORD, in His Divine Mercy, descends to our natural minds in the form of natural truth, and conjoins Himself with the only redeemable affection which exists there, the affection of truth, even though this affection is not at first the affection of genuine truth, but a Philistine affection of mere knowing without regard to the good of life. But yet, it is only an "occasion" the LORD is seeking against the Philistines. The falsities of evil in the unregenerate man are aroused at this first coming of the truth into the mind. Like a young lion, they roar in their fury against the LORD. Rut as Samson rent the raging beast as he would have rent a kid, so the LORD, in His Word shatters all the forces of the hells. And after each victory over our faith alone, after each earnest effort in compelling ourselves to shun an evil, though we may not at once be conscious of much progress, yet "after a time" it will -be found that a remarkable change of state has taken place, that in the carcass of the lion a swarm of winged, ever-busy bees have produced sweet honey, that in the place of the former passion and delight in a certain evil of self-love, the LORD, by an abundance of rational truths, has called into life the beginning of a certain heavenly delight in the good of charity (A. E. 410, 619 e).
Again, in this wonderful story of Samson we read of his catching three hundred foxes, and how he turned tail to tail, and put fire-brands between the tails and letting go the foxes, burnt up the corn and the vineyards and the olives of the Philistines. Here we learn how the LORD permits evil and falsity to destroy itself. The foxes are the cunning falsities of faith alone (T. C. R. 13). The tails of the foxes are the ultimate expressions of these falsities, such as are the satanic dogmas and false sciences of the Old Church.
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The fire-brands are the infernal concupiscences accompanying and hiding themselves under these falsities. When these are set free, when the fear of punishment is removed they destroy even the apparent and hypocritical truths and goods of faith alone- The harvest of the Philistines. This devastation takes place in the other life with every one who has remained in faith alone, and this vastation of what is merely natural good must take place in this life with every one who is to be regenerated.
We read, further, of Samson slaying a thousand men with the jawbone of an ass. An "ass" signifies here the truth of the Word in the natural degree (A. C. 2781), and the "jawbone" is the highest truth of the natural, which is called rational truth of Doctrine. This is the omnipotent weapon, with which the LORD fights for us in temptations, and with which we must, as of ourselves, fight against the falsities and evils of our proprium. After the combat was over Samson cast away the jawbone, suffered severely from great thirst, and reproached the LORD, in despair of his life. The struggle of every real, spiritual temptation always terminates in exhaustion, vastation, and despair. The man loves not yet the truth by means of which he has been fighting, for, though he knows it to be true, yet it has deprived his natural man of the delight of his life. The heart is sorely wounded and finds no comfort in the possession of the hard, forbidding, and unyielding truth. Life seems blank and dreary without his former love, and yet he knows that he must not go back to it. Like Samson he reproaches the LORD, saying: "Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of Thy servant and now shall I die for thirst!"
But the LORD will not leave him to perish in his despair. In the hollow of the jaw water came forth and revived the spirit of Samson. After a space, when the grief of the mind has exhausted itself, the LORD brings comfort to the man by giving him to perceive the interior truth and good which was concealed within the bony letter of the commandment. He gives him to perceive the fearfulness of the hell which he has escaped, and the blessedness of the heavenly good which he has gained; he perceives new applications of the truth which won him the victory, new uses of charity to be performed according to it. New and heavenly thoughts and affections are excited by which, as by a well of living waters, the spirit is quickened to a higher, snore spiritual life.
We read, finally, of the death of Samson and of the simultaneous destruction of his enemies. By this is represented in general the destruction of the Old Church throughout its rejection of the Word, and also in application to the regenerate life, the termination of the first state of regeneration.
The Old Christian Church, with its love for faith alone without the life of charity, is the treacherous harlot, Delila, a name which signifies "weakness." With the cords of their false dogmas, the leaders of that Church have forages endeavored to bind Samson, or the true understanding of the letter of the Word; the Catholic Church, the great harlot, by forbidding its use by the laity, and the Protestant Churches, by bidding their subjects to take their understanding captive in obedience to faith- The faith agreed upon by their human councils.
But not until the Philistines knew how to cut the hair of the head of Samson were they able to bind him in unbreakable chains, deprive him of the sight of his eyes and compel him to grind in their prison- House. Only by attacking the Letter of the Word itself, perverting its meaning, mistranslating it to suit their falsities of evil, and now, finally, destroying it among themselves by their so- Called Biblical criticism, have the followers of the Dragon been able to deprive the revealed Truth of all its power, have they been able to extinguish all its spiritual light and understanding. Faith in the absolute Divine Authority of the Literal Sense of the Word in its perfect literal inspiration and infallibility, is that hair of Samson which the learned leaders of the Old Church have cut off and destroyed, thus making the Word amongst them a slave under their will, whereby they may confirm and grind out their false doctrines. It remains now only as a thing for sport amongst them.
But the day of judgment has come. Samson's hair has again begun to grow. The Word, in its perfect, unadulterated form, has been restored in the world. The Spiritual sense of the Word has been revealed, and from this a knowledge has been given of the absolute integrity of the Word in the Letter. By the Heavenly Doctrines of the New Jerusalem, derived tram the letter of the Word, the two supporting pillars of the idolatrous temple of the Philistines, the two fundamental falsities of the Old Church, which are Salvation by Faith alone, and the imputation of the Merit of Christ, have been bent and broken, have been proved untenable and utterly false, and with this has come the fall of the whole temple, of the entire structure of false doctrines, of which the Old Church consists. Babylon is fallen. The Old Church is dead, and all understanding of the Word has perished within it.
In the New Church Samson is the literal form in which the Heavenly Doctrines have been revealed. In the New Church also, or, rather, among those of the Old Church who profess the faith alone of the New Church, without conforming the life according to it, the attempt has been made to cut off all the hair of Samson, to deprive the Writings of the New Church of all their authority and power to save, by rejecting their perfect and infallible inspiration, by spreading abroad the teaching that the Doctrines themselves, abstractedly considered, may be true enough; but that the statement of the Doctrines is merely human, and open to criticism. A Church professing this is not of the New Jerusalem, but an idolatrous temple of the Philistines, which will surely fall. But the New Church itself will never perish, for Samson, the Danite, will forever be Judge and Ruler over it. The affirmative of truth, faith in the Divine authority of the Writings, even as to its literal statements, has been revived and restored to the New Church, and will forever defend the Church against the attacks of the Philistines.
But though the New Church itself will never perish, individuals and societies professing its faith may. Man must not stop at the mere affirmative of truth, at the mere acknowledgment of the Divine authority of the Word and the Writings. The tribe of Dan is not mentioned in the Apocalypse among the twelve thousand that were sealed with the seal of the Lamb. "For they who are only in the affirmative respecting truth and good, and go no further, are not in the LORD'S kingdom. The very worst of men may know truths and goods, and also affirm them, but the quality of such affirmation is determined by the life" (A. C. 3928). Life is, in the last instance, the ultimate of all good, and of all truth, and of all statements of the truth. In life resides, ultimately, all Divine power of salvation. This is the hair of Samson which is cut off by faith, alone in the individual man. This is the reason why Samson must die, why the first state of affirmation and truth must be succeeded by further states of life according to the truth. Let man, therefore, be not only the hearer, but also the doer of the Word.- Amen.
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good of love 1893
The good of love is not possible unless there is also at the same time the truth of faith.- A. C. 10,177.
TRUTH DIVINE 1893
EXODUS ii, 11-25.
(11.) WHEN the states of the LORD as to the Law Divine, above described, persisted, and there was an increase in scientific truths, there came about a conjunction with the truths of the Church, and He apperceived that they were infested by falses, and that the alienated scientific was endeavoring to destroy the truths of the Church with which He was conjoined.
(12.) Acting prudently for His own safety, He destroyed the alienated scientific and discarded it among falses.
(13.) He was again conjoined with the Church, and now apperceived that within the Church they fight with each other, wherefore He chide because one willed to destroy the faith of another.
(14.) But He perceived that He was not yet so far advanced in the truths of faith as to adjust the disagreements within the Church, which retorts, Art Thou willing to destroy the faith of the Church as Thou didst destroy the false? for He was among alienated scientifics, and not yet in truths so as to be safe.
(15.) The false scientific perceiving this, namely, the progress of the Law Divine in the Human of the LORD, wished to destroy the truth which was of the Law from the Divine, but that truth was separated by falses. Here, now, begins the fifth state of the progression of the Law Divine in the Human of the LORD, and, in the respective sense, of the progression of truth Divine with the man who is regenerating, which is that of the separation of falses and of the adjunction with the truths of simple good; whence now the Law Divine, or truth which is from the Law which is from the Divine, has life among those who are in simple good, where there is studiousness in the Word.
(16.) The holy of the Church of those who are in the truth of simple good, are instructed in truths from the Word, whence they enriched the doctrine of charity, in order that thence they might be instructed in good. They are said to be in simple good who are in the externals of the Church, and simply believe the Word as to its literal sense, each according to his own comprehension, and according to those things which they believe they also live; thus they are in good according to its quality from truths. The Internal of the Church inflows with them by good, but, since they are not in interior truths, the good which inflows becomes general, thus obscure, for spiritual light cannot, in this case, inflow into singulars, and thus illustrate things distinctly; they who are such as these in the other life are gifted with heaven according to the quality of good from truths. In the proper sense these are they who are out of the Church, and live in good according to their own religiosum.
(17.) Teachers who are in evils oppose themselves to things which are of the Church, but aid comes from the truths which are of the Law from the Divine, whence they are instructed who are in good.
(18.) Wherefore, there is now effected a conjunction of the truths of the Church with its good, and this good now perceived that the conjunction of the truth which is of the Law from the Divine, was certain.
(19.) This was certain because scientific truth, which was adjoined to the Church, prevailed over the power of the doctrine of the false from evil, for this instructed from the Word, as to the truths of faith, those of the Church who are in the truths of simple good.
(20.) The good of the Church now thought, concerning the holy things of the Church, how, without that truth- That is, scientific truth- They could be conjoined to the good of the Church; for that truth ought to be conjoined in order that there may be confirmation in good.
The holy things here spoken of are truths; these in the Word are called holy because those truths with man that become the truths of faith are from good, and because what proceeds from the Divine Human of the LORD is Divine Truth from Divine Good: hence it is that the Holy Spirit is the Holy which proceeds from the LORD; for the spirit itself does not proceed, but the holy that the spirit speaks; this every one may understand who weighs carefully. The Holy Spirit, which is also called the Paraclete, is the Divine Truth proceeding from the Divine Human of the LORD, and it is said to be Holy in regard to the Divine Truth.
(21.) Scientific truth was concordant with the truth the good of that. Church, which truth adjoined the good of the Church to the scientific truth.
(22.) From this adjunction were derived truths, the quality of which was that they were such as the scientific truth was instructed in, in a Church not its own.
(23.) After several changes of state there was an end of the former false, and the truths of the Church were in grief on account of the attempt to subdue them, and they implored aid, and they were heard.
(24.) The LORD heard their imploration and brought aid to them, for the sake of conjunction with the Church by His Divine Human.
(26.) In consequence, the LORD gifted the Church with faith and with charity.
DELIVERANCE OF THE MEN OF THE CHURCH 1893
EXODUS III, 1-8.
IN the first chapter of Exodus, in the Internal Sense, the infestation of those who are of the Church, by falses, was treated of; in the second chapter, the beginnings and successive states of Truth Divine with them; in this chapter, in the Internal Sense, their deliverance is treated of. Then they are first instructed Who the God is That has delivered them, that it is the LORD; and that He introduces them into heaven after they have been gifted with manifold truth and good.
(1.) The Law from the Divine instructed those who were in the truth of simple good, after they had undergone temptations, after which the good of love of the Divine appeared, of a quality such as it is when it shines forth by truth which is of the Law Divine.
(2.) In this state the LORD, as to the Divine Human, appears as love Divine in scientific truth, and they of the Church apperceived that scientific truth was full of the good of love Divine, and that Divine truth was united to Divine good in the natural.
Scientific truth of the Church is nothing else than the Word in the sense of the letter, and also every representative and significative of the Church; these things in their external forms are called scientific truths, but in the internal form they are spiritual truths. The Divine good of the Divine love is the very solar fire in the other life, which fire is of such heat that if it were to fall into any one-even an angel of the inmost heaven without intermediate tempering, he would be deprived of all sense and would perish; of such heat is the Divine love of the LORD.
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But the LORD, when He was in the world and united the Human Essence to the Divine, received the fire of this love in His Human, and united it to the truth there when He made Himself the Law Divine; this now is what is meant by the Divine truth being united to the Divine good in the natural.
(3.) Now came a state of perception from the Law from the Divine, and reflection on this revelation of the Divine truth united to the Divine good in the LORD'S Human, for such is the union.
(4.) In this state the man of the Church reflected from the LORD by influx from the Divine out of scientific truths, and there accompanied the reflection an internal exhortation and hearing.
(5.) The exhortation is that he shall not still think of the Divine from things sensual, wherefore sensual things, which are the externals of the natural, ought to be removed, otherwise the Divine cannot enter.
The Divine cannot inflow with man so long as he is in those sensual things, because influx from the Divine proceeds, even to those things which are last in order, thus, even to the sensual things which are the externals of the natural with man, and if these things be merely corporeal and terrestrial, the Divine things which inflow are there dissipated, inasmuch as they do not agree together; wherefore, when man is about to receive the Divine- That is, those things which are of faith and love- He is elevated from sensual things, and when he is elevated from them, then the Divine no longer inflows into the external sensual, but into the interior plane into which the man is elevated. That this is so it has been given to know from much experience.
(6.) The Divine, whence the influx was, was the Divine, which was of the Ancient Church, which was the Divine himself and the Divine Human, wherefore the Interiors of the man of the Church were protected lest they should be hurt by the presence of the Divine Itself.
(7.) The LORD now shows mercy to them that are of the spiritual Church after infestations from falses, and sends the aid of mercy against them that wished to compel them to serve, from the foresight of how much they would otherwise be immersed in falses.
All the good which man has from the Lord 1893
All the good which man has from the Lord, is given him through truth.- A. C. 10,661.
NOTES ON ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 1893
XI.
THE ANCIENT CHURCH.
The Ancient Word.
12. THE BOW IN THE CLOUD- After the waters of the Flood had subsided the LORD entered into a covenant with Noach, saying: "I have given my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between me, and between the earth" (Gen. ix, 9, 13). By this "bow in the cloud" is signified the Divine Revelation, or Heavenly Doctrine of Truth, whereby the men of the Ancient Church were taught and led by the LORD, and by which they were conjoined with Him, even as the rainbow appears to join the sky with the earth. This Divine Revelation, which was given to the Ancient Church, is called, in the Writings,
13. THE ANCIENT WORD.-For the Ancient Church, like every other general Church or Dispensation of the LORD, possessed a Word, or a Divine Revelation of Truth, distinctively its own, and especially accommodated to its conditions and receptivity, a Word which has now disappeared, or has been hidden away (S. S. 102; T. C. R. 264).
14. THE REVELATION OF THE ANCIENT WORD.- This Word was given in a two-fold manner, viz., by tradition and by direct inspiration, similarly as in the Christian Church the teachings of the LORD were first communicated from His own mouth to His disciples, and through them to their converts, while the Word of the New Testament was written afterward and successively by direct inspiration.
15. THE TRADITIONS, which were in the possession of this Ancient Church in its beginning, were the doctrinals which had been collected in the waning day of the Most Ancient Church by those who are represented by Cain, and which afterward had been reduced into a systematic form written down and made into a book or code by those who are represented by Enoch. This book, hidden from the destructive fury of the last antediluvians, was subsequently brought to light again to serve the Church Noach for instruction and salvation. It would seem that this code in its style was not like the prophetical and historical books of our Word, nor of those of the Ancient Word itself, but was a doctrinal work, treating in a rational style of the correspondences and representatives which the men of the Most Ancient Church had perceived in all things of the universal nature. If this book had not been thus written, how would the men of the Ancient Church have understood the spiritual sense contained correspondentially in the literal sense of the historical and prophetical books that were afterward given to them by inspiration, and in which the internal sense was more "remote" than in our own Word? (T. C. R. 279). The Ancient Church "in the beginning had no other Word. . . Thus to them the Internal Sense was the Word itself" (A. C. 3432), even as to the men of the New Church, the Heavenly Doctrines, which are the Internal Sense, are the Word itself.
16. THE INSPIRED BOOKS of the Ancient Church seem to have been given at a somewhat later period, and, perhaps, at successive intervals, like the books of our Word. We know concerning them that they were "like our Word as to inspiration" (W. H. 6), and that like our Word, they were "written by mere correspondences" (De Verbo, 15). They were thus written in a literal, significative, and representative style or sense, which was verbatim dictated to prophets by a spirit from the Divine.
17. THE STYLE OF THE ANCIENT WORD was similar to the literal style of our Word, with this difference, however, that "the correspondences of that Word signified celestial and spiritual things more remotely than those in our Word [that is, the internal sense was less apparent] in the sense of the letter" (T. C. R. 979). For with the Ancients the science of Correspondences was the science of sciences, and they had less need of a coherent or intelligible natural sense than the more carnal minds of later ages. This Ancient Style is what is understood by the "enigmas from antiquity," mentioned in the Word (Ps. lxxviii, 2-4; A. C. 66, 1766).
"This style, from its antiquity, was venerated both among the Gentiles and among the posterity of Jacob, even to such a degree that whatever was not thus written, was not venerated as Divine" (A. C. 1766, 2179).
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Examples of this remote literal sense are found in many places in our Word, as in the Blessing of Jacob, in the songs of triumph of Moses, Miriam, Deborah, and Barak, in the enunciation of Bileam, in the Prayer of Hannah, and in other places (A. C. 66).
Not only the Ancient Word itself was written in this style, but in imitation of it all the writings of the ancients were written so that they would bear another meaning in the interior sense than what would appear in the letter (A. C. 1540). Such were the Book of Job, and the Book of Enoch, which latter is mentioned in the Epistle of Jude (v. 9-14). These were books "for the Ancient Church," but not of the Ancient Word, since the correspondences in them are not continuous nor divinely inspired (A. E. 735; A. C. 2179, 3942).
18. WHERE WAS THE ANCIENT WORD IN USE?- This Ancient Word was in use in the Land of Canaan, and in the kingdoms round about it, as in Syria, Mesopotamia, Arabia, Chaldea, Assyria, Egypt, Ethiopia, and, derivatively, in various other kingdoms in Africa (S. S. 102; De Verbo, 15). From this Word were further derived the religiosities of many Gentile nations, both in Africa, Asia, Europe, and, perhaps, even in America, and to it may be traced those ancient writings which were held sacred in various gentilisms of antiquity. Such books are the celebrated Book of the Dead, in Egypt, the Izdubar Legends of Ancient Chaldea, the Vedas of Sanscrit India, the Theogony of Hesiod, the Voluspa and Eddas of the North.
19. THE LANGUAGE OF THE ANCIENT WORD in which it was originally written was, undoubtedly, the Hebrew language or some archaic tongue nearly identical with it. For that word was in use, primarily, in the Land of Canaan, where the Hebrew language was spoken long before the time of Abraham, and we know from the Writings that the first seven chapters of Genesis were copied (exscripta) by Moses from that Ancient Word (T. C. R. 279), and this so faithfully, "that not even one little word is wanting" (S. S. 103; De Verbo, 15). This could hardly have been the case if these chapters had merely been translated into Hebrew from some other language. There is, however, no reason to doubt that the Ancient Word was translated from the Hebrew into the idioms of the various nations with whom the Ancient Church was established.
20. BOOKS OF THE ANCIENT WORD.- The ancient Word, like our Word, contained books or "writings both historical and prophetical, which were Divine and inspired, and which in their internal sense treated of the LORD and of His kingdom" (A. C. 2686). The historical parts of that Word were called "The Wars of Jehovah," and the prophetical parts were called "Enunciations" (A. C. 2897). There were also other books, beside those here mentioned, of both classes.
21. THE BIBLICAL BOOKS of the ancient Word are found, in parts, in the first seven chapters of Genesis and in the quotations from The Wars of Jehovah in the book of Numbers. We will consider these separately.
The historical style of that Word did not, as in our Word, contain true external history, but it was a "made" or invented historical style, in which the representatives and significatives of celestial and spiritual things were reduced into a series as it were historical, in order that the things thus represented might appear in a more living form, and thus be more delightful to the reader (A. C. 66). At the same time, within this "made" historical style, there was a true "internal historical sense," in which the successive general states of the Church were described.
22. "THE WARS OF JEHOVAH" (Hebrew) is a Book mentioned in Numbers xxi, 14, 15, where these words are quoted from it: "Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of Jehovah: with Waheb in Supha, and with the water- Courses of Arnon and the ravine of the water- Courses, which went down to dwell in Ar, and touch upon the boundary of Moab."
By these "'Wars of JEHOVAH,' in that Word as in ours, were understood and described the combats of the LORD with the hells and His victories over them, when He should come into the world; also the combats and temptations of the Church and of those who were of the Church" (T. C. R. 265; A. C. 2686, 2897).
23. THE PROPHETICAL BOOKS of the ancient Word were written like the Prophetical Books of the Old Testament. The only Books of this class that are known to us are" The Book of Enunciations" and "The Book of Jasher."
24. THE BOOK of ENUNCIATIONS is mentioned in Numbers xxi, 27-30, where a somewhat lengthy quotation from it occurs, similar in style to what has been quoted above from the "Wars of Jehovah." "Translators call this book 'Composers of Proverbs' [in the English version, 'they that speak in proverbs'] but the rendering ought to be 'Enunciators' or 'Prophetical Enunciations,' as may be evident from the word Moshalim [Hebrew] in the Hebrew tongue, which means not only proverbs but also prophetical enunciations (T. C. R. 265). "That these propheticals involve heavenly arcana, like the propheticals of the Old Testament, is manifest not only from this, that they were copied by Moses and applied to the state of things which were then treated of, but also from this that almost the same words are read in Jeremiah and inserted by him among the prophecies" (Jer. xlviii, 45, 46; A. C. 2897).
25. THE BOOK OF JASHER (Hebrew).-Beside these Enunciations a prophetical book of the ancient Word, called the Book of Jasher, or "the Book of the Upright," is mentioned by Joshua and by David. It is referred to by the former in these words: "Joshua said, Sun, rest in Gibeon, and Moon, in the valley of Ajalon; is it not written in the Book of Jasher" (Joshua x: 12). "From this it is evident that the historical there concerning the sun and the moon was a prophetical from the ancient Words' (De Verbo, 15).
This Book is further mentioned in II Samuel i, 17, 18, where it is said that "David lamented over Saul and over Jonathan, and made the inscription, 'to teach the sons of Judah the bow,' behold it is written in the Book of Jasher."
It is said in the Spiritual Diary, n. 6107, that Moses told Swedenborg that he had seen also this Book of the Ancient Word. A number of literary frauds, claiming to be the original Book of Jasher are now extant, and have much puzzled the learned.
26. OTHER PROPHETICAL BOOKS of the Ancient Word, which are not mentioned in our Word, seem also to have existed, for most of the ancient mythologies contain particular and detailed accounts of the birth and work of a future Redeemer, in many respects startlingly similar to the prophecies in our Word. We even find, in these mythologies, legends foretelling the Last Judgment, the Second Coming of the LORD, and the New Heaven and the New Church, from which it would seem that the men of the Ancient Church possessed prophecies concerning these things.
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(Compare the story of "Ragnarok" among the Northmen, and the legend of the ten re-incarnations of Buddha among the Hindoos.)
27. THE LOSS OF THE ANCIENT WORD.-From the quotations that we posses from this Word it may be seen how dark and unintelligible was the literal sense of the Ancient Word, regarded apart from its spiritual sense. We may thus see how this Word, began to be falsified by many when in the decline of the Ancient Church the science of correspondences began to be abused and finally became forgotten, whence, in the Divine Providence of the LORD, it disappeared in time and at length was lost, and another Word was given through the prophets of Israel, written in correspondences less remote" (S. S. 102).
As to the actual manner of the disappearance of the Ancient Word, no information has been given. It may, however, be accounted for partly by the esoteric tendency of the priesthood of the ancient religions, to keep the common people in ignorance of the truths of faith, in order thus to gain dominion over their minds, and partly by the devastating invasions of barbaric hordes which took place in Egypt, Canaan, and Assyria about the time when the Ancient Church was falling.
28. THE ANCIENT WORD STILL PRESERVED.-But a Divine work cannot possibly be annihilated by human agency. The Ancient Word has not been destroyed, but merely withdrawn and hidden in a remote region of the earth, where the profaning and destructive hands of the men of fallen churches cannot reach it. Swedenborg tells us: "respecting this Ancient Word I am at liberty to relate this news: that it is still preserved among the people who dwell in Great Tartary. I have conversed with spirits and angels in the spiritual world, who were from that country, who said that they possessed a Word, and that they possessed it from ancient times; that they conduct their Divine worship according to it, and that it consists of nothing but correspondences. They said that in it, also, there is the Book of Jasher, and the Books called the Wars of Jehovah and Enunciations, and when I read in their presence the words which Moses had taken from it, they searched to see if these things were there and they found them. From this it was made manifest to me that the Ancient Word is still amongst them" (T. C. R. 279).
These Tartars, of whom many other interesting things are known, are of the populous nation called Mandshous. They do not suffer any foreigners to come among them, except the Chinese, with whom they cultivate peace, because the imperial family of China is from their country.
29. THE RESTORATION OF THE ANCIENT WORD. At various times during this century news has reached Europe of remarkable and very ancient books that are' reported as existing among the Tartars, some of these, books being written in characters altogether unknown in other parts of the East. In Thibet, also, sacred Books of great antiquity are said to exist, which the Llamas carefully conceal from the eyes of foreigners. Whether these books are actually the identical books of, the Ancient Word, which have been described, or not, we do not know. Still there is reason to hope- That this Ancient Word will be restored to the Church, when, in the Divine Providence, the time is at hand. For we cannot doubt the Divine reason for the direction, nay, call and promise, that are implied in these words in The Apocalypse Revealed, n. 11: "Seek for it in China, and peradventure you will find it there among the Tartars."
Title Unspecified 1893
D. P. 278 From the good which is not from truth evil is not known, unless that it, too, may be called good.-D. P. 278 [a].
MIND AND ITS THOUGHT 1893
(Delivered by Mr. Harvey A. Farrington, A. R, on the occasion of his receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts.)
ALL man's active life consists in willing, thinking, and doing. Or, stated in a form which points more directly to the source of life: it consists in the activity of love and wisdom which, conjointly, effect use.
External acts are so manifest to the senses that the merely natural man can see their modus operandi; but their causes, thought, and will baffle his most cunning attempts at their investigation.
He, therefore, turns to his fancy, from which, with the aid of "scientific researches," he concocts wild and insane theories.
Because he cannot see it, he exclaims that the mind is a formless entity composed of ether-or some other subtle atmosphere.
But no action can take place without substance, nor can substance exist without a determining form. Thus the human mind cannot be something ethereal and formless. It must be organized in substances.
The mind is a receptacle of good and truth from the LORD; good inflowing into the will, which is a form of good, and truth into the understanding, which is a form - of truth. Hence the mental organism is made up of the purer substances of the spiritual world, namely: good and truth. Affections, the activities of the will, are the variations and changes of state in those substances, and thoughts, the activities of the understanding, are the mutations of their forms. When these changes of state and form become permanent, they constitute what is called memory.
The mind is divided into internal and external, mens and animus, which are united by the intermediate rational. The latter is the field of all man's conscious thought and affection. Situated as it is, between the higher and lower degrees of the mind, it forms a neutral ground where the thought can range in comparative freedom.
All these degrees of the internal or spiritual part of man are ultimated in corresponding organized forms in his natural part or material body. For the soul and the body, in order that they may work together as one, must correspond in every least particular.
Where are we to look for these ultimate receptacles of the mind? Common perception and divine revelation, point to the brain-not that the mind is there only, but that it is there in its principles or beginnings and in the whole body in its principiates or derivations.
The form of the mind is so wonderful that it exceeds the grasp of all natural thought. Even when we study the form of the brain, which corresponds in every minutia with its mind, we are astounded at the wondrous and incomprehensible structure revealed to us by the very imperfect means of vision at our command. If we cannot fathom the mind's corporeal envelope, how can we expect to grasp the form of the mind itself?
The most general division of the brain is into the receptacles of will and understanding, the cerebellum and the cerebrum. But, as thought is of the understanding and not of the will, the cerebrum is the part for our consideration.
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An outer gray, convoluted layer, called the cortical substance, surrounds the glistening white medullary substance within. The former is composed of myriads of tiny glandules in a three-fold order, which send out their respective fibres or ducts to form the medullary portion, as well as the outgoing nerves, and finally the whole body, which is nothing but a congeries of their minute tubes.
The cortical glands are the very firsts of the body, and in their little bosoms, the animal spirit, the medium of conjunction between the soul and its body, is distilled from the purest auras of nature.
These glands and their fibres are so minute that only those of the first order are visible to the eye aided by the most powerful microscope. Still, from what we are taught, we know that the others, indefinitely more perfect, lie hidden within.
The soul, enthroned in her citadel, would be in utter ignorance of what transpires in the world about her, were it not for the friendly little medullary fibres travelling in every direction. Through some of them she governs the functions of the body; through others, terminating in the organs of sense, she provides for its sustenance and protection, as well as for her own enjoyment and education.
When first born, all her faculties are as yet the merest rudiments, and must be cultivated by sight, hearing, and touch. She can have nothing of thought, nothing of imagination, without sensual scientifics, or the ultimate knowledges procured by means of the senses. In the absence of these requisites, thought would be like the external sight projected into the immensity of Space. As it finds nothing upon which to rest, it is altogether dissipated.
Still, the senses, or what has entered through them, are by no means the origin of thought, for this we must look to the other world. They indeed serve as the foundation of thought, besides affording material and stimulus, but all thought is from spirits and angels," attendant upon man.
All man's conscious life is in his understanding. This is because good, of which the will is a receptacle, cannot be seen until it takes on the form of truth. So affections cannot be conscious till they have been formed as thoughts in the understanding. Good is felt, so also love, but the sensation, nevertheless, becomes conscious through the understanding.
Affections, therefore, are the origin and soul of thought, as good is the source and life of truth.
An impression upon any of the organs of sense is communicated instantly, by the subtlest vibrations, to the brain. The corresponding impression there made, in the cortical glands of the first order, is called sensation. Therefore, these glands, in the complex, have received the name of common sensory.
The common sensory is likewise the ultimate organ of the memory, which is closely allied to the senses, and of, the imagination or memory active.
But each little member of the common sensory is itself a brain with parts corresponding to those of the cerebrum, though much more perfect, as their simplicity and motions attest.
The cortical glands of these little brains taken collectively are called the intellectory, and as the glands of the second order, are the ultimate organs of thought.
The ideas of the imagination or interior sight are formed by impressions upon the common sensory. They are images which pass successively before the mind, in the order and arrangement in which they had appeared before the external sight, but with this in addition; that the imagination, viewing their external form, can at the same time regard their quality, internal structure, and their every aspect. Thought, which may be termed a superior imagination, is endowed with a higher power: that of, at the same time including the use, mode of construction, and things of a similar nature, thus the essence which is abstracted more from the external appearance. Hence the ideas of thought are called immaterial. And so far as they approach the internal mind, they become spiritual and are illuminated by the light of heaven, but their approximation to the imagination brings them under the rays of the obscure lumen of this world.
But thought is not content with merely contemplating the ideas of the imagination. From several of them it extracts something new, never before seen, which then becomes an idea of thought; It is evident that thought forms to itself ideas more universal and therefore in a higher plane than those of the imagination. These ideas the thought stores away in its own memory ultimated in the intellectory, a memory suited to their more interior quality.
It was said above that thoughts are the variations and changes in the forms of substances of the mind. We are now better able to understand what this means. Thought calls up images from the imagination and arranges them into a certain order. And what is the end in view? A definite conclusion. Therefore thought does not stop here, but compares one image with another, chooses those in agreement, rejects the rest, and forms a conclusion or judges. Determination follows, and this at last is ultimated in act.
While he lives in this world, man is in the conscious exercise of the animus. But the mens is not idle, as the appearance would lead one to suppose. In every most minute change of the mind and body below, it silently rules and guides. When the animus thinks, it is in reality the mens thinking in the animus. When the hands move, the mens is there as the primal cause in its ultimate effect. This intimate conjunction of the two minds is exemplified in the material organ of the one, which is the cortical gland of the third order, forming the cortex of the other, the gland of the second order. And their fibres going forth into the body, embrace each other in a single sheath.
From what has been said we can see that a complete mental action consists of several subordinate ones, which are sensation, imagination, thought, conclusion, determination, action.
These successive operations are necessarily implied in everything we do-but they follow upon one another so rapidly that often the whole series appears as one single operation.
In all thought the will is a silent factor, for as was said, thought is from affection which is of the will. The reason why we are not conscious of its operations, nor of those of the mens, is because we are in effects alone. The whole natural world is a world of effects, and we do not perceive a single cause, except so far as it is mediate.
After death man comes into the world of causes, and then into the conscious exercise of his spiritual mind or mens. His natural mind lies dormant and serves as a support or foundation.
Nevertheless, there are rare intervals when the conscious thought of a man recedes into his spiritual mind. He is thinking from affection concerning the truths of faith. The natural is quiescent almost as if the spirit had left it. Scarcely perceptible is the light, soft breath which conies and goes as if it were using the utmost care lest the calm peace of the mind be disturbed. The inhabitants in some society of the other world are surprised at the appearance of a new- Comer.
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He paces slowly through the streets, with arms folded and head bowed to his chest. One of them accosts him, but the first words causes him instantly to vanish. The thinker, suddenly aroused, wonders what has waked him from his trance.
At such a time the LORD is most present and inflows with perception almost angelic. At such a time, a man on earth tastes of the sweetness of heaven.
He who knows the formation of good 1893
He who knows the formation of good from truths knows the veriest arcana of heaven.- A. C. 8772.
LAND AND THE CHURCH 1893
(Continued.)
FOR us the Land of Canaan must ever have its chief interest in the fact that it represented the Church; that all its borders, its mountains, its hills, and rivers have a spiritual signification. And the cause of this wonderful circumstance can be no other than that the land was specially created for that purpose. Such exact correspondence between the land, as to its every part, and the Church, can have no other cause. Indeed, this law does not apply to the Land of Canaan only, but to all the countries surrounding it, as Egypt, Assyria, Arabia, etc. The signification of these countries likewise, is based upon their physical characteristics. We have, indeed, less information concerning these countries than we have concerning the Land of Canaan, but what information we possess is sufficient to enable us to see that their peculiar conformation, as well as their location with respect to the Land of Canaan, is due to the quality of the Churches established in each of them, and to their relation to the Church in the Land of Canaan, from which circumstance no other inference can be drawn than that those countries likewise were formed, as they are, for no other reason than that they might represent something of the LORD'S Kingdom, and that they were inhabited by nations whose spiritual life from the LORD, qualified by their peculiar genius, constituted that particular form of the Church which each country represented. With respect to the Land of Canaan, there is definite teaching to the effect that all its borders, which are lowlands, deserts, rivers, and seas, signify so many forms of the external of the Church and introductory to it. Its mountains and hills signify the celestial and spiritual of the Church, thus its internal. This will be more fully shown when we come to the history of its occupation by the Sons of Israel.
It has already been stated that the Land of Canaan was the seat of all the Churches that were before the LORD'S Coming. Judging from certain statements in the Writings, the Most Ancient Church must have been limited to that land. All nations outside of it must have remained in a Gentile state. Men then lived in families, in houses, and in tribes; and as "each house had its own peculiar genius distinct from the other," they, no doubt, were arranged according to a certain order, resembling the arrangement of the societies in heaven; each house nearer or more remote from the centre of the land, according as it was more or less interior; just as the Tribes of Israel were afterward arranged according to their respective signification, in order that the Kingdom of the LORD might be represented by them.
Whether the men of the Most Ancient Church continued thus to live in families and houses down to the end of that Church, or whether, at the time of the decline of that Church, they formed themselves into kingdoms and empires, as was done in the Ancient Church, we are not informed. All that we are taught on this point is that as long as dominion from love toward the neighbor continued, men lived in this manner, but when dominion from the love of self began to prevail, then governments of various kinds commenced (A. C. 10,814), from which it would seem that such governments first came into existence at the decline or toward the end of the Most Ancient Church, for love of self in its worst forms became prevalent then. And from the same statement we must conclude that the men of the Ancient Church, during the better periods of that Church, likewise lived in families and houses, as no one then sought to domineer over others, nor desired the possessions of others.
The Ancient Church also began in the Land of Canaan, from whence it spread among many nations outside of that Land, Canaan constituting, as it were, the centre. What nation or nations inhabited the Land during the earlier periods of the Ancient Church is not stated. Evidently the most interior, belonging to the Church Shem.
At the time of Abraham, which was when the Ancient Church was nearly consummated, seven different nations occupied the land. The Amorites seem to have been the most powerful of these nations. They occupied the eastern part of what was afterward called Judah, all of Gilead, and of Bashan. They continued powerful until they were conquered by the Sons of Israel. When the LORD promised the Land to Abraham and to his posterity, the time for their destruction had not yet come. There were remains of the Church with them yet, for which reason the LORD said to Abraham: "Knowing thou shalt know, that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land not theirs; but in the fourth generation they shall return hither, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet consummated" (Gen. xv).
But the Canaanites cannot have been much less powerful, for they harassed the Sons of Israel a long time. They fought in chariots of iron, which made them a formidable enemy, against whom the Sons of Israel for a long time could make but little headway. They were never entirely driven out, but became tributary to the Israelites in the end. The remaining nations of the Land, as the Perizzites, the Chivites, the Chittites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, were smaller and more easily overcome. The Philistines, who are never named together with the Seven Nations of Canaan, were the most warlike of all, and continued to be dangerous until the time of the Kings, when they were finally subdued by David. All these nations were idolators, who defiled the Land with their abominations, on which account they were to be driven out and destroyed by those who represented the Church. But more of these nations in our next article.
Notes and Reviews 1893
IN the November Life, page 171, the copy of the Arcana Coelestia seen by Swedenborg in the Spiritual World was stated to have appeared upon "a cedar tree" under a green olive tree. This was a curious printer's error. For "cedar tree" read "cedar table."
THE additional references to the article "Key," which were published as addenda to the Swedenborg Concordance, on page 58 of the Life for April last, should be corrected to read "A. C. 3353," instead of "3350," and "A. C. 6415" instead of "6451."
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VOLUMES III and IV of the Rotch Edition of The Heavenly Arcana, have just been received. On a separate leaf at the beginning of each, is an announcement of the most general contents: "Volumes III, IV and V of the Rotch Edition treat of the LORD'S Human, How it was Made Divine (n. 3245)." Volume III includes numbers 1383 to 1983; Volume IV, numbers 1984 to 2605. Space will not permit this issue to give this important work the attention it deserves.
Colors, Tints and Shades, their Spiritual Causes and Significance, by J. Stuart Bogg. James Speirs, London, 1893. This is a reproduction, from the New Church Magazine, of the excellent article which was noticed in the issue of the Life for November. It forms a pamphlet of 20 pages in small quarto, and is published in a most artistic form. Highly valuable, both in substance and form, it deserves wide circulation in the Church. Copies may be ordered through the Academy Book Room.
Man, His Nature, Origin, and Destiny, is the title of a small volume of lectures, published at Derby, in England, by the Rev. James Hyde. The author is a minister of the New Church, whose name should not be mistaken for that of the late Rev. John Hyde, who also, for a time, was pastor of the Derby Society, and is well known in the literature of the Church as "a Bible student." The work under notice is of an evangelistic and philosophical character. The Writings of the New Church are freely quoted.
THE Concordance, in its sixty-ninth issue, continues the subject of "Love of Self," and proceeds with "Love of Sex," "Love of the World," "Love to the LORD," "Love Towards the Neighbor," "Lower Earth," "Lucifer," "Lukewarm," and begins the article on "Lumen."
The passage "at this day a New Church is being instaurated by the LORD'S Prayer," which was quoted from the Concordance in the last issue of the Life, should read- According to the Latin-"at this day a New Church is being instaurated by the LORD."
THE New Church Standard for November treats editorially of the essentials of the Church, the rejection of which destroyed the First Christian Church. The sermon in this issue is a discourse on "The Message to the Seven Churches that are in Asia," by the Rev. T. F. Robinson. The excellent review of the Rev. E. A. Beaman's attitude toward "The Writings and their authority," is continued in a second installment. The article on "the Hebrew language," the fifth in the series that has appeared in the Standard, is of unusual interest.
THE Brief Account of the Life and Work of Emanuel Swedenborg, which is advertised in the present issue of the Life, was written, principally, to facilitate the study of Swedenborg's life, in the Schools of the Church. It is a suggestive framework for a biography of Swedenborg, and is unique in its succinctness. A number of the facts related have not yet appeared in any biography, such as Swedenborg's descent from Gustavus Vasa, the complete enumeration of his various foreign journeys, his introduction into the Royal Academy of Sciences, by Linunus, and three successive manifestations of the LORD before him.
THE General Church of the Advent of the LORD has issued its yearly Calendar, giving a plan for reading the' Word of the LORD in the Sacred Scripture and in the Writings of the New Church, according to which, in the course of years, all the Books of Divine Revelation will be read in their chronological order. The year 1894 will be the seventh year in the course. The Calendar commends itself to an ever increasing number of readers, and is accompanied by excellent suggestions for family devotions.
For those on the qui vive for suitable Christmas gifts, the list of books at the end of the Calendar offers a choice selection.
THE Massachusetta Association, at its meeting on October 12th, seems to have been carried away with enthusiasm over the late "Parliament of Religions." The Committee on Religious Education, in their report, regret that "we have been wont to dwell upon differences of doctrines, when we should regard common principles." What is the distinction? "The lesson taught by the Parliament of Religions is just this, and the Committee regard that event as the most epoch-making in the history of religion since the day of Pentecost."' What of the Last Judgment, and the sending out of the Apostles? "There was such an outpouring of true religion, such an opportunity for better knowledge of one's brethren, as thrilled every heart," etc. Here the surrender of rational discernment to mere feeling is so complete as to leave expostulation no voice; there is really nothing to be said.
THE New Church Magazine for November opens with an essay by Mr. Clowes Bayley, on the interesting question, "Might Hell have been Averted?" The new answer to this question offered requires careful consideration. The same journal contains a well-written critiqued by Mr. C. E. Rowe, on the resolution lately passed by the New York Association, authorizing the employment of women as missionaries. The critique is doctrinal and rational.
In the same number Mr. William Graham revives the old controversy on the subject of the nature of the resurrection-body of the LORD. He maintains the correct doctrine that this body is Divine Natural and not material, inasmuch as matter is essentially dead, but he goes out of his way to make an attack upon the authority of the Writings of the New Church, in which he does not recognize the infinitely perfect and Divinely Rational form of the LORD in His Divine Natural.
A BRIEF History of the Peter Street Society of the New Church, Manchester, by Mr. Francis Smith, has lately been published by Mr. Speirs. This Society is one of the oldest in the New Church, having been founded in the year 1791 by former members of Mr. Clowes's congregation, who, in spite of his instructions to the contrary, realized the necessity of the distinctive worship of the New Church. Their first Pastor was the erratic Rev. William Cowherd, who afterward left them to form the peculiar sect called "Bible Christians." He was succeeded by a number of other ministers, among whom the Rev. Messrs. Richard Jones and John Henry Smithson have been the most prominent. During their administrations the Manchester Society was distinguished for much earnestness and intellectual life. The later ministers, the Rev. John Hyde and C. H. Wilkins, introduced into the Society a radical, democratic spirit which has wrought much mischief in the Church at large.
MR. Richard M'Cully is widely known in the Church as the author of a work called Swedenborg Studies, and as a contributor of long standing to the pages of The New Church Magazine. Years ago, when the insidious form of spiritism originated by Thomas Lake Harris seriously disturbed the peace of the New Church in England and elsewhere, Mr. M'Cully did good service by a thorough exposure, in the Intellectual Repository for the year 1871, of the hollowness of Harris's pretensions and teachings. He had then recently freed himself from the fascination of the lurid light of the pretended revelations of Harris. Now it seems he has slid back into the pit of spiritism. In his recent work on The Brotherhood of the New Life and T. L. Harris, A History and Exposition based upon their printed works and other public documents, the author declares that "Mr. Harris's greatest-i. e., most persistent-persecutors have been the strict party among the Swedenborgians:" and the volume is a demonstration from Swedenborg's own writings that Mr. Harris is the only thorough Swedenborgian. And thus it seems that the crow maybe either black or white: or is it a case of returning to one's first love?
BY THE removal into the spiritual world of the Rev. Chauncey Giles, on November 6th, the Philadelphia First Society has lost its beloved pastor, the General Convention its president, and the Church at large its most popular evangelist. Mr. Giles was ordained into the ministry of the New Church in The year 1852, and for a number of years was the Pastor of the Cincinnati Society.
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In the year 1863 he was consecrated an ordaining minister, and in the following year became the pastor of the New York Society, also filling the office of editor of the New Jerusalem Messenger until 1878. In the year 1875 he was elected President of the General Convention, and in 1878 he accepted the pastorate of the Philadelphia First Society, continuing in both positions until the time of his death. Mr. Giles was a successful preacher of the general truths of the Heavenly Doctrines, and was still more popular as a writer on the same subjects. Though not in sympathy with the efforts that have been made to establish the internal things of faith, order, and uses in the New Church, he possessed, on his own plane, a really remarkable power of accommodation and illustration, through which, no doubt, he has been the means of attracting the attention of many to the beautiful walls of the New Jerusalem.
THE New Church Pacific for November contains a portrait and a biography of its former editor, the Rev. John Doughty, who departed this life on the 18th of last October, at the age of sixty-eight years. This prominent minister of the Church was the son of the Rev. Charles Doughty, of New York, who at one time was the president of the "Central Convention" of the New Church. He was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., in the year 1825, and at the age of twenty-one became a licensed preacher of the Church. In the year 1850 he emigrated to the newly-found gold fields of California, where he became a school teacher, then a merchant, afterward a lawyer and public official, and finally, in the year 1868, the pastor of the First New Jerusalem Church in San Francisco, having been ordained by laymen of his society, on the authority of the General Convention. Mr. Doughty worked zealously for the extension and organization of the New Church on the Pacific coast, but in is work did not always evidence in interior understanding of the Doctrines: in his ecclesiastical views and acts he was decidedly "radical." During the last few years his conduct of the Pacific has shown more recognition of the Writings as the source of light for the Church. He was primarily an evangelist, and as such has written a number of popular works in which the general Doctrines of the Church are set forth, and, in the main, very well.
From the faith of every Church 1893
From the faith of every Church is derived not only all its worship but also all its doctrines. . . Such as the faith is, such is the doctrine- T. C. R. 177.
HISTORY OF THE ARCANA COELESTIA-II 1893
ENGLISH EDITIONS.
THE FIRST complete English edition of the Arcana Coelestia was published at London in the years 1784 to 1806, at the expense of the "Manchester Society for Printing and Publishing the Theological Works of Emanuel Swedenborg," a "society of gentlemen," who, in the year 1782, had begun to gather around the Rev. John Clowes in Manchester, to assist him in his work of translating and publishing the Writings. Mr. Clowes occupied the long period of twenty- Three years with the translation of the Arcana Coelestia, devoting to this work three hours of each day. When he had finished this work- A meeting of New Church friends was held at Hawkstone, on July 8th, 1806, at which the faithful worker was surprised by the gift of a beautiful and very valuable gold cup, as a token of the gratitude of the Church for this most important labor of love. At the same time silver cups were presented to the two faithful amanuenses of Mr. Clowes in this work, J. W. Salmon, Esq., and Nathaniel Shelmerdine, Esq.
The following table shows the years of publication and the names of the publishers of the various volumes of the edition, together with the distribution of the text.
VOL. NOS.
I, 1784, R. Hindmarsh, 1-1113
II, 1784, " 1114-2134
III, 1788, " 2135-2893
IV, 1789, " 2894-3649
V, 1792, " 3650-4228
VI, 1795, " 4229-4953
VII, 1797, " 4954-5727
VIII, 1799, " 5728-6626
IX, 1800, J. Hodson, 6627-8032
X, 1801, " 8033-9111
XI, 1803, J. & E. Hodson 9112-9973
XII, 1806, " 9974-10,837
The first volume contained, as a frontispiece, an engraved portrait of Swedenborg. The twelfth volume contained a long list of the printer's errors occuring throughout the volumes, and also a beautiful prayer of thanksgiving by the Rev. John Clowes, written immediately after he had finished his long work of translation.
The SECOND English edition of the Arcana Coelestia was a reprint of the first edition, without any revision or alteration. It was published at London and Manchester in the years from 1802 to 1820, and at the expense of the Manchester Printing Society. The following is a table of this edition.
VOL.
I, London, J. Hodson 1802
II, " 1802
III " " 1803
IV, " " 1807
V. " " 1808
VI, Manchester, J. Gleave 1816
VII, " " 1812
IX, London, Swedenborg Society 1832
X, Manchester, J. Gleave 1819
XI, " " 1820
XII, " " 1820
From this table it will be observed that the volumes were reprinted only as the stock of the former edition became exhausted. Sometimes it was impossible, for years to obtain a complete set, as certain volumes would be out of market for long periods.
The THIRD English edition was published at London in the year 1824 to 1856, and at the expense of the Swedenborg Society, then called "the London Printing Society." The following is a table of this edition.
VOL.
I, 1824, 1837, and 1848
II, 1831 and 1848
III, 1832 and 1852
IV, 1840
V, 1840
VI, 1847
VII, 1846
VIII, 1834 and 1856
IX, 1851
XI, 1840
XII, 1840
We have classified all these various issues under the "third edition," for the sake of distinction from subsequent and more regular editions.
The first volume was revised in the year 1824 by the Rev. Samuel Noble. - This revision was again published in the year 1837, with the important, but unfortunate, change, that the translations of the Word occurring in this volume were altered so as to agree with the faulty, but popular, text of the Authorized Version. In the year 1848 this volume was again revised by Dr. Henry Bateman, the translations of the Word now conforming more to Swedenborg's rendering.
The second volume was revised by Mr. Noble in the year 1831. In this edition the back-references occurring in the text were removed to the bottom of the page. In the year 1848 the same volume was again published, the back-references being restored to the text.
The third volume was published without revision, at the expense of the Manchester Society.
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The same volume, revised by the Rev. F. de Soyres, was published by the Swedenborg Society in the year 1862.
The fourth, fifth, eleventh, and twelfth volumes were published in the year 1840, without any revision.
The sixth volume, revised by Mr. Ch. E. Strutt, and the seventh volume, revised by Mr. Henry Butter, were published in the year 1847.
The eighth volume, published in the year 1846, was revised by Mr. Strutt.
The ninth volume was published without revision in 1834, and with the revision of the Rev. William Bruce in the year 1856.
The tenth volume was published in the year 1851, having been revised by Mr. Butter.
Seldom has there been produced a more variegated literary, patch-work, than this edition of the Arcana Coelestia.
The FOURTH English edition was an entirely new translation, possessing, indeed, the merit of a uniform style, but marred by editorial idiosyncrasies of such a character as seriously to impair its practical usefulness.
This edition was printed at the expense of the translators, Mr. George Harrison, of Longlands, near Rendal, and published in twelve volumes by William White, at London, in the years 1857 to 1860.
The translator, who was a grandson of Mr. W. Cookworthy, and, like him, a member of the "Society of Friends," was actuated in his work by the desire to render the Writings into "homely English" by the elimination of many of the terms of Latin origin which had been introduced into Mr. Clowes' translation. Whatever may be thought of the usefulness of presenting the Writings in such a form, there can be no doubt as to the value of Mr. Harrison's translation to future translators for the purpose of comparison, as it shows much research and scholarship. For the systematic study of the Doctrines it has been made useless by the elimination of all paragraph numbers and back-references throughout the entire work! Regarded from a typographical view it is undoubtedly the most handsome of all completed editions of the Arcana Coelestia hitherto published.
The FIFTH English edition was published by the Swedenborg Society in London during the years 1862 to 1868, according to the following table:
VOL.
I and II 1862
III to VIII 1863
IX 1866
X 1864
XI and XII 1863
The first volume of this edition was revised by the Rev. S. M. Warren, then resident in London. The second, fourth, and ninth volumes were revised by the Rev. Jonathan Bayley, D. D. The fifth volume was revised by John Spurgin, M. D., an eminent scholar, who for very many years was the president of the Swedenborg Society. The other volumes do not appear to have undergone revision.
The sixth English edition was published by the Swedenborg Society, in London, in the years 1872 to 1892, according to the following table:
VOL.
I 1872
II 1878
III 1890
IV 1879
V 1881
VI 1890
VII 1889
VIII 1890
IX -
X 1892
XI -
XII 1886
The first volume of this edition was revised by the Rev. T. O. Gorman, a clergyman of the Church of England, who for a time joined the external organization of the New Church.
The third volume was revised by Mr. A. H. Searle, London, as was also the sixth volume.
The eighth volume was revised by Mr. (now the Rev.) Lewis Slight.
The twelfth volume was revised by the Rev. W. O'Mant.
The fourth and seventh volumes are said to have been revised, but the name of the revisors are not given in the reports of the Swedenborg Society.
The ninth and eleventh volumes were not issued in connection with this edition.
The second, fifth, and tenth volumes of this edition do not appear to have been revised.
A SEVENTH English edition has been begun, of which two volumes have thus far appeared, nos. xi and i. The beginning was made in the year 1890, with the publication of volume xi, which had been out of print since 1884, thus for six entire years. The cause of this long delay, during which no complete new sets of the Arcana Coelestia could be purchased, was the tardiness of the Rev. W. C. Barlow, to whom the volume had been given for revision, but who finally had to give it up. The volume was then given into the hands of the Rev. R. L. Tafel, who, with the assistance of Col. J. B. Keene, produced an entirely new translation. In this version the subdivisions of the Swedenborg concordance have been indicated by marginal figures.
Volume I was the next issued, in 1891, having been revised by the Rev. R. L. Tafel.
This completes the account of the publication of the Arcana Coelestia in England.
The following table presents a review of the translators and revisers of the various volumes of the editions that have been published by the Swedenborg Society. A general knowledge of the fidelity and attainments of the persons named will enable the reader to form a judgment as to the relative value of the present text of the different volumes:
Vol. I. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Messrs. Noble, Bateman, Warren, Gorman and R. L. Tafel.
Vol. II. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Messrs. Noble and Bayley.
Vol. III. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Messrs. Soyres and Searle.
Vol. IV. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Mr. Bayley.
Vol. V. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Mr. Spurgin.
Vol. VI. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Mr. Strutt.
Vol. VII. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Mr. Butter.
Vol. VIII. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Messrs. Strutt and Sligt.
Vol. IX. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Messrs. Bruce and Bayley.
Vol. X. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Mr. Butter.
Vol. XI. Translated by Mr. Clowes retranslated by Dr. R. L. Tafel.
Vol. XII. Translated by Mr. Clowes; revised by Mr. O'Mant.
By brethren are signified 1893
By brethren are signified those who are in similar good and truth.- A. C. 4121.
Communicated 1893
Responsibility for the views expressed in this Department rests with the writers.
ETHNOLOGY AT THE WORLD'S FAIR 1893
AS the New Church at some future time is to spread to nations beyond the Christian world, one cannot help considering, while visiting the various races and nations at the Fair, as to how much material for the Church there may be among them.
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The Fair affords much material for thought and reflection, but no part of it perhaps more than the Midway Plaisance. it is certainly one of the most interesting and instructive features of the Fair. And it is all so real. If one had never heard of these nations) and had no knowledge whatever of their habits and customs, a visit to their villages in the Midway would suffice to give one a tolerably clear idea of them. On entering these villages one feels as though he were actually transferred to their own country, and were witnessing their life on their own native soil, so much of their own sphere have they brought with them.
To begin with our nearest neighbor, the American Indian. Of all the nations and races represented in the Midway, the American Indian seems to be the most deficient in any of the qualities to which the Church could appeal. His appearance is repulsive, and so are his manners. His war dance no one can ever forget who has witnessed it: the violent motions and threatening gestures of the performers are simply fearful. One almost forgets that they are acting, they seem so terribly in earnest. They seem more like fiends than human beings. True, nothing else could be expected of that race in its present state. But what prospects of success have those who seek to elevate the Indian out of his savage state? The wonderful Smithsonian exhibit at the Ethnological Building shows that the Indians, from, the most advanced to the most savage, with few exceptions, bear the stamp of a race which has become spiritually extinct. The sculptures from Central America, which are relics of the most advanced state of Indian civilization known to us, represent a race in whom every trace of humanity has been extinguished. The character of a nation is best judged by its conception of the deity. The faces of the gods of the Indian are hard and cold. There is no trace of kindness, of mercy, benevolence, or any other human attribute visible there. And they must reflect the character at the nation, for the image of the deity of any nation presents the ideal of perfection as conceived by that nation.
Judging from such indications, the Indian seems to represent a race in whom all remains of good have been lost; that, therefore, he cannot be counted among the Gentile nations of the earth among whom the New Church will eventually be received; but that he must be the descendant of an extinct Church. There are evidences which point in that direction. The Mexicans, when first visited by Europeans, had a regular and graded-priesthood; they had temples, and offered sacrifices, like the degenerated nations of the Ancient Church. They had a system of hieroglyphics, which would indicate a knowledge of Correspondences. Moreover, most, if not all of the Indian tribes, have traditions which in many particulars resemble the description of the Most Ancient and Ancient Churches, as given in the first chapters of Genesis. From all of which facts the legitimate inference can be drawn that many ages ago a Church flourished on this continent, of which the Indians of the present day are the corrupt descendants, who will furnish little, if any, material for the New Church.
Some of the nations from the Eastern Hemisphere, represented in the Midway, present quite a contrast to the Indian; particularly the Javanese. Their countenances are very pleasing. They cannot be said to be beautiful, but gentleness and innocence are expressed in every feature. Although they are Malays, they seem to have been influenced to a considerable degree by the civilization of southern Asia. Those at the Fair are Bhuddists; and the images of their gods, although devoid of artistic merit, express the gentleness and innocence of their worshipers. The latter seem to be a people of the true Gentile type, so favorably spoken of in the Writings. One cannot help thinking that there may be remains of good among them, where the truth, now revealed for the elevation of the human race, will in time find a ready acceptance.
The other representatives of the Malay race are in a more barbarous state. But even they have none of that fierce and savage expression which characterizes the Indian. They are fine specimens of physical development. Their tall, straight, and athletic figures are a sight to behold. Their countenances indicate intelligence, and are not unpleasing. Barbarians as they are, they must be endowed with a considerable degree of docility, which appears in the remarkable training they exhibit in their songs and dances. The rhythmic motions of their bodies to the pleasing tunes of their songs are very interesting. The singing is harmonious; the voices of the men quite pleasing; which, however, cannot be said of those of the women. Their language seems to consist mostly of vowels, the vowels "a" and "u" predominating, as the following names of their religious songs and dances illustrate: Tateia, Meikemau, Aliaauu, Menuluulu. Their pronunciation is very musical. They seem to glide over the consonants, pronouncing them so softly that they are scarcely audible to one unfamiliar with their language. This reminds one of the language in heaven, in which vowels predominate, as they are expressive of affection. In spite of their barbaric appearance, one is favorably impressed with them on a closer observation of their characteristics. What a contrast between the unanimity in the performances of these islanders- The rhythmic swaying of their bodies keeping time with their singing- And the savage dance of the Indian! Taking the South Sea Islanders at the Fair in general, one is inclined to believe that there is more of the Gentile than of the savage in them; and one feels some hope that there may be some remains among them which will be revived in due time.
It is a great pity that the African race had such unattractive representatives at the Fair. The Dahomans must belong to the most corrupt of the African nations. A nation in which women are warriors and the heads of families, must have a very low spiritual and moral standard. A nation may be in ignorance of the true religion, and yet not be altogether without a knowledge of the proper relation between the sexes. But there can be no religion, in which there is any degree of innocence, which does not assign to woman her true place as a tender and affectionate wife. But how can a race of Amazons be such wives? All the feminine qualities must suffer by such a change of the relation of the sexes. It was a great disappointment to us not to find more worthy representatives of the African race at the Fair; especially since that race is so highly spoken of in the Writings.
The Asiatic nations naturally fall into two distinct groups: the Mohammedan and the Gentile nations. The Mohammedan nations at the Fair do not impress us as favorably as their Gentile neighbors. Their countenances are not as pleasing as those of other Asiatic nations; and some are absolutely repulsive. It is a significant fact that the Mohammedan religion has spread over all the countries where once the Ancient Church flourished, over central and western Asia and northern Africa; and, it may be added, in those countries only did it become the national religion.
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The fact that these nations are the descendants of the men of the Ancient Church makes it improbable that the New Church will ever find a general acceptance among them.
The other Asiatic nations at the Fair are more interesting, particularly the Hindoos. Their handsome and intelligent faces mark them as one of the noblest races of the earth. The Writings speak of a certain nation in the Indies, which is probably a fair representative of the whole race. They are said to be for the most part "modest, obedient, and simple of heart." The fact that neither Christians nor Mohammedans have been able to impose their religion upon them, when considered in the light oft he above teaching, would indicate that the Hindoos are one of the Gentile nations which are specially protected by the LORD from the corrupting influences with which they are surrounded, in order that they may be preserved for the New Church. The same may perhaps be said of the Chinese, for they too, in spite of the persistent efforts of the Christians to convert them, have remained unchanged. Not only are appearances in favor of the Asiatic Gentiles, but there is positive teaching to the effect that they belong to the best nations of the earth. The knowledge we have of the general spiritual state of these nations made our visit to the Midway exceedingly interesting. They certainly constituted one of the most instructive features of the Fair.
Brethren 1893
They were called "brethren" by the Lord, who hear the Word and do it.- A. C. 867.
MEMORIAL MEETING IN PITTSBURGH 1893
ONE of our young friends having been called suddenly to the other world, it was thought advisable to hold a memorial meeting, it never having been done in the Society here. Accordingly on Friday, the third of November, the Society was assembled in their place of worship to the number of about sixty. Wine and crackers were served and Mr. Synnestvedt opened by stating that the object of the meeting was to help to elevate our thoughts above the merely natural- The sensuals of the body- And think of the spiritual; for we are commanded to reject all idea of the natural body of one who has left this world and to think of his resurrection and life in the other world.
The first toast, to The Church, was then proposed by Mr. Synnestvedt, who added that in drinking this toast we should think not only of the Church in this world but also of the Church in the spiritual world, and our conjunction with it; for, as we rejoice over one member added to the Church here, so do the angels rejoice with a much greater joy over one received into the Church in the heavens. Vivat Nov' Ecclesia was sung.
The other toasts of the evening were in a series, relating to man's preparation for heaven.
The first, Education, the first Preparation, in this World, was responded to by Mr. Czerny, who spoke of education in its four degrees, the body, the memory, the rational, and the spiritual,-each most important in its place, but subservient to the next above, and the last subservient to the LORD. He pointed out the utter uselessness of the cultivation of the memory unless it be made to serve the rational and the spiritual, by which the knowledges with which it is stored may be put into the life and become living truths.
After the drinking of the second toast of the series-Death, the Entrance into Life- The first verse of "Our Glorious Church" was sung. Mr. Schoenberger, responding to the toast, presented the doctrine that, in the Word, death and burial signify resurrection, and should signify the same to us. The angels have no idea of death, excepting spiritual death, which is evil, but instead thereof they think of regeneration and birth into the other world- The real entrance into life.
The third toast was The World of Spirits, wherein, the preparation for Heaven is completed. The second verse of "Our Glorious Church" having been sung, Mr. Henry Cowley responded, giving an account of the three states through which a men passes in the world of spirits- The state of his exteriors, the state of his interiors, and his preparation for heaven by education.
The concluding toast of the evening, responded to by Mr. Boyesen, was Heaven and the New Tie that Binds us. It was followed by the singing of the Academy Color Song. Mr. Boyesen dwelt on the doctrine that love is conjunction. If we really loved her who has gone to the other world- That is, loved the truth and good in her-we are now nearer to her than before. And what cause is there for grief? She is still with us, but in a more interior way, and, being needed in a far more extended field of usefulness than when in this world, she is much happier. Extreme grief at her departure would be selfish on our part, as it could only hinder her progress in this new state into which she has entered. Let us, therefore, not grieve, but rejoice with her.
This very useful meeting was brought to a close by the singing of the new "Home, Sweet Home," written by Mr. Odhner, Mr. Boyesen singing the verses and all joining in the chorus. - H. B. C.
To be reconciled to the brother 1893
"To be reconciled to the brother" is worship from charity, and this is truly worship.- A. E. 391.
SERIOUS MISTRANSLATION 1893
IN the English translation of the Summaries of the Internal Sense of the Prophets and Psalms, published in London in the year 1862, the following is given as the internal sense of Psalm cxxix: "That the LORD'S churches from the beginning have committed enormous evils (verses 1 to 3); but that being frustrated in their endeavors, they have been constrained to recede (verses 4 to 8)." The reader cannot help wondering at the statement that the LORD'S churches from the beginning "have committed enormous evils, since the general teaching is that the churches of the LORD have all been pure in the beginning, but have successively fallen into evil. A glance at the original shows this rendering to be erroneous. The Latin reads: "Quod ecclesiae Domini a principio valde malefecerint (verses 1 and 3), sed quod cum irrito conatu recedere coacti sunt" (verses 4 and 8). The old rendering may thus be seen to be gramatically possible, taking "ecclesiae" as the subject of "malefecerint," but a more careful study of the context, and a closer view of general teaching, shows "ecclesiae" to be the indirect object of the verb. The correct rendering is therefore: "That from the beginning they, [viz., the enemies, 'who afflict Israel,' mentioned in the literal sense] have greatly done evil to the Church of the LORD, but that with frustrated endeavors they have been forced to recede." The plural masculine form of "coacti" ("forced"), plainly shows that "ecclesiae" (a feminine noun), is not the subject. Otherwise the form of the predicate would have been "coactae." Attention was called to this mistake in the Intellectual Repository for the year 1855, p. 232, but the correction has not been adopted in any subsequent edition of the work. In early translations the sentence had been rendered correctly.
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NEWS GLEANINGS Various 1893
NEW CHURCH LIFE.
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Subscriptions are also received through the following agents:
UNITED STATES.
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GREAT BRITAIN.
Mr. B. W. Misson, 20 Paulet Road, Camberwell, London, S. E.
PHILADELPHIA, DECEMBER, 1893=124.
CONTENTS.
Editorial Notes, p. 177.- The Story of Samson (a Sermon), p. 178.- Truth Divine (Exodus ii, 11-25), p. 181.-Deliverance of the Men of the Church (Exodus iii. 1-8), p. 181.-Notes on Ecclesiastical History, XI, The Word of the Ancient Church, p. 182.- The Mind and Its Thought, p. 184.- The Land and the Church, p. 186.
Notes and Reviews, p. 186,- History of the Arcana Coelestia, p. 188.
Communicated.-Ethnology at the World's Fair, p. 189.-Memorial Meeting in Pittsburgh, p. 191.- A Serious Mistranslation, p. 191.
News Gleanings, p. 192.-Births and Marriages, p. 192.- Academy Book Room, p. 192.
AT HOME.
California.- THE San Francisco First Society is without a Pastor, owing to the death of the Rev. John Doughty, which occurred on October 18th. For a portrait and obituary notice see the New Church Pacific for November.
Maryland.- THE Rev. Hiram Vrooman, the new Pastor of the Baltimore Society, is making an effort to establish a "popular New Church." He holds four o'clock afternoon services in a hall, under the name of "The People's New Jerusalem Church." He proposes, "if possible, to build up a big Church among the working people."
"Popularity" and "the New Church" (used in a genuine sense) are terms which at this day do not readily mate.
THE Ministers' Conference of the Maryland Association met in Baltimore on October 16th
New York.- THE Sabbath School Conference of the New York Association was held in Brooklyn on November 4th. Papers were read on the subject, "By what method shall we make the Letter of the WORD a living picture in the minds of our children."
Ohio.- THE Ministers' Conference of the Ohio Association was held in Glendale on October 26th. The chief subject of discussion as a paper on "The Needs of the Church."
THE Ohio Association met in Glendale on October 27th. After the reports were finished five ladies read papers on "The Needs of the Church."
MR. Willis L. Gladish, who spent a year in the Cambridge Theological School, has been appointed Missionary of the Ohio Association in the place of the Rev. E. D. Daniels, who resigned to take charge of the La Porte Society.
Pennsylvania.- THE Rev. Chauncey Giles, Pastor of the Philadelphia Society, passed into the Spiritual World on November 6th. (See page 87.) The New Church Messenger of November 15th gives a portrait and a short biography of Mr. Giles.
THE Rev. W. L. Worcester has been chosen to succeed the late Rev. Chauncey Giles as Pastor of the Philadelphia Society. L. G. Jordan, of the General Church, has recently made a western tour, visiting Erie (Pa.), Chicago, Denver (Col.), and Middleport (Ohio).
IN the case of the Pittsburgh Society the Supreme Court has confirmed the judgment of the lower court, giving the control of the property to the Rev. John Whitehead and his supporters.
Massachusetts.- THE Boston Society celebrated the seventy-fifth anniversary of its formation, on November 4th and 6th.
ABROAD.
Switzerland.- THE Swiss New Church Union held its eighteenth annual meeting in Zurich on September 10th. The formation of a small circle of readers in Adlisweil was reported to the meeting.
Great Britain-MR. W. H. Claxton, the leader of the Brightlingsea Society, wan ordained into the ministry on October 16th by the Rev. John Presland. About 250 persons witnessed the ceremony.
THE Rev. W. O'Mant is about resigning the pastorate of the Islington Society, which he has held for twelve years. The Rev. R. Goldsack was invited to succeed him, but has declined.
THE New Church Evidence Society held it nineteenth annual meeting at Argyle Square, London, on October 10th.
THE Scottish New Church Association held its annual meeting at Alloa on October 21st.
THE Walworth Road (London) Society has just held an eight days' mission.
A PUBLIC welcome was tendered to the Rev. I. Tansley. B. A., in Heywood, on October 24th, on his assuming the office of pastor. Several letters from Old Church clergyman were read expressing regret at their inability to attend. A New Church minister present said that he hoped "the marriage which had recently been cemented between Mr. Tansley and the Heywood Church would be a happy one." The reiterations of this ill- Chosen comparison, lately coming to us from England, convey an uncanny suggestion of the defunct Boston "Conjugial Heresy."
FOR CHRISTMAS GIFTS 1893
The following are all neatly bound and very appropriate for presents: -
THE WORD IN GREEK AND HEBREW. According to the New Church Canon. Especially bound for us in Europe. Scarlet, highly polished Levant, red under gold edges. Price, $12.00. A most suitable book for Church or Family Repository.
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE; OR, THE WORD OF THE LORD. Oxford 8vo Edition. According to the New Church Canon. Handsomely bound in full cochineal morocco, gilt edges. Price, $5.00.
The same, very neatly bound in red cloth, gilt edge. Price, $2.50.
THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, AND CORONIS. Bound in cochineal morocco. Price, $5.00. Cloth, $1.00; postage, 80 cents.
CONJUGIAL LOVE. New English Edition. Especially bound for us in Europe. Hard grain, cochineal morocco, Red under gold edges. Price, $5.00; blue cloth, price,. $1.00; postage, 15 cents. -
POSTHUMOUS TRACT CONCERNING MARRIAGE AND INDEXES TO "THE MISSING TREATISE" CONCERNING MARRIAGE. Bound together in red cloth, 90 cents; postage, 7 cents.
SPIRITUAL DIARY. Five volumes, 8vo, of which four have been published thus far; Brown cloth, $2.50 per volume; postage, 15 cents per volume.
THE ROTCH EDITIONS. Careful translation, good paper, clear type, tasteful binding in brown cloth, convenient size:
True Christian Religion, 3 vols $3.75
Apocalypse Revealed, 3 vols 3.75
Divine Providence 1.25
Four Doctrines 1.25
Heaven and Hell 1.25
Arcana Coelestia, 4 vols. now ready. 1.25 each
TEMPTATIONS. Extracts from the Writings. 24 mo. Cloth, 20 cents.
MARRIAGE. Extracts from the Writings. 24 mo. Cloth, 20 cents.
These two works, being of a small size, are recommended as suitable for reading in Church, before the opening of the Sunday services.
THE SWEDENBORG CONCORDANCE. A complete work of reference to the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.
Of this valuable work three volumes are now ready, bound in half morocco. Price, $4.50 a volume.
Any one not familiar with this work may order a sample part. Price, 15 cents.
JUST PUBLISHED.
A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE AND WORK OF EMANUEL SWEDENBORG, WITH A SKETCH OF HIS PERSONALITY, by the Rev. C. Th. Odhner, with a portrait of Swedenborg, taken from the original oil painting in the possession of the Academy.
The work comprises 40 pages, printed on good paper; size, 5x7 inches.
The book suggests itself as a useful and inexpensive present for the approaching Christmas celebration.
Price, including postage:
In paper covers. In cloth covers.
1 copy, 15 cents. 1 copy, 25 cents
10 copies, $1.25 10 copies, $2.25
25 " 2.50 25 " 5.00
50 " 4.50 50 " 9.00
Academy Book Room,
1821 Wallace Street, Philadelphia.