Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI           January, 1986               No. 1
New Church Life
A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE TEACHINGS REVEALED THROUGH EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
PUBLISHED BY THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
Rev. Donald L. Rose, Editor           Mr. Neil M. Buss, Business Manager

     PRINTED BY THE GENERAL CHURCH PRESS
BRYN ATHYN, PA 19009
SUBSCRIPTION: $11.00 TO ANY ADDRESS. SINGLE COPY $1.25
Second-class postage paid at Bryn Athyn, PA      Seven hundred and twenty-seven people were in the Bryn Athyn cathedral on October 18th to hear the address "Ask and It Shall Be Given to You" by Rev. Kent Junge. They were treated to an unusual and perceptive insight into the subject of prayer and our struggle to get answers.
     Among the answers most frequently sought are answers about human suffering, tragedy and evil. The Evangelization Committee is to be congratulated on the recent publication of a series of short pamphlets on this subject. How Can a Loving God Permit Evil? Why Did the Lord Let It Happen? etc. (See the December issue. p. 566.) We dare say that if the committee had known of the sermon by Rev. Kurt Asplundh "Why Evils Are Permitted," that sermon would be published as a pamphlet in that series. It is an outstanding treatment of the subject.
     Rev. Mark Carlson offers some answers to the question: "How shall I make better use of the new beginning the new year offers us?" (p. 9)
     The talk by Marianne Sharpe, "A True Liberator of Modern Women," on page 16 was given at the last New Church Day banquet in the Transvaal. Her subtitle is "is the New Church Relevant to Modern Life?"
     We are publishing more of the "Poems from Swedenborg" together with a brief account of Mr. Le Van's discovery of the Writings. As noted in the last issue, he has scores of such direct quotations from the Writings in the form of "poems." We appeal for reader reaction on the value of putting them out in booklet form.
SWEDENBORG, HALLEY AND THE DIVING BELL 1986

SWEDENBORG, HALLEY AND THE DIVING BELL Editor 1986

The Writings mention a "diving bell" in an example in TCR 125. Having in the past tried vainly to find out what sort of device is there alluded to, we were delighted to find the answer in the recent (January) issue of Discover Magazine in an article on Halley. Halley devised a diving bell and helmet that was fed compressed air from barrels. He tested it himself, remaining at a depth of 60 feet for an hour and a half. There is a diagram of this contraption on page 62 of the current issue of Discover.

WHY EVILS ARE PERMITTED 1986

WHY EVILS ARE PERMITTED Rev. KURT H. ASPLUNDH 1986

     "Neither this mart nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him . . ." (John 9:3).

     One of the wonderful things the Lord did was to give sight to a man who was born blind.
     Imagine this poor blind beggar. He had never seen the light of day. He had passed through a childhood of utter darkness and now could only hope for the mercy of others to provide him with the barest necessities of life.
     There were many other pathetic beggars in and around the cities in those days. Some were blind, some lame, some had incurable leprosy. The Lord looked upon all of these miserable and suffering beings with compassion. He grieved at their suffering. Many He healed. He gave hope to others. But most He seemed merely to pass by. For each miraculous healing a hundred, a thousand, remained untouched.
     As the Lord and His disciples were passing by, the presence of this man who had been blind from birth raised a question. The Jews believed that disease or deformity was a punishment for sin. A man was blind, or leprous, or lame because he had committed some evil of life. His condition was a direct result of his transgression.
     But here was question. This man was born blind. How could he sin before birth? Was his blindness then the consequence of the sins of his parents? The disciples could not see the justice in that possibility. Therefore, they asked the Lord, "Who sinned?"
     Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."
     There was a reason for the beggar's blindness, but not the reason most suspected. It was not a punishment for his sin. And, more importantly, a remarkable benefit could come of it. The Lord could use this blindness to show His Divine power to open blind eyes. A "work of God" could be revealed in him.
     Think of the far-ranging importance of this miracle. Not only was this man's own life changed, but many who witnessed or heard of this miracle were moved by it. Millions, perhaps, have been touched by the account of it and have found hope for their own lives. And now that the inner sense of the Word has been revealed for the New Church, a new power for good has been released that will extend into the lives of generations to come.

     The real "work of God" this miracle shows is how the Lord can open our eyes to see Him. We all are born blind-completely ignorant of spiritual truths that make it possible for us to live a full life. The Lord forms our minds with His truths, like a potter forms his clay, and bids us wash. "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean," He has said. "Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, learn to do good . . ." (Isaiah 1:16). Washing in the pool of Siloam signifies a spiritual washing. Having done this, we may come into a belief in the Lord our Savior, and may truly worship Him. This is pictured in the account of the blind man.
     The Lord asked him whose sight was now restored, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" He answered, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him (John 9:35-38).
     This Scriptural account presents a striking contrast between a blind man who finally saw and the Pharisees and other detractors who, although their natural vision was sharp, were truly blind. Who was better off after all, the man who was in darkness for a few years or these men who will be forever blind? There are none so blind as they who do not wish to see!
     Physical blindness is a tragedy but spiritual blindness is a greater tragedy. Both are of evil. Neither is of the will of God. Some still believe that disease and other tragic misfortunes are Divine punishment for our sins. This is not so. God does not punish. He is a God of love and mercy. He showed this in His life on earth. When He beheld the city of Jerusalem and knew the secret intrigues of its people, their ambitions and avarice, their weakness and their lusts, He wept. He grieved and longed for their salvation. Even as they nailed Him to the cross He cried out to forgive them, for they did not know what they had done.
     "The Lord is good to all," we read, "and His tender mercies are over all His works" (Ps. 145:9). He is love itself and mercy itself. No anger is in Him.
     What accounts for the human condition then? What accounts for suffering and temptation? What of the blind, the poor, the insane? Why do infants die and children starve? What of the innocent victims of countries at war? Some say that God sends suffering and tragedy to teach us a lesson. If we suffer a setback perhaps we will learn something. If we are subjected to a hard life perhaps our character will be strengthened by it.
     It is true that we learn and grow through the experiences of life. It is not true that God inflicts unhappy circumstances upon us for this purpose, for the sake of our own good.

The Lord never wills that we suffer in any way no matter what the quality of our life may be. If we were in the lowest hell, the Lord would grieve over our suffering there. He never, under any circumstances, inflicts evil upon us. He constantly is in the effort to "deliver us from evil."
     Often it appears to be otherwise. And that is just what it is-an appearance. The truth is that no evil comes from the Lord. Evil comes from hell. It enters our lives, often unasked, bringing disorder, tragedy, sickness and death. Perhaps our lives are more greatly affected by the influx of hell than by the influx of heaven.
     We know that this is so. It is common experience. But why is it so? Why does the Lord allow these things? Is He truly omnipotent, all-powerful? If so, why does He allow the evil to happen?
     The answer to this question is now revealed for the New Church in the doctrine of permission. This doctrine teaches that many things of life are not of Divine will or good pleasure, or even by Divine leave. Many things are of permission. The Lord permits what He does not will. He allows evil things to happen.
     A common misconception is that whoever permits something when he has the power to prevent it must also will it. The Writings point out the fallacy of this idea. "It is believed that evils too are from the Divine," we read, "because the Divine permits them, and does not take them away; and he who permits and does not take away when he is able appears to will and thus to be the cause. But the Divine permits because it cannot prevent, or take away; for the Divine wills nothing but good; and if it were to prevent and take away evils, that is, those of punishments, vastations, persecutions, temptations, and the like, then it would will evil, for then such persons could not be amended, and evil would increase until it had the dominion over good. The case herein is like that of a king who acquits the guilty," the Writings say. "He is the cause of the evil afterward done by them in the kingdom . . . and therefore a just and good king, though able to take away punishments, nevertheless cannot do it, for in this way he would not do good, but evil" (AC 8237:2). The Writings give this further example: ". . . where a mild and clement king, who intends and does nothing but good, must needs suffer his laws to punish the evil and the wicked (although he punishes no one, but rather grieves that they are such that their evils must punish them), for otherwise he would leave his kingdom itself a prey to them; which would be the height of rigor and of unmercifulness" (AC 2447:3). So the Lord permits what He does not will because He cannot prevent it and still protect us from what is worse.
     Every injustice, tragedy, illness, madness, and disorder has its origin from what is evil.

These are from hell and dwell with us through our freedom of choice, our proprial tendencies and our unregenerate loves. The Lord permits these evils to influence us though He does not send them upon us. He cannot prevent them, yet He controls them and He uses them.
     Here is a remarkable thing about the Lord's permission: He brings something of good out of everything He permits. The fact that the Lord brings something good out of permission is the very reason it appears that the Lord purposely wills what is of evil upon man. But it is not so. The evil itself comes from a different source. When it has manifested itself, the Lord turns it to what is good. "Not the least of evil is from the Lord," the Writings declare (AC 592). Indeed, the Lord constantly works to turn whatever is of evil with us to something good, and does not allow anything of evil to enter which cannot be so turned. We read that "not one whit is permitted . . . except to the end that good may come of it . . . . Nothing whatever, not even the least thing, shall arise, except that good may come from it" (AC 6574). "The evils which are foreseen are by the provident disposition of the Lord continually bent to good . . . ." (AC 6589).
     The Scriptural account of the blind man illustrates the doctrine of permission. The cause of the man's blindness was the evil of hell. The Lord did not want this man to be born blind. He did not intend it so He could use him for an example. However, He could not prevent his blindness, given the circumstances and evil states of the world. He permitted the blindness, foreseeing that He could turn it to some use. "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him" (John 9:3).
     It is the same with everything of this world, everything that is not of order. There are murders, thefts, adulteries. There are misfortunes, deaths and sicknesses. Many suffer deprivation and persecution. Does it not appear that the disorders of the world are on the increase? Where is justice today? Who lives according to spiritual and moral principle? Even in the life of the church we seem to see a decline, a falling away from first loves. Does this mean that God is losing the battle with hell? Sometimes our faith is sorely tried.
     The Writings of the New Church assure us that the Lord is in control. While He permits what He does not will, He governs that permission by the same laws of Providence that rule all things. "The Divine Providence," we read, "is constantly moving in a way diverse from and contrary to man's will, continually intent upon its end; and in consequence, at every movement of its operation or at every step of its progress, where it observes man to be swerving from that end, it guides, bends, and directs him according to its laws, by leading him away from evil and leading him to good . . . .

This cannot be done without the permission of evil," we are told. "Moreover, nothing can be permitted without a reason, and the reason can be found only in some law of the Divine Providence, which law teaches why it is permitted" (DP 234).
     The Lord permits evils to occur only for the sake of some important reason. He permits a man to choose an evil, for example, because the man's ability to act from freedom according to his thought is essential to his life. It is more important for the man to act freely of himself and choose evil than to be forced to live in good. If he were forced to live in good, he would resent it and find no joy in it. If he is permitted to live in evil by his own choice, the Lord may yet save him and he may turn himself to the joy of a life of good.
     "Evils are permitted for the sake of the end," we are told, "which is salvation" (DP 249:3, 275-284). "Without permissions man cannot be led from evil by the Lord, and thus be reformed and saved. For unless evils were permitted to break out, man would not see them, and therefore would not acknowledge them, and thus could not be led to resist them. For this reason," the Writings add. "evils cannot be prevented by any providence; for if they were they would remain shut in, and like the diseases called cancer and gangrene would spread about and consume all that is vital in man" (DP 251).
     It is important that we know and understand the doctrine of permission. If we do not know that the Lord permits evils, and yet provides that some good may come from every evil thing that happens, we may lose our faith and trust in Him. "He who does not understand permissions," the Writings teach, "falls into doubtful and negative things respecting the power of God Messiah over the universe. But this should be known, that without permission no one can be reformed . . . . Hence are temptations, vastations, punishments, persecutions of the faithful and of the faith, and many things besides. In a word," the passage concludes, "without the permission of evils, which must be understood in a proper or wise sense, man can never be regenerated . . . ." (SD 398).
     We tend to form God into our own image of Him. Since we abhor pain and suffering for ourselves and those we love, since we do not wish to face conflict or admit that there are disorders in our lives, we want to believe in a God who prevents all these things, or removes them for us. Life is not like that, particularly life which is completely infected with hereditary tendencies to what is evil. Evils must be met according to laws of Divine order, according to laws of permission. This teaching is given in the Writings: "evils are foreseen, and goods are provided. And the evils which are foreseen are by the provident disposition of the Lord continually bent to good, for the Divine end of good reigns universally.

Hence nothing is permitted except for the end that some good may come out of it; but as man has freedom, in order that he may be reformed, he is bent from evil to good so far as he suffers himself to be bent in freedom, and (if he cannot be led to heaven) continually from the most atrocious hell, into which he makes every effort to plunge, into a milder one" (AC 6489).
     The Lord's laws of order, when rightly seen, are mercy itself. Often we fail to appreciate what the Lord does for us every passing moment of our life. He is continually working with us in a way that respects the freedom that is essential to our life and happiness, but drawing us, at the same time, out of evils. We may cry out in despair, even anger, that many things are permitted that afflict us or cause us grief. We may ask, "What have I done to deserve this? "How can the Lord let this happen?" In the wisdom of the Lord there is an answer. "In the universal spiritual world reigns the end which proceeds from the Lord, which is that nothing whatever, not even the least thing, shall arise, except that good may come from it" (AC 6574e). "The Divine end of good reigns universally" (AC 6489). "The very hairs of your head are all numbered" (Matt. 10:30).
     The intricate ways of the Lord's Providence are beyond our comprehension. As the writer of the Psalms has said, "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it." While we may not see the reason for some particular form of suffering or tragedy in our life, particularly while we are in it, yet we may have the confidence that comes from understanding the laws of providence and permission that the Lord is caring for us and looking to our eternal welfare in everything that happens to us no matter how bad it looks. If we ask the question of the Psalmist, "Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?" the answer is that the Lord is ever present. "If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me" (Ps. 139:6-10).
     The Lord is present in every situation and in every state of life. He has but one end toward which He continually works with the power of His infinite wisdom and love: that we may be saved and find eternal happiness.
     "Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them gut like a tent to dwell in.

He brings the princes to nothing; He makes the judges of the earth useless . . . . Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. There is no searching of His understanding. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not be faint" (Ps. 40:21-23, 28-31). "The Lord sits as King forever. The Lord will give strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace" (Ps. 29: 11). Amen.

LESSONS: John 9; AC 10773-10781 NEW BEGINNINGS 1986

NEW BEGINNINGS Rev. MARK R. CARLSON 1986

     With the new year upon us, by tradition we often turn our minds to a consideration of what we might do differently during the coming year. Unfortunately New Year's resolutions abound from January first to the second, but all too often die easy deaths on the third and fourth.
     Wherever this tradition started I do not know, but I do know that it is consistent with one of the central teachings of the Lord, our Father: that we examine ourselves periodically, find at least one area of our life that we see is infected with evil motives and/or disorderly behavior, and with prayerful consideration make a new beginning in that one area of our life.
     How shall we make better use of the new beginning the new year offers us? First, we might remember the teaching that every moment of our life is as a new beginning to all that follow. And that every moment of our life has a series of consequences to eternity. We are given the analogy that at each moment of our life it is as if we are shooting an arrow at a target. If we are just slightly off the mark at the first moment, the arrow goes far off the target if no adjustment is made. The word "sin" in the Greek literally means "to miss the mark." Thank the Lord that each moment provides us with a new opportunity to adjust the course of our life. Now is the time for major adjustments.
     We might reflect upon how old we are at the moment. How many years have we been sailing in essentially the same direction? How many more years are we likely to have to make the proper adjustments to our course of life? Is there reason to begin serious effort?

Or shall we take that attitude once expressed to me by an alcoholic. "Oh, I figure I have a few more years of good drinking before I have to think about stopping." And if we are serious about using the new year to make a new beginning in our life, what shall we resolve to change? Perhaps the following may be of help. Find a period of time when you will not be interrupted, and just allow your thoughts to drift back over the year past. Notice the areas of pain in your memories. Find the area of greatest pain. Now look at that pain. Resist the temptation to blame it on the behavior of others. Ask the Lord to help you see just what it is that you are doing, or what motive you are operating on, or what attitude you are holding, that keeps this pain going. Remember, spiritual or emotional pain is just as much a danger signal that something is wrong as is a pain in your body. It may take more than one period of examination to find what it is that you must change to make the pain go away. In your prayers ask the Lord to show you very clearly what you are to work on. When you know what it is, make that your New Year's resolution.
Take that resolution to the Lord's Holy Supper, and present it to the Lord as that which you most seek His help with. Keep it in mind as you eat His bread and drink His wine. And most important of all, actually put the change into your life through your own self-compulsion. At first this may seem difficult, and you will have to fight the temptation to forget it or return to the old way. But if you persist, you will perceive a change within yourself. The effort required to maintain the resolution will gradually diminish, until it requires no effort at all and becomes a part of you, and part of your true nature. This is the Lord's work. May we all allow Him to do it in the year to come.
NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 100 YEARS AGO Editor 1986

A hundred years ago this month the LIFE described "The Swedenborg Calendar" for the year 1886. It had "a portrait of Swedenborg, a likeness of his garden study, and one of the Swedish church in London in which Swedenborg was buried." Many Swedenborg calendars have since been published. Eventually the Swedenborg Foundation started printing pocket date books. This year's is especially attractive and it includes a good number of quotations on the subject of charity.
This year the Swedenborg Society published a calendar with delightful scenes from Great Britain.

ASK AND IT SHALL BE GIVEN TO YOU 1986

ASK AND IT SHALL BE GIVEN TO YOU Rev. KENT JUNGE 1986

     A CHARTER DAY ADDRESS

     ". . . Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you . . . If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?" (Luke 11:9-13).

     Our God has invited us; He has urged us to come to Him with whatever is on our minds. He has made His guidance available to those who ask.
     "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you want, and it shall be done for you" (John 15:7).
     "All things whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive" (Matt. 21:22).
     If the Lord gives His Holy Spirit to those who ask; if He gives us whatever we faithfully ask for in prayer, then it seems only logical that He will give us a straightforward answer if we ask Him a simple question.
     Yet, the questions we put to God are rarely simple, and His answers often do not seem at all straightforward.
     When we come to the Lord for clarification, our question is usually very involved. There is a lot at stake. We care about an issue we would bring before the Lord.
     Think for a moment what you would ask if you were granted an interview with the Lord. Imagine being brought into the Lord's presence and being allowed to ask Him anything face to face. You would probably not ask Him about how to conjugate a verb or what were the causes of the Spanish-American War. You would be more likely to ask, "Why is it so hard to make friends?" or, "Why can't my aunt and uncle get a divorce? They really tried, but they just don't love each other any more." Or, "Why did that sophomore girl have to die in the car accident? I mean, she wasn't even the one who had been drinking." These questions are hardly simple.
     And what of the Lord's answers? There are times when we've gone through the awkwardness of approaching Him in prayer. We've pored through His Word for inspiration and instruction; we've phrased our question to Him with as much respect and reverence as possible; then we've waited for an answer . . . and we've gotten nothing . . . no hints . . . no guidelines . . . not even a feeling of reassurance.

     When this happens, we may become frustrated, even angry with the Lord. We have the sense that we have to fight to get answers from Him.
     Strangely, the Lord not only tolerates our wrestling with Him for answers-He actually seems to encourage it. The Word is full of stories in which people are praised for their persistence in trying to get something from the Lord.
     We've read about Jacob who, after many years, was waiting to be reunited with his brother Esau. Esau had become a powerful man during this time; and Jacob, remembering how badly he had once treated Esau, was scared. He wanted some kind of reassurance-a blessing from the Lord. While Jacob waited, he met a stranger who wrestled with him until dawn. The man said to Jacob, "Let me go, for the day breaks." But Jacob held on. "I will not let you go unless you bless me!" Jacob received his blessing, and was told, "You have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed." He could only look back in wonder. "I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
     In the New Testament we are told the story of a woman who came to Jesus on behalf of her daughter who was possessed by demons. The disciples tried to dissuade her. "Send her away, for she cries out after us." But the woman persisted. Jesus bluntly reminded her that she was a gentile, and His first concern was with the Israelites. The woman persisted. Jesus finally turned to her and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs." Still, the woman persisted. "True, Lord . . . but even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from, their master's table." Because of the woman's faith, her daughter was cured.
     In urging us to be persistent, Jesus gives the example of a man who wakes up his friend in the middle of the night to ask if he can borrow some bread. Even if his friend will not give him bread for the sake of friendship, he will give it to him because of his persistence. It would seem that we must be equally persistent in trying to get answers, even if it seems that God Himself is standing in the way.
     Now, we know that confusion and vagueness are not from the Lord; they are from hell. The Lord does not intentionally make our search for truth difficult. The torments and struggles which we go through in getting answers are not what the Lord wants for us. In the Third Testament we read, "Temptations and torments appear as if from the Divine, because they come forth through the Lord's presence; but still they are not from the Divine or from the Lord but are from the evils and falsities which are in him who is being tempted or tormented" (AC 4299:3).

     Whatever the source of our struggle, though, it certainly seems as if it comes from the Lord, and we might wonder why it is that He even lets it appear that we have to fight Him to get at the truth.
     To understand our struggle for answers we need to understand that there are two different kinds of questions which we ask-two different ways in which we fight for answers.
     There are questions which have to do with what we understand and questions which have to do with what we love-what we desperately want out of life.
     Our battle for understanding involves facts and concepts. When we ask a question for understanding, we are looking for clarification-trying to make sense out of things. We may fight to get answers, but we fight with the playful feistiness which goes along with being curious about life. It is this curiosity which might lead you to look under the hood of a car in search of the distributor; or to sit for hours watching game films, trying to figure out how to stop an off-tackle play; or to call someone long distance just so they will remind you how to keep a souffle from falling. The answers we fight to understand may not be especially practical. Our battle may take place in a classroom where we try to imagine what life would be like in a fourth dimension. When we wrestle for understanding, we often wrestle simply for fun. The facts which we play with may not be essential in themselves. An argument with a math teacher takes place in good spirits because you know and he knows you could easily survive the rest of your life without ever consciously using geometry.
     We tend to think of religion as being serious business, yet our God encourages us to tussle with the facts and concepts which make up our religious faith. Do descriptions about life after death sound bizarre to you? Do explanations of the differences between men and women not ring true? Does it seem like a contradiction to say that the Lord foresees everything, but we are still free? Ask somebody about it. Ask the Lord. If the answer doesn't make sense, back up, rephrase the question, and ask again.
     The Lord puts up with our arguments the way a mother dog endures the nips and tussling of her puppies. He allows Himself to be the target of our intellectual frustration. He does this not because He is helpless to stop it or because it's an inevitable stage we're going through. He puts up with our wrestling for understanding now because He knows it is essential for our spiritual survival later on. Through our arguments we are going through a conditioning program. We are developing spiritual reflexes for when we must fight for our very lives.

     The time will come when everything we've come to care about no longer makes any sense. We will make our best efforts to sort out our lives only to have them thrown back in our face. Frustrated with doing things the wrong way, we will try to do things the right way and find that that doesn't work either. This time, when we look to the Lord for answers we are not looking for an intellectual explanation. We are not looking for truth for its own sake. We are looking for that comforting Spirit of Truth which at one time helped our lives to work. This gentle all-encompassing Spirit of Truth is the Holy Spirit which Jesus promised us if we would only ask.
     Our wrestling for answers then becomes temptation-a struggle not just to understand, but to protect something which we dearly love. We are told that an attack on some concept which we are considering is not a real temptation. When something we've come to believe in and love is attacked, it is then that we fight for our very lives.
     Compare the feelings you have as you debate about Providence in a classroom to the feelings you would have in watching someone you care about become senile. This person whom you've always gone to for advice and encouragement now no longer even recognizes you, even screams profanities at you when you try to talk to him. You watch as he fades in and out of consciousness. You see his humiliation as he tries to remember things and can't.
     Nothing explains why this is happening. No one seems to answer your sense of betrayal, your feelings of helplessness. To make matters worse, you are angry-not just angry at the situation, at God, but angry at the person for allowing himself to become senile. You feel guilty about this anger, but it will not go away.
     In the classroom you learned to grapple with intellectual confusion. For a while you experienced a time when things didn't make much sense. Now there is no bell to end the class. The endurance of your love is being tested, and a new kind of persistence is required. Now more than ever you must ask-ask for an answer of peace and reassurance which will be a long time coming; ask for the courage and stamina it will take to survive in the meantime.
     In the classroom you had the sensation of struggling with God Himself to learn the truth. Now, your arguments with God have taken on a new tone. God seems not just the source of your confusion, but the very cause of your pain.
     Even in the midst of temptations, then, the Lord continues to allow us to think we are fighting with Him. Eventually we come to see that it is hell which we have been battling in our fight for survival. But hell is not always an obvious influence on our life.

In our worst temptations we are not confronted with convenient images of devils with pitchforks urging us toward evil. Instead, we are faced with meaningless emptiness and despair. In allowing us to lash out against Himself, the Lord gives us something which we can struggle with during these times. Without this, without something to push up against in our frustration, we would cave in altogether.
     Our lifelong struggle for truth is not just an academic diversion. It is not by accident that we find ourselves in arguments with the Lord.
     To be sure, there are proper and improper ways to enter into a debate with God. No one appreciates the man who approaches life as if he were some kind of investigative reporter constantly probing for dirt. No one wants to deal with the pessimist who argues simply to prove that nothing really works. It is hard to imagine the Lord appreciating such negative approaches.
     If we have doubts to discuss with the Lord, they should be doubts which lead us to hope for, yearn for-even to expect-an answer from the Lord which is true. When we argue, we should argue affirmatively.
     If we want more than a factual answer, however, if we want the truth which really makes a difference in our lives, we will have to ask for it again and again.
     "Ask and it will be given to you." It is not a cruel God who invites us to ask for the truth and then seems to demand that we fight for it.
     "Seek and you shall find." The Lord allows arguments in our search for the truth so that we will be in top condition for the life and death struggle of temptation.
     "Knock and it will be opened to you." Even in temptation, the Lord allows us to think that He is the cause of our problems. As He gives us a focus for our struggles, we will find the persistence necessary to survive.
     The truth which we have come to love will be given to us, and the God we have imagined is our enemy will be seen instead as the source of that truth. In response to our request. He will come into our lives to comfort us.
     Through our persistence we will have gained the Holy Spirit of truth for which we asked. Amen.

     LESSONS: Luke 11:9-13, Matt. 15:21-28, Gen. 32:6, 9-12, 24-30, AC 4274

NEW CHURCH-A TRUE LIBERATOR OF MODERN WOMEN 1986

NEW CHURCH-A TRUE LIBERATOR OF MODERN WOMEN MARIANNE SHARPE 1986

     or

     Is the New Church Relevant to Modern Life?

     A BANQUET ADDRESS

     When I think of modern life, the adjectives hectic, frantic, mechanistic, automotive and computerized spring to mind, so how can I say that the church is relevant when none of these adjectives applies to it? The church is relevant because it helps me to handle one seldom-mentioned aspect of modern life its emptiness or meaninglessness. The church's teachings show me how to fill my life so that I don't become overwhelmed by the pace and loneliness of modern life.
     In particular, the church's teachings have given me the strength to deal with the modern pressures involved in the "dating game," women's liberation and fatalism.

     Conjugial Love vs. the Dating Game

     The "dating game" as played by many of my contemporaries seems to be fraught with anxiety and need. Knowing that the right person exists as taught in Conjugial Love, relieves much of my anxiety. Instead of frantically trying to hold onto "wrong" relationships, in case no one else comes my way, I can let go.
     The passage in CL that has sustained me most during this last year, when I've had no one, and have reached the age at which one is considered a "bachelor" girl if not married, is CL 293, paragraph 6. I quote from a portion of it:

     Tell the inhabitants of earth with whom you a re that there is a love truly conjugial, the delights of which are myriad. As yet scarcely any of them are known to the world, but the world will know them when the church betroths herself to her Lord, and becomes His bride.

     Knowing this, and believing this, does not keep me on a sane path all the time, and I am often affected by that same freneticism and anxiety that I notice in my contemporaries. I begin to doubt my ability to carry on believing the truth of the teaching should I reach 30 and still be single. This pattern of negative thinking destroys my serenity, and I experience an intensity of need. Instead of preparing myself for the conjugial through use and efforts at ordering my life, I then get caught up in playing the "dating game."

     One of the worst aspects of the dating game, as I see it, is that external appearances govern the choice of partner. When I play the game I feel more conjugially lonely than when I have no one, because the internal dissimilitudes are often so great. The loneliness I feel recedes in direct proportion to the amount of faith I have in the teaching I quoted above. At this stage, I feel hopeful that I will meet my conjugial partner in this world, and despite having no one, I don't have a hollow feeling inside, because I know that the Lord has someone, somewhere for me.

     Love of Feminine Uses and True Liberation

     Modern women are as imprisoned by the expectations of the women's lib movement nowadays as they were by earlier socially prescribed roles. The new expectations have, in my experience, led to confusion and unhappiness, and by blocking feminine uses, may be directly responsible for the breakdown of marriages and society generally. After all, "To live for others is to perform uses: uses are the bonds of society . . ." (TCR 746).
     As I am involved in forensic duties, I cannot say that working is wrong for women, but what I say in the light of CL 175 is that in undertaking any forensic duties I must accept that I will perform them differently from a man, as, and I quote, "will, affection and love play the leading part" in my response to the demands of the work situation.
     I have had the opportunity of seeing the unhappiness and confusion of friends, who, in endeavouring to be modern women, have abandoned their feminine uses only to feel lost and unfulfilled. They feel failures, since the modern business woman, whether manager or secretary, is conditioned into believing that she will find the same fulfillment as her male counterpart, provided she is successful. There is an enormous amount of pressure on such women to "prove" themselves. If they would only utilise those aspects of their feminine nature most appropriate for the job, they would surely be happier, and subsequently probably more "successful."
     When I see the quandary that many women friends are in, I am very grateful for the teaching in CL 175, particularly paragraph 2, and again I quote:

     It is thought by many that women can perform the offices of men if only they are initiated into them from the earliest age, as are boys. They can indeed be initiated into the exercise of them, but not into the judgment on which the right performance of the offices inwardly depends. Therefore in matters of judgment, women who have been initiated into the offices of men are constrained to consult men, and then if they are in the enjoyment of their own right, they choose from their counsel what favours their own love.

     I am liberated from the pressures of competing with males, and am free to really enjoy those feminine, "domestic" uses which give me a deep glow of satisfaction. The "creation" of beauty for the enjoyment of others, such as arranging flowers, is essentially a feminine use, and I truly believe that if I did not have the church, and was as involved with modern psychology as I am, I would have missed these delights by stubbornly insisting on my "rights," as some friends do even to the detriment of their marriages.

     Divine Providence vs. Fatalism

     How different is Divine Providence from fatalism? For years I never really knew the difference, and consequently avoided thinking too much about it. Now I know that they are worlds apart, primarily because of their effect on use. Divine Providence encourages one to perform uses, whereas fatalism is paralyzing. Divine Providence is the government of the Divine Love and Wisdom of the Lord-and I stress wisdom-and has as its end a heaven from the human race. Fatalism, on the other hand, presupposes a pre-planned, uncontrollable direction to our lives, with no "reasoning" behind it, and no good end assured. Divine Providence liberates man, and fatalism confines him.
     The laws of Divine Providence as laid out in Divine Providence nos. 71-187 explain so much to me and have helped me to understand my life events in retrospect and to turn to the Lord for guidance in daily living.
     Briefly these laws are:

1.      That man should act from freedom according to reason.
2.      That man should as from himself remove evils as sins in the external man; and thus and not otherwise can the Lord remove evils in the internal man, and then at the same time in the external.
3.      That man should not be compelled by external means to think and will, and thus to believe and love, the things of religion, but should persuade and at times compel himself to do so.
4.      That man should be led and taught by the Lord from heaven by means of the Word, and this to all appearances as of himself.

     And finally,

     That it is a law of the Divine Providence that man should not perceive and feel anything of the operation of the Divine Providence,-but still that he should know and acknowledge it.

     When I acknowledge the mistakes I have made, I realise that before them all I had failed to turn to the Lord and say, "Thy will be done," and instead had gaily gone on my way. I have often been guilty of acting SELF-ishly, rather than as of self, and it is at those times that I make the biggest mistakes. In ignorance of the true meaning of Divine Providence and its end I have questioned the unfortunate or unpleasant events in my life.

     And now? Now, I find it easier to work with the Lord in mind, although I do not do it all the time. I also feel more able to cope with the unexpected "curved balls" that life "throws at me." I now believe, in my heart of hearts, that we are never given more than we can handle. Looking back, I see that when I didn't cope with problems or stresses, it was because I:

1.      failed to turn to the Lord, and
2.      failed to use the talents or positive characteristics with which I have been blessed.

     I am learning now, albeit slowly, that I am free to choose the path of least resistance or the path of conscious effort, because as the first law of Divine Providence states: "Man should act from freedom according to reason."
     In closing, I would like to say that I am grateful that the Lord in His Providence saw fit to lead our family into the New Church, for its teachings have brought me a greater freedom than would have been possible had I never known them. I am freed of the chains of conforming to modern standards which seem to bring confusion and great unhappiness to all spheres of life. I do not have to sleep around to prove my attractiveness to the opposite sex, nor do I have to reject my femininity in the work sphere as the price of success. And finally, I do not have to waste hours wondering, frustratedly, why. The teachings on conjugial love, uses and the Divine Providence particularly have opened up so much to me at this stage of my life, and I hope that now that you have heard my paper, you will understand why I entitled it "The New Church-A True Liberator of Modern Women."
     Thank you.
TRUSTING IN THE DIVINE 1986

TRUSTING IN THE DIVINE Editor 1986

For those who trust in the Divine all things advance toward a happy state to eternity, and whatever befalls them in time is still conducive thereto. Be it known that the Divine Providence is universal, that is, in things the most minute; and that they who are in the stream of Providence are all the time carried along toward everything that is happy, whatever may be the appearance of the means; and that those are in the stream of Providence who put their trust in the Divine and attribute all things to Him (Arcana Coelestia 8478).

CHILD IN US 1986

CHILD IN US Rev. ROBIN W. CHILDS 1986

     Although least in stature in the family, the toddler is often the most beloved as he or she approaches siblings, parents, any adult or child. With searching eyes and some little treasure or morsel of food in hand they make their offer, awaiting the moment you receive their gift and melt into a smile. In an instant they strike off to get you a new goody, assured of making you pleased with every return. The same infant receiving a gift from you, once over the wonder of the wrapping paper, is most delighted when he can take that gift and lay it in your lap. Why is it that you would never tire of laying a hand on them or holding them as you say the Lord's prayer at bedside? They quietly stare at you, hearing and feeling the gentle hum of your voice uttering those holy words. The Lord while on this earth embraced and touched little children and spoke tenderly about them to those who would listen. What is the message and feeling He wants us to receive that will touch, nurture, and protect the little child in each of us?
     We are aware that an infant touches us through innocence. To find out as adults how we may be born again as infants we must seek to discover what the quality of innocence is, and then how we may attain it. Love and charity, or what is human itself from the Lord, flows into innocence within us (see AC 4797:2). Genuine wisdom from the Lord is able to dwell only within innocence (Ibid.). From these teachings we can see that innocence enables us to receive genuine wisdom, love, and charity from the Lord. Innocence alone acknowledges and receives the Lord and makes effective praise, communication, influx, and all access to the Lord (see BC 5236). All these teachings tell us what innocence receives and facilitates, but we are still left with questions about what it is and how the giving nature of a child may grow and dwell within us. The Lord answers these important questions if we will put ourselves into the company of the disciples and heed the answer to their question. "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
     Our Lord responds first by calling a little child into our midst and then says: "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become again as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 18:1-3).
     How often as adults are we filled with a desire to be acknowledged as great or greatest among our peers? (See AC 3417:2.) Like the disciples we may even come down to imagining not only how important and honored we may be on earth, but also how we will surely be taken into our angelic society as a long awaited member or even a ruler.

The Lord doesn't chastise us directly, but instead calls to Himself a little child and tells us that we must become like him. He uses this gentle sphere to give us cause to pull back from the love of honor and preeminence to which we so often give rein. We become aware of self-serving and with a healthy dose of shame may then humbly seek the way of a child. We should pray to the Lord daily asking the wisdom to unveil and shun self-enhancing spheres, so that as children we may come to Him for the protection and comfort of His arms. If we shun the love of honor often enough, a love of serving or giving gifts to others will warm us. Our delight in seeing joy in the eyes of another will be as sincere and innocent as the child with a searching gaze who lays a little treasure in our hand.
     Coupled with the love of self-enhancement is a feeling of merit. Merit directly opposes innocence (see AC 3394:1-7). As we turn our back on self-enhancement the hells will reach out to grab us with a feeling of righteousness or merit. Before we can completely turn our back and take even one step toward the Lord, meritorious fingers stretch out to find a firm grip. Part of our prayer to the Lord then will also include asking the wisdom to see when merit reaches for us so that we may flee to the Lord for protection. The presence of merit can be made obvious no matter how stealthy the approach, when we ask the Lord in His wisdom to have us sense it. Then we reach the Lord's arms if we call on Him to overthrow the evil spirits who seek us. Emerson, who read the Writings of Swedenborg, once alluded to the ease with which we are given to recognize merit when he said that every time he did something charitable for another person and humbly received their thanks, out of the corner of his eye he was embarrassed to see his shadow taking many bows.
     With an increasing absence of merit when we work with the Lord to shun self-enhancement, serving others becomes a source of joy. The goodness the Lord accomplishes through us is seen as a gift He gives to us. Like the child given a gift we can cast off merit like wrapping paper, and then eagerly carry the credit for all goodness back to our Lord. Our own thankfulness and joy can then be gratitude for our part in allowing the Lord to serve others through us.
     So the Lord first tells us who will be greatest in the kingdom of heaven by calling a child to Himself. Somehow with that simple gesture our clamoring tendencies to enhance ourselves or take credit for the good accomplished through us become exposed. The Lord allows us to feel our own shame quietly and speaks on to instruct us while we humbly receive His words. So with the child still near Him we hear our Lord first say:

"Whoever offends one of these little ones who believe in Me, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea" (Matt. 18:6).
     This taken simply, the Lord is warning us of the offense that endangers us when we adulterate the truths of His Word (see AR 791:1). To use for selfish ends the truths the Lord reveals is to hang them about our necks and cast ourselves into the depths of hell (Ibid.). If we use them only to appear honorable or to speak morally while living for ourselves alone, we condemn ourselves. We are also in danger of misleading or perverting the innocence of others (see AE 1182:3). A millstone is meant to be used for making bread or applying truth to a life of serving the good in others (see AC 10303:6).
     We may pause here and protest that the pursuit of innocence is becoming too complicated a task. This is not true if we realize that in shunning self-enhancement and merit, as the Lord first exhorts, the millstone will be used to make bread. Our charity will be genuine and nourishing. When the Lord in this context refers to an offending eye, hand and foot, He is exhorting us to use our understanding to watch where and how our senses are being led. Is our eye undiscerning about taking in messages which oppose the truth, and as such, leading us to serving self and not to nourishing others?
     In particular, the Lord wishes us to know that by example we greatly affect the way others use their understanding to serve either self or the neighbor. We determine that the entertainment we or our children choose does nothing to profane the holiness of the Word. The lessons we walk away with from authors or film-makers should agree with or be contrasted to what the Lord teaches us. Are unselfish virtues being portrayed or are self-seeking ends being championed? The eye of the understanding must discern which of these paths our senses are being led on. Are we being encouraged to nourish others or to use them? For our own spiritual welfare and those we love it is important that we take some time each day to walk with the Lord and talk with Him. Only in the letter and spirit of the Lord's Word may His innocent sphere lift ours and expose our desire to be greatest or to take meritorious bows. The worldly knowledge we bring to our work or recreation must be infilled with heavenly knowledge. The worldly craving for receiving honor and merit from others must be prayerfully exposed and shunned throughout our day if we are to become a child who gives gifts to our Father and to all His children. Using the Lord's teachings to appear honorable and righteous will be the millstone which plummets us into self-seeking ends which can never be satisfied (see AC 9755:15). Our potential for using our understanding to walk with the Lord and seek His unselfish loves will languish; we will have no morsel of bread in hand to offer (see AE 186:8, AC 3863:10).

The child in us and others is led to sin, and for this reason the Lord then appeals to us to:

Take heed that you despise not one of these little ones for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven (Matt. 18:10).

     The Lord then follows this warning with the parable of the lost sheep and speaks gently to us saying:

Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish (Matt. 18:14).

     Directly understood in both the letter and spirit of His words, the Lord is asking us not to despise the child He holds. The holiness of innocence with the child is from the angels with him who are inmostly innocent. These highest angels look into the face of the Lord who is their beloved source of all love, goodness, and innocence (see AE 412:5, 254:4). They are the sheep who stay on the mountain protected and loved by the Lord. They will not stray again into thoughtlessness or evil intentions (see AE 405:33). So we should take this warning literally but also realize that we despise this sweet presence of the Lord in anyone when we harm his innocence through our self-seeking spheres. Children, we trust, are protected from our selfish states just as it is said in the Word that they are able to play among vipers without being hurt (see AC 5608:5-7). The Lord as our Father wishes that the child in each of us will never perish. So we should come when He calls us to obey His commandments while shunning self-enhancement and merit. Then we become humble, or make ourselves lease, as we serve others. Yet we become greatly filled with love for the Lord and all His children. The innocence within us at birth penetrates our interiors as we are reborn to remain forever a child of our Father who is in heaven.
     "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me" (Matt. 18:3-5)
STATE OF CHILDREN 1986

STATE OF CHILDREN Editor 1986

They are contented and happy with little trifles given them as presents. They have no worry about food and clothing, or about what is going to happen. They do not focus their attention on the world and covet a great many things from it . . . . They allow themselves to be led; they listen and obey (Heaven and Hell 277).

Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     ANGELS

     We quote from the Arcana Caelestia 9814.

Who could possibly believe that within the church, where there is the Word and the consequent enlightenment about Divine and heavenly things, ignorance so great should reign that it is not known that angels and spirits are in the human form, and appear to themselves as people; and that it is known still less that they appear clothed in garments? That this is the case falls not only into doubt but also into total denial with those who are so much immersed in outward things as to believe that the body alone lives, and that all is nothing which they do not see with the bodily eyes and touch with the bodily hands (n. 18111); when yet the heavens are full of people, who are angels.

     We noted last month that people tend to have a striking ambiguity on the subject of angels, because on the one hand they have an implanted true idea about angels but on the other hand various doctrines which contradict this idea. Is it not true that if someone talks about life after death, forgetting for a moment his contrary doctrines, he "believes that after death he is to live as a man, and among angels if he has lived well, and that he will then see magnificent things and perceive joys; but as soon as he turns his thoughts to the doctrine of reunion with the body, or to his theory about the soul, and the question arises whether the soul be such, and thus whether this can be true, his former idea is dissipated."
     This quotation is from Heaven and Hell 183, a passage if I which we learn that Swedenborg talked to angels concerning ignorance and unbelief. The angels replied that they were aware of the ignorance that prevails and the notion that angels "fly around in the air." but they said that people would understand this subject better "if only they would think independently of their acquired notions about angels."
     The reader of the Writings is urged to think independently of old notions about the soul:

Put away from you the idea that the soul is like an exhalation, and then think of your own state, or of the state of your friends, or of the state of your infants after death. Will you not think that you will live as a man, and they likewise? And since there is no life which is life without the senses, you cannot think otherwise than that they also see, hear, and speak; thus also panegyrists write over the deceased, placing them in heaven among the angels . . .

     You may believe then, as the truth is, that you are a man after death as well as before it, with only the difference that there is between the natural and the spiritual. Thus also all those think who believe in eternal life, and know nothing of this hypothetical tradition concerning the soul (Continuation of Last Judgment 6).

     The angels commented that wrong ideas about angels prevail "more with the intelligent than with those whom they call simple" (HH 183). There is a kind of confirmation of this in a large unabridged dictionary. The first definition of "angel" is "theological," and it speaks of an order of spiritual beings that are not people who have lived on earth. But a second definition is given relating to "popular thought." And that definition is "the glorified spirit of a deceased person."

     MORE ABOUT LETTERS IN HEAVEN

     Unable to Express in Spoken Words

     To add to our thinking about writing letters in heaven, we might consider a remarkable thing said in the chapter in Heaven and Hell about writings in heaven.

By means of these, angels express the arcana of their wisdom, and also many things which they are unable to express in spoken words (HH 260).

     We should hasten to add that this passage is talking about things that are written in writing consisting of inflected and circumflected forms. We might say that something is conveyed by the handwriting itself.
     I must relate something to which I was witness. A New Church woman who lived near Sydney, Australia, had a daughter living far away from whom she received frequent letters. She told me (her visiting pastor) that she could tell how things had been going for her daughter by looking at the unopened envelope. The handwriting of the address conveyed the mood. And it was borne out when the envelope was opened! The happy news or sad news (and nuances in between) was reflected both in the specifics of the letter itself and in the handwriting (as detected by a mother).
     Well, these days people don't handwrite their letters usually, and something personal is thereby lost, yet we do express ourselves differently when we write to someone. There are some married couples who write to each other regularly, even when they are not separated by travels. And they say that there is something special and valuable about this kind of communication.

     THE WORD IN CHINA

     In Nanjing, People's Republic of China, a printing press is to be established which is designed to produce at least 250,000 Bibles and 500,000 New Testaments each year, plus hymn books and other Christian and educational literature.
     On October 31, 1985, The Amity Foundation and Nanjing Normal University signed a letter of intent looking toward the setting up of this press, which is to be called the "Amity Printing Press."
     For more than a decade it was impossible for regular and adequate Bible supplies to be provided for the Christian churches in China (of which there are more than 3,600). The American Bible Society will be supplying new printing and binding machinery for what they call "the immense need for Bibles that exists in the Christian churches throughout China."
     There is allusion in the Writings to the distant goal of missionaries to bring the Word to "all who dwell on the earth" (DP 254: see also 257). It was of the Divine Providence that Europeans should travel to "many parts of the habitable globe," their commerce extending over the world.
     "And everywhere the Word is read by them, or there is teaching from the Word." This is taught in number 256 of Divine Providence where we read: "it is a wonderful thing that where the Word is read with reverence and the Lord is worshiped from the Word the Lord is present together with heaven . . . . Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them" (emphasis added).

     DISCOVERY ABOUT DIETRICH BONHOEFFER

     He is called in the Britannica "one of the most influential Protestant theologians of the mid 20th century." He stood against what he called "cheap grace" or an unlimited offer of forgiveness which in fact served as a cover for ethical laxity. Some have wondered if he had any Swedenborgian connections. A few weeks ago I saw letters in the files of the Swedenborg Foundation that show that he did. A new employee of the foundation, Lieschen Redelin, who reads German, made the discovery. Around the time that Bonhoeffer became a lecturer at the University of Berlin he visited the United States and attended a New Church service. A letter from someone who was with him states that he left the service saying with disappointment that he could have heard a sermon like that anywhere. Apparently he expected more distinctly New Church emphasis. The witness commented that at that time this particular Convention church was not emphasizing the Writings.

In the book Existentialism and the New Christianity by H. Barnitz Bonhoeffer is quoted as follows:

"The only way the church can defend her own territory is by fighting not for it, but for the salvation of the world. Otherwise the church becomes a 'religious society' which fights in its own interests, and thereby ceases to be the church of God and of the world." (See pages 184, 185.)
POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG 1986

POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG Editor 1986

     LEON LE VAN'S DISCOVERY OF THE WRITINGS

     We are in this issue giving more examples of the "Poems from Swedenborg" which we began to print in the December issue. Here is a little bit about the life of Rev. Leon C. Le Van.
     After graduating from college (Oberlin College in Ohio) Mr. Le Van was for years a seeker for truth, reading much literature of a theosophical nature. One day in 1935 an elderly man (a total stranger) said to him, "I want to give you a book." The man was a field distributor, a "colporteur" for the Swedenborg Foundation. He showed Mr. Le Van a pile of New Church paperbacks and gave him three of them. Mr. L. Van took them home and started that evening on Heaven and Hell, and in the fifty years since that time he has been reading the Writings regularly!
     He eventually enrolled in the New Church Theological School in Cambridge, Mass., and was ordained as a minister. He served in the New Church in Providence, R.I., for three years, in Pittsburgh for eighteen years and the church in St. Petersburg for 16 years.
     He says, "During all those years I maintained an affectional relationship with the General Convention, the General Church, the British Conference and with Nova Hierosolyma. As the 300th anniversary of Swedenborg's birth approaches in 1988, may the New Church throughout the world rejoice in what the Lord is accomplishing even here in these difficult days."

     Paradisiac Scenes

The spiritual angels
Are clothed in garments
Of fine linen and silk-
Generally
In shining garments;
And as the spiritual heavens
Correspond to the eyes
There are paradisiac scenes
Appearing in many places,
Rainbow-colored,
And these are
Of ineffable beauty.
AE 831

     Utterly Averse

They whose sins are remitted
Experience a delight
In worshiping God
For His own sake,
And in serving the neighbor
For the sake of the neighbor-
In doing good
For the sake of good,
And in speaking truth
For the sake of truth.
Such persons disclaim all merit
In the exercise
Of their charity and faith;
They are utterly averse
To all evils-
As enmity, hatred,
Revenge, adultery,
And not only do they shun them
But they abhor
The very thought of them.
NJHD 167

     No Longer from Self

By "good works" are meant
All things and every thing
That a man does
After he has turned away
From evils
Because they are sins
Against God;
For he then no longer
Does good works from self
But from the Lord.
AE 837

     Lord Enters

Whenever lasciviousness
Is removed
Chastity enters;
Whenever intemperance
Is removed
Temperance enters;
Whenever deceit
Is removed
Sincerity enters;
Whenever hatred
And the delight of revenge
Are removed
Love and the delight
Of love and friendship
Enter,
And so in other cases,
And this for the reason
That the Lord enters
And heaven with Him.
AE 790

     Free Worship

Worship not compelled
(When it is genuine)
Is spiritual, living.
Clear, and joyful:
Spiritual
Because there is spirit
From the Lord in it,
Living
Because there is life
From the Lord in it,
Clear
Because there is wisdom
From the Lord in it,
And joyful
Because there is heaven
From the Lord in it.
DP 137

     Appropriated

Nothing is appropriated
To man
Except what he does
From freedom
In accordance
With reason.
DP 138

     By Lord Alone

For several years
I have talked
With spirits and angels;
Nor has any spirit dared
(Or any angel wished)
To instruct me
About any matter
In the Word,
Or about any matter
Of doctrine from the Word;
But I have been taught
By the Lord alone.
DP 135

     Origin Appears

In this world
No one can determine
Whether works are
From the Lord or from man,
Since in external form
The two kinds
Appear the same,
And they can be distinguished
By the Lord alone;
But after man's life
In the world
Their origin is made evident.
AE 794

     See More Clearly

Many of the learned
Who have thought much,
And especially
Who have written much,
Have weakened and obscured
(Yea, have destroyed)
Their common perception;
While the simple
See more clearly
What is good and true
Than those who think themselves
Their superiors in wisdom.
DLW 361

     Doing Uses

By uses

Goods are meant;
And therefore
Doing uses
Means doing goods;
And doing uses or goods
Means serving others
And ministering to them.
DP 215

     In Fulness

In the sense of the letter
The Word is
In its fulness,
Its holiness,
And its power,
Because the two prior senses
Which are called
Spiritual and celestial
Exist simultaneously
in the natural sense,
Which is the sense
Of the letter.
TCR 214

     Last State Worse

He who returns to his evils
After he has worshiped
Profanes
The goods and truths
Of worship;
And the lot after death
Of those who commit
Profanation
Is the worst of all.
Such as these are meant
By the Lord's words
That their last state
Becomes worse
Than their first.
DP 133

     Extinguish

"Thou hast a name
That thou livest
And art dead."
They are called "dead"
Who believe
Life to be from nature
And thus believe
Nature to be the light of life
And thereby bury,
Suffocate, and extinguish
Every idea of God,
Of heaven,
And of Eternal life.
In consequence of so doing
Such persons
Are like owls
Which see light in darkness
And darkness in light.
Influx 10

     Descending Influx

It is well known
That all the good of love
And all the truth of faith
Flow into man from God
And that no portion of them
Is from man himself;
And whatever flows from God
Flows into his soul
And by the soul
into the rational mind
And by this into the organs
Which constitute the body.
Influx 8

     Wise Man

The wise man
Thinks above sensual things
And when thought is elevated
Above what is sensual
It enters into clearer light
And finally
Into the light of heaven;
From this
Man has perception of truth
Which is properly intelligence.
TCR 402

     Impossible

It is impossible to believe
That heaven and hell
Are from the human race
If it is believed
That no man can go there
Until the end
Of the world.
HH 312 DR. ODHNER TO SPEAK AT SWEDISH HOUSE OF NOBLES 1986

DR. ODHNER TO SPEAK AT SWEDISH HOUSE OF NOBLES Editor 1986

As editor of the second Latin edition of Swedenborg's Diary, newly entitled Experientiae Spirituales (Academy of the New Church, 1983-?), Dr. J. Durban Odhner has been invited by the Scandinavian Swedenborg Society to address that culturally and scholastically eminent Swedish organization on the occasion of their 1986 celebration of Swedenborg's birthday. The presentation will take place at the House of Nobles ("Riddarhuset"), where Swedenborg himself spoke many times.
Dr. Odhner will be accompanied by his wife Carroll, who has received a grant from the Carpenter Fund to spend a week in Stockholm acquainting herself with people, places and collections connected with Swedenborgiana and visiting certain antiquariats on behalf of the Academy of the New Church Library.
WERE YOU AT THE PITTSBURGH NEW CHURCH SCHOOL? 1986

WERE YOU AT THE PITTSBURGH NEW CHURCH SCHOOL? Editor 1986

The Pittsburgh New Church School, now in its 101st year of continuous operation, is compiling an illustrated history.
The book will include a record of all who passed through its portals as students or teachers. If you have attended or taught in this school or can help us to compile a complete list, please write to: Rev. Ray Silverman, 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208.

EUROPEAN CLERGY 1986

EUROPEAN CLERGY Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh 1986

     The European area clergy of the General Church shared a delightful experience in October, 1985. We had a semi-formal get-together in Colchester. England, from Thursday the 17th to Saturday the 19th. Attending were the Rev. Messrs. Bjorn A. H. Boyesen from Sweden, Frederick C. Elphick from London, Daniel Fitzpatrick from Sweden, Ottar T. Larsen from London, Alain Nicolier from France and Kenneth O. Stroh from Colchester. Visiting clergy were guests in various homes of the Colchester Society. We had the opportunity of meeting the society informally at a cheese and wine reception at the church on Friday evening. And both the Colchester and London societies enjoyed the bonus of being able to hear a sermon or a doctrinal class, or both, from a minister from the continent.
     The meetings were held in the sun-drenched lounge of the Colchester manse. Our five sessions were loosely structured in order to provide a modicum of order, as well as an opportunity for free and wide-ranging discussion. The result was a most enjoyable exchange of views, experiences, concerns and hopes.
     We talked about church commitment (the willingness or unwillingness of people to commit themselves to the work of the organized church). We discussed the need for wider communication among young people of the church in the European area, and the need for better modes of communication between the church organization in Bryn Athyn and the people of the church in Europe-there are difficulties in communication when you don't know the English language. We talked about the Holy Supper, and why people often do not seem to feel a need for it. We talked about pastors' relationships with their families, about reincarnation, and about the effectiveness or lack of effectiveness of the New Church.
     The exchange of views was open and pleasant. All of us agreed that our meetings were far more useful than any of us had anticipated they would be. We learned a great deal from each other. And we agreed that it would be helpful to the church in the European area if we could hold such meetings regularly-perhaps once every two years.
     Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh

CAN I KNOW IF I'M GOING TO HEAVEN? 1986

CAN I KNOW IF I'M GOING TO HEAVEN? Rev. Daniel W. Goodenough 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     Many thanks for the excellent and thorough study by Rev. Brian Keith on understanding our spiritual states (September and October, 1985). The many facets of this involved doctrine are presented in a clear and balanced way, and I especially appreciate the caution and ambivalence in the conclusions reached-the best way to handle teachings which have so many different and apparently conflicting sides. Though the following opinions differ slightly from Mr. Keith's in emphasis and in interpretation of a few particulars, his study is a real contribution to the thought of the New Church in an area where much has been claimed and insinuated without serious study of the Writings themselves. Now, thanks to Mr. Keith's excellent collection of passages in the appendix (pp. 402-3), not to mention the many references in the article itself, anyone can easily study what the Writings themselves say. The "spiritual checkup" list (pp. 4034) seems especially useful, although perhaps more valuable in helping us find specific evils we should shun than in assuring us we are in good ruling loves.
     Although the article is very comprehensive in the ground it covers, I regret an omission in the section about false confidence (pp 438-9). While several New Testament passages are cited, there is no mention of the teachings in the Writings that seem to warn against the security that comes from knowing one is saved (DP 340:4; BE 93, 114:2; TCR 182:3, 567:2). These negative comments about "security of life" seem to offer a serious objection to our knowing with certainty that we are in a state of salvation; but they do not at all preclude our seeing some goods in ourselves.
     Surely we should search and examine ourselves to learn what we can. Will we be given to know our spiritual state with certainty? The criteria generally come down to the question (as Mr. Keith shows clearly) of whether we are shunning evils as sins against God. But how well can we judge whether we really reject evils for the reason that they are sins against God, or for the many other reasons that people frequently reject evils? After all, the evil person usually thinks he is in good, and he may have more confidence than the good person.

During the last Judgment those condemned were principally people who led good moral lives and thought they were excellent Christians, full of charity and faith; but they rejected evils not as sins against God, but for various selfish reasons, usually for gain, honor, or reputation. (See LJ 59, 66, 69-71; Contiu. 10, 16-18.)
     How much assurance can we have that our rejection of evils is not similarly motivated? Surely we should seek to know why We shun evils, and should try to shun them for the right reasons, and we may be given to see hopeful signs of progress, but I really must wonder how much certainty anyone can feel about exactly why he rejects this or that evil. To know with certainty that we are correctly evaluating our motives for shunning evils we have to assume that we are in true light from good, not in falsity from evil; but this means that we are first assuming the very thing we are trying to evaluate.
     The problem is that from falsity a person does not recognize the truth. The evil generally believe they are good and right, and by paying close attention to apparent good in their lives they build up false self-images of their own righteousness "it is impossible for those who are In the love of self to know what their ruling love is, because they love what is their own and call their evils goods; and the falsities that they incline to and by which they confirm their evils, they call truths" (HH 487; though they might learn from the wise, they refuse to face reality unless they want to). How can any individual know that he is not doing the same thing? Our only assurance lies in the effort to look to the Lord and live by His Word. Though we may be given signs of encouragement, can we know for sure? In the next life as in this, the most certain are often the most wrong and the sources of the most trouble.
     Or how can we know with certainty whether our spiritual turmoil is a temptation contributing to regeneration. or simply one of the "desolations" which the evil suffer (AC 705:3)? Mr. Keith describes the signs by which we may recognize that we have probably been in a temptation, but how can we know these signs do not come simply from a return to our normal natural loves and satisfactions? Surely we should seek to know, but can we have certain knowledge? Truth and falsity fluctuate a great deal after temptation; and the person remains in obscurity a long time (see AC 838-87). Since the subject making the evaluation of his state is himself part of what he is evaluating, how can he know for sure?
     I wonder also why it is important to try while on earth to sense "the joy of salvation" (p. 440). Reference is given to Psalm 51:10 (apparently meaning 51:12), but I could not find an explanation in the Writings of the "joy of Your salvation" mentioned here.

In what sense should we seek to experience the joy of salvation? Many passages cited in the study show how obscure heavenly joys are for us while we live on earth. Heaven and Hell teaches that the joy and happiness of heaven can scarcely be perceived at all on earth, and only in the most dim and obscure ways (see 395-414, especially 401, 409-10). Surely we feel delights on earth that we hope may have something of heavenly happiness within them, but must we know that these delights are in fact the "joy of salvation"? If the joy of salvation means simply delights which seem useful and good and in which we hope there is something from the Lord, then of course we hope often that it may be given us. But if we identify a specific perceived delight as heaven in us, how do we know we are not just flattering our egos?
If, on the other hand, the "joy of salvation" means the joy of knowing we are in a state of salvation. do the Writings urge us to experience this? Pursuit of the joy of knowing you are saved, so popular with those who believe in salvation by faith alone, has again and again in Christian history seriously distorted the purposes of religion. An insistence upon being certain of salvation was, I believe, one of the basic culprits that first led the Christian Church away from genuine repentance and so away from the Lord. The question of how much we should pursue on earth the experience of happiness and joy opens many areas of study. For the moment I simply question whether the Writings urge us to feel a "joy of salvation" while on earth, in the sense of knowing with certainty that we are in a state of salvation. I do not understand what good this would do us.
Surely we can and should try to know many things, good and evil, about ourselves. The question is whether we can know our ruling love and spiritual slate with certainty. In the top paragraph on p. 441 Mr. Keith describes an acceptance of uncertainty about our spiritual state which to me seems closer to the reality than thinking we have certain knowledge about our interior spiritual loves. Why should we not live with uncertainty about our spiritual loves just as we are uncertain about the length of our natural lives and about many other future unknowns? I strongly disagree with Mr. Keith's argument that if we don't have clear knowledge of our progress or of our being in good, then we will probably assume the worst (pp. 438, 441). Throughout life we are faced with countless future uncertainties, and if we trust in the power of the Lord, should we not assume that He will work things out for the best for us? Why do we have to know? To assume the worst unless we have assurance of a good future result seems to me a gross distrust of the Lord's love, wisdom and power.

     Uncertainty is basic to the human condition, and Divine Providence 178-9 explains why we cannot know the future, so that we may plan and hope and live rationally and freely. They even say,
     A longing to know the future is innate with most people; but this longing derives its origin from the love of evil. It is therefore taken away from those who believe in the Divine Providence; and there is given them a trust that the Lord is disposing their lot. Consequently they do not desire to know it beforehand lest they should in any way set themselves against the Divine Providence. This the Lord teaches in many passages in Luke 12:1448 (DP 179).
     Finally I must question Mr. Keith's opinion that knowing one's ruling love is good would not necessarily be any big deal for a person (pp. 441-2). How could knowing this nor be a big deal in his life? Further, consider the abundant problems in history and current affairs caused by people who think they are in a state of salvation (or their religious equivalent). Conviction of the goodness that is within oneself obviously makes it difficult for many people to doubt the correctness of their motives or opinions, and why would it be different for New Church people? I think that certainty that one's ruling love is good would strongly encourage a person to believe in the truth of his convictions, right or wrong, and make him less receptive to criticism, challenge and the self-doubt that he needs in order to purify his life and thinking. The certainty that one is on the path to heaven would tend to dominate his life, however quietly. The affairs of men are so full of examples of human damage resulting from belief in assurance of salvation that we should be wary indeed of imagining that we are some kind of exception.
     I personally feel it is very difficult to reconcile certain knowledge, or conscious awareness, of one's good ruling love with the humility which is essential to true confidence in the Lord. See AC 4347, 4956, 8271, 9377, and also teachings on self confidence in Potts' Concordance, s.v. "Confidence" and "Trust." I think the prohibition against "numbering the people" also applies (see AC 10217-9; AR 364; AE 386: 10, 453:1-3.) Without serious self-doubt, how can we be truly humble? Unless we honestly question our affections and thoughts, how can we trust in the Divine Providence rather than in our own prudence?
     Apart from such reservations concerning the degree of certainty in our understanding of our spiritual states, I think Mr. Keith's study is a fine one and I hope it will be given serious attention in the New Church.
     Rev. Daniel W. Goodenough,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

ARCANA TRANSLATION 1986

ARCANA TRANSLATION A Reader 1986

To the Editor:
     I have been reading the new Swedenborg Society Arcana translation and enjoying it very much. I never read the Arcana before as an adult (and still skip some of the really heavy parts!) but this is a whole new set of books. My enjoyment has made me sad, however, since I wonder if other people may be missing it due to the careful but lukewarm review the new translation received in the LIFE (September 1984, p. 438), or the really regrettable review it received in the Messenger (Feb. 1984, p. 38).
     Now, there may be technical flaws in this translation from an expert's point of view. But a familiar problem with experts is how they sometimes seem to miss the forest for the trees. This is not said to question their motives-they obviously have to have a deep love of their use to have stuck it out to become experts!-but to aid "the rest of us" in evaluating their recommendations.
     In the present case we are talking about the absolutely critical need to get people to read the Writings-newcomers, oldcomers, kids, people riding the subway, everybody. To achieve this, the Writings-not exactly light reading to begin with for a TV age-need to be presented in as attractive a translation packaging as we can arrange. On the other hand, people reading a less than perfect translation we already have may have its drawbacks, but not reading the technically superior translation we'll have someday has a lot more!
     The reality we face is that we are a relatively tiny church with vanishingly small translation capabilities and a huge translation task. Should we not thus be tolerant and encouraging of translations such as Rev. Elliot's, or even Rev. Dole's, that make the Lord's teachings more understandable and hence more accessible to most people than earlier, "heavier" translations? If the steps forward a given translation takes are not as large or precise as some would like, they are steps in the right direction. It's a long, long way from musty Latin to modern English.
     The Arcana is particularly important; it's the epic journey of New Church literature, something all New Churchmen should attempt at least once in their lifetime, like the Moslem going to Mecca or the Jew to Jerusalem. My hat's off to Rev. Elliot for his long years of work attempting to make that journey smoother. Here's hoping many readers will follow along behind. It's a fascinating trip.
     A Reader

MASCULINE EDUCATION 1986

MASCULINE EDUCATION Mrs. Gretchen (Mrs. Harald) Sandstrom 1986

Dear Editor:
     I was so excited by Greta Bochneak's letter in the March 1985 LIFE asking for leadership in educating the masculine mind. We also have wished for an up-to-date study by our ministers and scholars on this very important subject. I have been eagerly watching for learned responses to her plea. So far, nothing has come.
     If no one offers such a study for NEW CHURCH LIFE, could you bring this need to the attention of the clergy at the ministers' meetings in March? I could list all the reasons we need such help, but Mrs. Bochneak has already done that in her letter.
     Gretchen (Mrs. Harald) Sandstrom,
          Bloomfield, Connecticut
FAITH ALONE 1986

FAITH ALONE Charis Cole 1986

Dear Editor,
     In your November "Letters to the Editor" Annabel Junge says that the New Church idea that the Protestants believe in faith alone is much outdated.
     Each Protestant has his own individual beliefs, so no one can speak for them all. However, each sect has its own accepted body of doctrines.
     The Writings say that when angels teach they start where there is agreement. There are points of agreement between the Lutheran and New Church doctrines. Perhaps we should bring these out so as not to offend. Both see that good works do not save because they may be prompted by selfish motives like love of gain and honor. Both know that merit belongs to the Lord and that only the Lord can change our loves.
     Luther was a very intense man and tried very hard to be good. He broke with the Catholic Church not only because of corruption, indulgences, and salvation by good works, but because he was distressed to find that no matter how hard he tried or how often he mortified the flesh he still had impurities and evil loves.
     So he solved the problem by saying that Jesus Christ, by dying on the cross, convinced God the Father to forgive us our sins if only we believe in Him. Living well is important but "faith" is what saves.

     Fundamentalists make much of living a good life and have written many wonderful books on marriage, child-raising, understanding teenagers, serving, and other things. Yet they tell us openly that we are saved only by professing Jesus Christ, "being born again," not by shunning our evils, doing good works, or living a good life. In fact being "born again" isn't enough. We have to believe just as they do. New Church people can't get into heaven because we have added something to Divine Revelation (the Writings). (At the end of Revelation it says that those who add or subtract anything to this book can't be saved. It doesn't seem to trouble the fundamentalists that there is a similar statement in Deuteronomy or that some of the books of the Bible were added after Revelation.)
     If there is any doubt on this subject it can be easily resolved by asking a Lutheran or other Protestant minister, "What have faith and charity to do with salvation? What is the difference between the Protestant and Catholic doctrines on this subject?"
     All of us-New Church, Protestant and Catholic-would like to find some easier way into heaven than shunning our evils as sins against God.
     Charis Cole,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania
FAITH ALONE 1986

FAITH ALONE Rev. Grant R Schnarr 1986

Dear Editor,
     In your last issue's letter section there was a letter by Annabel Junge expressing concern over New Churchmen using the term "faith alone" in connection with the Christian Church today. She says, "This seems to be a completely outdated idea . . . . Just because Luther broke from the Catholic Church using 'Faith Alone' as a method of doing so does not mean that the Lutherans (or other Protestants) of today believe salvation is through faith alone."
     I too am concerned with using this phrase to make a blanket statement concerning all who are in the Christian Church. There are many good people who live a life of faith and charity in the Christian world. We know this and the Writings teach it. On the other hand, I cannot agree that faith alone is not still prevalent today. The growing fundamentalist movement in the United States holds strongly that man can only be saved through grace. Many believe that works should follow faith but that they are not saving. And the Writings explain why this doesn't work (see AC 4683, 4754).
     Although many people do not know about their church doctrines or care about them, I question whether faith alone isn't very real and alive today.

Several of the newcomers to the church here in Glenview have an almost militant reaction against the very doctrine of which we are speaking. In an interview aired on WMWA radio here last year, one newcomer said, "I know that I used the doctrine of faith alone as an excuse to do what I wanted and led a rotten Life, although I would never have admitted that at the time . . . . I see the danger of living the life of faith alone because I myself lived that life for many years.
Rev. Grant R Schnarr,
Glenview, Illinois
THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT FAITH ALONE IS 1986

THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT FAITH ALONE IS Editor 1986

The greater part of the who are born within the churches where the doctrine of faith alone and justification thereby is received do not know what faith alone is, nor what is meant by justification; therefore, when they hear those things from their teachers, they think that a life according to the precepts of God in the Word is meant, for they believe this to be faith" (Apocalypse Explained 233:3.)
NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 YEARS AGO Editor 1986

In January of 1936 this magazine noted the publication of the fourth edition of Trobridge's Life of Swedenborg. Many revisions were made in this new edition "with the aim of giving the book in a more modern manner." The preface stated that if Trobridge were still alive he would approve of the modernization as being necessary "in order that the book may, at this day, serve the purpose for which it was written." Well, that edition went into six reprints, the last one being in 1968 when the Swedenborg Foundation put an attractive cover on it. This is now out of print, and the good news is that the work done by the late Tom Spiers is being completed so that a fifth edition may now be published, and the book can once more become "modern." The publication could be this year or next year-certainly in time for Swedenborg's 300th birthday.

Church News 1986

Church News Editor 1986

     GLENVIEW

     This past year has been a busy and productive year with numerous new projects underway. Because of the need for a separate area for evangelization uses and welcoming newcomers, work has begun on an addition to the church building. It will be called the Swedenborg Center and will house the book room and work area for the behind-the-scenes evangelization efforts. It is expected to be completed by early 1986.
     Through the hardworking efforts of various society members two classrooms of the elementary school were renovated. Also, much needed renovations and a two-room addition were made to the mini-manse, the home of Rev. Grant Schnarr. The little manse, the home of the Eric Carswell family is now undergoing improvements and a room addition.
     Under the direction of Grant Schnarr, the evangelization efforts have been very successful. The Chicago group, a daughter church of our society, went from five individuals to eighteen. The group developed from a discussion group to twice-monthly worship services and supper discussions. They just celebrated their sixth adult baptism. The Swedenborg Center has become an important source for new missionary literature in the General Church. This past year has seen a doubling of sales of pamphlets to other New Church centers, making it possible to reprint pamphlets and produce new ones.
     In February, the Midwestern Academy radio station was expanded to a broader area of coverage, including stereo operation. Time-sharing with the local public high school has assisted with its financial operations, as well as providing the station with increased community exposure. While maintaining its community service focus, it is expanding its religious offerings this year. In addition to airing a full worship service twice on Sunday, there are daily "Conversations on Religion" and shorter "Thoughts for the Day.'' This year Rev. Jan Weiss will be contributing some religious programming to supplement what is produced by our local pastors.
     Our elementary school has a temporary enrollment dip. This resulted in reorganization of teaching assignments and classrooms. A testimony of the school's academic excellence was reflected in the results of the Iowa Test scores, which showed all our grades scored well above average. The school committee sponsored a very successful Las Vegas night as a fund-raiser. It included a gourmet dinner, elaborate decorations, spirited gambling and prizes.
     MANC, our high school of 17 students, under the direction of Eric Carswell, has had interesting educational trips to the Klippenstein cattle farm in Missouri, Linden Hills (Michigan) and a tour of some Civil War states which included visits with New Church families.
     Burnham Court, our residential subdivision near the Park has had only a few buyers of its properties. Thus, some of the lots were sold to the outside community. There are, however, a few lots still available and we welcome any interested prospects from elsewhere in the church.
     Theta Alpha and Women's Guild continue to be busy with their church and school uses. The annual rummage sale brought in enough revenue to purchase a much needed industrial dishwasher for our kitchen.

[Two photos of Glenview volunteer construction. The "mini-manse" (resident of the Grant Schnarrs) is pictured above as renovated. Ongoing construction at the small manse (resident of the Eric Carswells) is pictured below.]

Increased efforts at community outreach this year aided the needy in our area with food drives. At the annual Theta Alpha banquet Rev. Geoffrey Childs was the guest speaker with the topic, "Spiritual Health and Mental Health."
     This past year a young men's discussion group was begun to discuss relating the Writings to life.
     The Glenview Society hosted a regional workshop for ministers. Our ministers have attended local educational programs on marriage counseling, substance abuse, and church planting. Under the able direction of Brian Keith, our pastor, and his two assistants our society has continued its commitment to serve the needs of the church, the Glenview Society and this area.
     Doris Millam

     TORONTO

     The Toronto Society is an active center of the Lord's church on earth and has a busy calendar for 1985-86.
     Our bookstore is making big strides under a permanent manager. Over Christmas we featured beautiful carved creches, Christmas cards, books for children, stationery and suitable ornaments. Rev. Terry Schnarr gives introductory classes at the store in our reading room on Tuesday mornings and a TCR class Thursday evenings. Volunteers from the society still play an important role in the success of the store.
     Our society has had a number of lovely weddings to enjoy. Usually the brides leave us, but this year three grooms have brought their wives to us and we welcome them to our society uses. It has been a year for babies, which bring a special sphere to us all-especially twins. a boy and a girl, then three baby girls and one baby boy.
     There is a study group for women initiated by the younger women who have small children. They meet at the church on Monday morning. They have incorporated play activities for their children and nursery care for infants.
     This year we are studying The Divine Love and The Divine Wisdom at our Wednesday doctrinal classes. We also have had the services of Candidate Fred Chapin, who was here for three months to learn about the duties involved in a big society.
     Every November Toronto hosts the Northern Regional Ministers Meetings. This includes Western Canada; Kitchener and Toronto, Ontario; and Detroit, Michigan. Bishop King presides. This year Mrs. King came, and the ministers' wives enjoyed meeting together.
     Theta Alpha Guild holds five meetings a year. We have a talk or entertainment before our business meeting. We look after the domestic duties of the society, such as suppers, laundry, visiting the sick and shut-ins, and other social needs. One of our prime uses is helping our church school. Gifts are given twice a year, and special banquets are provided for Swedenborg's birthday and June 19th. This year we contributed to new playground equipment. We support a foster child from Thailand. Our yearly rummage sale helps us financially and is a help to the community.
     In case you don't know, our senior minister, Rev. Geoffrey Childs, is our pastor and the bishop's representative for Canada. Our assistant pastor, Rev. Louis Synnestvedt, is assistant principal of the Olivet Day School, pastor to the Ottawa and Montreal Groups and in charge of the young people. Mr. Philip Schnarr is the principal of the Olivet Day School. Rev. Terry Schnarr is our missionary pastor and leader in all the evangelization work.
     We now print our monthly paper, the Chatterbox, and a great deal of material used for evangelization and other needs.

This takes time, and is only one of the many uses that keep our society running smoothly.
     In closing, would like to say the Toronto Society sends affectionate greetings to everyone for 1986.
     Penny Sargeant Orr

     LONDON

     Even though you have not had news of the London Society for a while, plenty has been happening. A change of pastors has taken place. After Rev. Robert McMaster resigned, Rev. Fred Elphick consented to become the Pastor of Michael Church and the members of our society were delighted to have him come. So from July 1984 we have had the happiness of welcoming Fred and Jane with their family, who have settled in as though they had never been away for the three years during which Mr. Elphick did his training in Theological School in Bryn Athyn. Fred, from being one of our congregation, is now our leader and pastor, and doing very well too, for which we thank him most sincerely, though we are even more grateful to the Lord, for it is by His Divine Providence that we are led, guided, and all our needs are supplied. In September 1984 we had the pleasure of a visit from Bishop Louis King and his wife Freya, the Bishop ordaining Mr. Elphick into the 2nd degree of the priesthood.
     We have had an abundance of visitors from all over the world, which gives special delight. It is good to be able to discuss the doctrines with friends from across the sea, to hear of their life-style, their problems, and how they overcome them to help build the Lord's New Church on earth. There is always a warm welcome for everyone. Our hospitality committee is headed by Mrs. Nancy Dawson, who is "Aunt Nancy" to all young folk visiting England, and we all take the greatest delight in entertaining friends visiting London. So why not come over to England?! The Elphick home at the manse in Beckenham, as one can be sure, has been a hive of hospitality, with many young people staying there en route to and from summer school.
     Some of the highlights in our society have been the three beautiful weddings of the three daughters of Norman and Helen Turner. Rachel's and Caroline's weddings to Tom and Steve David I regret that I am unable to comment on, as I was In Bryn Athyn at both times visiting our daughter, husband and family. According to reports these were very happy occasions. The wedding of Christine Turner to David Gath, which we were privileged to attend, took place in a heat wave, the temperature reaching 102? F in Michael Church. I guess we all helped to generate more heat by our lusty singing of the hymns especially loved at weddings. Even guests from South Africa remarked on our heat. After the beautiful service conducted by Bishop King, and at which he gave a very moving talk to the young couple, we all motored some 35-40 miles to the home of Norman and Helen is at Lightwater, Surrey, where a very sumptuous meal was provided and catered for by Helen in the shade of a marquee. There were around 140 guests, with a record (I reckon) of five pastors at a Michael Church wedding. The very evident happiness of David and Christine spread its sphere to all of us, and it was indeed a little bit of heaven sent down for us to enjoy. That was the year that Rev. Frank Rose came back to England for the celebration of 25 years of British Academy Summer School, and what a treat that was, being with Frank again, for he was in fine fettle, and what fun it was.
     The London Society participates in the Hengrave Hall weekends once a year, which are a great success, and at which we have a chance to discuss the doctrines with varying points of view, and to socialize with friends from far and wide.

We have worship on the Sunday morning in a very ancient church built in the Norman style. At these weekends we have a good number of young people, which makes it very enjoyable, as it gets us all together and makes for good discussion.
     Our young people have formed a discussion group that meets at Swedenborg House each month, at which subjects are discussed which one of them has chosen. At these meetings one of the ministers in England is present to help out when necessary. These group meetings can be very useful in helping each individual to reflect on his or her attitude to the doctrines and how they apply to every facet of our lives. This can be of immense value in the field of evangelization. Good fortune, young friends in that field, for the Lord's New Church is for all mankind.
     One more thing I should wish to report, another highlight in our calendar year. The London Society had an assembly in London in July 1985 at which Rev. Douglas Taylor served as the bishop's representative, accompanied by his wife Christine. It was good being with them, enjoying their company and renewing their acquaintance, for I believe I am correct in saying that the last time they visited England was at the General Assembly in London in 1956. The assembly, though small, was a very happy one, with friends from Norway and North America. Mr. Taylor led the assembly with great warmth, and a lot of discussion took place, no one seeming to be over-awed by its being an assembly, which made it most enjoyable. The ladies of the Women's Guild supplied coffee and biscuits during intervals, and two meals, with a caterer for the Saturday p.m. banquet. A happy time was had by all, and it was a very successful assembly.
     We have work parties at which quite a lot of good work has been done to keep the church building in good repair, and to enhance our services of worship in harmonious and pleasant surroundings.
     Muriel Law
1986 WOMEN'S RENEWAL WEEKEND 1986

1986 WOMEN'S RENEWAL WEEKEND Editor 1986

     April 18-20 (Friday evening-Sunday noon) Camp Lutherlyn, Prospect, Pennsylvania (near Pittsburgh)

     Theme: Spiritual Discipline

     Once again we invite all women of the church and their friends to share a weekend program at Camp Lutherlyn. The week scheduled falls a full three weeks after Easter.

     This year the program will focus on spiritual discipline. We invite interested women to share in our presentation by contacting our program director, Tryn Clark. We plan to examine the ways we can effectively (and courageously) bring our lives into spiritual order for the glory of the Lord. We will also share the insights and struggles we have met on the way.

     You are welcome to join us.

Director: Tryn Clark           Registrar: Trish Lindsay
5853 Smithfield           156 Iron Bridge Road
E. Lansing, MI 48823      Sarver, PA 16055
Phone 517-351-2880           Phone 412-295-2316

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM ANNUAL COUNCIL MEETINGS 1986

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM ANNUAL COUNCIL MEETINGS Editor 1986

Announcements

The annual meetings of the Council of the Clergy and of the Board of Directors of the General Church have been scheduled to take place in the week of March 3rd to the 8th, 1986, in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania.
ACADEMY POSITION AVAILABLE 1986

ACADEMY POSITION AVAILABLE Editor 1986

     The Academy of the New Church is seeking to fill the position of Director of Libraries, which will be open in the academic year 1987-88.
Applicants for the position should have a background which includes degree work in library science, experience in the operation of modern academic library systems, and evidence of administrative and managerial skills.

     Inquiries and applications with vitae should be sent to the following address:

     Dean Robert Gladish, Chairman
Library Director Search Committee
Academy of the New Church
Box 278, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

     Application should be in the chairman's hands by February 1st, 1986.

ARCANA CAELESTIA 1986

ARCANA CAELESTIA Editor 1986

     ARCANA CAELESTIA
by Emanuel Swedenborg

     The first three volumes of John Elliott's new English translation are now available. The title may be in Latin, but everything else is in plain English-the best modern English consistent with what Swedenborg actually wrote. This amazing work unlocks the inner meanings of Genesis and Exodus. John Elliott's sensitive translation follows the original as it takes the biblical stories and carefully removes the outer coverings, verse by verse. An inexhaustible treasure chest for anyone interested in the secret workings of the human mind and spirit.

     The Swedenborg Society began publishing the complete set of this new translation three years ago. The first three volumes have appeared on schedule, and the remaining nine are scheduled for publication at regular intervals.

     The hardback edition is handsomely bound in black. The laminated dust jacket is in a distinctly different color for each volume.

     Postage paid     Hardcover $11.70     Paperback $8.00

     General Church Book Center
Box 278, Cairncrest
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     Hours: Mon-Fri. 9-12
or by appointment
Phone: (215) 947-3920

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI February, 1986 No. 2
NEW CHURCH LIFE

     Notes on This Issue

     The clergy meetings will be held next month in Glencairn (pictured here). See the schedule on page 98. You are reminded of the announcement in the Bishop's report (December, p. 532) that the Council of the Clergy will be asked to proceed with the nomination of a candidate for the office of Assistant Bishop. It was suggested that the laity "counsel the priesthood in preparation for carrying out this important function of government."
     In this issue we juxtapose studies by father and son. The article by the elder of the Erik Sandstroms we hope will be followed by a second article in which the author takes the subject further.
     The sermon on the opposite page is the first we have published by Rev. Wendel Barnett who serves as an assistant to the pastor of the Bryn Athyn Church and to the principal of the Bryn Athyn Church School.
     The Toronto chapter of the Sons of the Academy is one of the livelier ones, and lively discussion followed the talk given thereto by Mr. Sydney Parker (p. 78).
     The subject of self-esteem still gets lively discussion. Perhaps you remember a series of articles by G. S. Childs entitled "Which Self!" which we published in 1982, or the doctrinal class by Grant Schnarr "How to View Yourself" published in June of 1984. Charis P. Cole gives further thoughts in this issue.
     A while ago we appealed for help in writing reviews. Two reviews in this issue are in response to that appeal. We also had considerable informal response to the subject of writing letters (which we first raised last November). In fact our mail has picked up quite a bit! One thoughtful correspondent illustrated the value of written communications by noting that people have kept love letters for years, enjoying them over and over again. Response to "Poems from Swedenborg" has been quite favorable thus far (see the letter from Mr. Boyd Asplundh on page 96).
     Coming Next Month: Information on the Music Festival to be held in Bryn Athyn in June, also on summer camps and special weekends. A Women's Renewal weekend will be held in the Bryn Athyn area from April 25th to 27th. (Contact Debbie Williams: phone 215-947-0897). And in the next issue we will salute and welcome the new magazine Chrysalis.

ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE 1986

ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE Rev. WENDEL R. BARNETT 1986

     "I am the resurrection and the life that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die" (John 11:25, 26) never die" (John 11:25, 26).

     People are eternal beings, who, after a brief but adequate journey in the natural world, spend the rest of their lives either in heaven or hell (see AC 1999:3, 4; 1594:5). The acknowledgment of this fact, this Divinely ordained conclusion to every person's life, causes one to elevate his thoughts above the mundane concerns and temporal considerations of this world, and results in looking beyond this state of preparation to the life after death.
     As humans we are inextricably connected with the Divine, to the point that the Writings teach that we are "implanted in the Divine" and are "recipients of the eternal which proceeds from the Lord" (AC 5114:4, 3938:2, 7270, 8443).
     By means of the soul, that "human internal" which is the first receptacle of life implanted in the inmosts of every person, all people live to eternity either as man or woman, and every created human being has the potential of being lifted up by the Lord among the angels of heaven (see AC 1111:3, 4; CL 32, 33). As a result of possessing a human soul, and therefore a human mind, people have the ability to distinguish right from wrong and to choose between them, that is, they have the ability to see that a thing is true and to willingly live according to that vision of truth (see AC 6657, TCR 69e, HH 597).
     And from whence do we know these things? We know them from Divine revelation, that is, from the Word. Without the Word, we are taught, no one would have even a knowledge of God, let alone an idea about heaven and hell and the life after death (see SS 114). Apart from revelation, people would apprehend only those things which pertain to their senses and nothing that belongs to heaven and to God (see AC 8636). Therefore, in the Old Testament it has been revealed that God created the heavens and the earth; in the New Testament it has been disclosed that heaven was created for people that they might dwell there to eternity; and in the Word of the Lord's second coming a detailed description of what heaven is actually like is provided in order that the human race might acknowledge heaven with their minds and strive for it in their lives.
     From the Word we can see the necessity for a belief in the life after death for many reasons.

For instance, one's ability to see that God is one, and that not more than one Divine Esse is possible, depends on knowledges concerning the spiritual world revealed by the Lord in His Word. In past revelation these knowledges have been very general, but in the New Church people may rise to an understanding of the Divine beyond what has been possible in the former churches due to new truths concerning the spiritual sun, its heat and light, discrete degrees, the distinction between the spiritual and natural worlds, and the structure of the human mind. As we exercise our freedom of choice by acquiring these knowledges, we prepare the way by which the Lord descends and raises us up (TCR 24).
     We are taught that without a belief in the life after death there could be no proper understanding of the Word and its spiritual sense (AC 67). The reason is apparent, for many things of the internal sense have regard to, describe and involve the things of the life after death (ibid.).
     Next we read that without knowledge of the life after death, people know nothing of the soul or the means by which life flows into man (AC 6053). The Writings state in numerous passages that "few are being regenerated at this day" (AC 2682:3). This is due to the fact that few in that day believed that they had a spirit which was to live after death. Concerning such people, as well as the few who did believe, we read. "To those who believe [that their spirit lives alter death]. the other life is the whole of their thought and affection, and the world is nothing in comparison; but to those who do not believe it, the world is the whole of their thought and affection, and the other life is in comparison nothing at all. Those who believe are they who can be regenerated, but the latter are they who cannot" (ibid.). From this and other passages we conclude that people's regeneration depends on their knowledge about, and belief in, the life after death. Those who have this belief look to what is eternal in all things. To such men and women the other life is the whole of their thought and affection, and this world is relatively nothing in comparison, being important only to the extent that the things of this world make one with the things of the life after death (DP 214).
     Just as there is no belief in God, the holiness of the Word and the life after death without repentance, so too there is no stimulus for repentance without a knowledge of God, a knowledge of the holiness of the Word, and especially a knowledge of the life after death (AE 839:2, DP 274). Without information regarding the spiritual world. We read, people "cannot even think about the life of heaven, nor apply themselves to receiving it" (AC 8639). That which first causes a person to refrain from evil is the fear of punishment, and that which first causes him to shun evils as sins against God is a fear of going to hell. With no belief in hell, where is the stimulus to refrain from what people call "sin"?

The Writings put it this way, "how can anyone who never thinks about God think that anything is a sin against Him? And how can one who never thinks about heaven, hell, and the life after death, shun evils as sins? Such a man does not know what sin is!" (AE 936:2).
     Let us state again, in a brief review, just how important a belief in, and a proper understanding of, the life after death is. Without this there is no real understanding of the oneness and indivisibility of God, there is no appreciation of the Word and its internal sense, there is no comprehension of the soul and the means of influx, there is no proper grasp of life and its purpose (DP 27), there is no belief in sin and thus no motivation for shunning evils as sins, which is to say there is no inclination to repent, apart from which there is no salvation from our inherited tendencies to evil (DP 328:8, 329, TCR 530, AR 69). In short, no one can be regenerated without a knowledge of the life after death, for the means of salvation is then denied, and the motivation to be regenerated is obscured in a life of self-gratification, or at best, self-preservation.
     One last thing that cannot exist apart from a belief in the life after death, and that is an eternal perspective! To have an eternal perspective is to think from what is eternal, that is, to think from the Lord (DP 59). To view temporal things, that is, things which perish with time or come to an end with man's death, as comparatively nothing is to have an eternal perspective. Another way of saying it is, the things of this world should be viewed as means to what is eternal, for what endures to eternity is, but that which has an end, relatively is nor (AC 8717:3, 10409:3, DP 217:7).
     In all things that are done in this world, spiritual consequences should be considered. To look to use, or the conjunction of what is good and true in all things, is to have an eternal perspective. It is for this reason that we are taught to preface any action or decision with the question, "What is the use?" In all actions of our life, service to the Lord and our neighbor should be the primary end. This appears somewhat obscure when stated in the abstract, but when brought down into applications the message may become all too clear. For instance, when we exercise our body, is it for the sake of the body alone or is it for the sake of the soul, that the soul might act in a sound body? (AC 5159:14, 5949:2). Or when we participate in recreational activities is it for the sake of returning to our jobs with renewed affection and vigor, or, as the Writings ask, do we perform the work of our calling for the sake of the diversions and recreational activities (Char. 196)?
     The principle of maintaining an eternal perspective or looking to "use" in all of one's activities and decision is a principle that can be applied to every area of life: the choice of an occupation or college, one's attitude in business dealings, prioritizing time and money, when to retire, the amount of sleep and exercise to get, where and when to worship and/or read the Word, what to eat and how much.

The list is as extensive as the choices we have to make, amply illustrating that religion truly does have relation to life (Life 1, 2).
     However, perhaps the area in our life where the value of looking to what is eternal is most apparent is in one's marriage. As stated in our lesson, "Those who are in love truly conjugial look to what is eternal in marriage . . ."(CL 216). This is the ideal, for the institution of marriage is holy, ordained by God to serve as the seminary of the human race and thus of the angelic heaven. It is this ideal that we as a church community support, promote and nurture in our homes, our schools and in the life of our society, for we know from the Word of the Lord's second coming that the marriage of one man with one wife is the precious jewel of human life and the repository of the Christian religion (CL 531).
     It is therefore the domain of the church to teach and promote the ideals of love truly conjugial, despite the marital circumstances of an individual or couple. It is not our place to judge spiritually the state of another's marriage, or the state of our own for that matter, for external appearances afford no means of concluding the presence or absence of conjugial love. Indeed, within a marriage, conjugial love may lie so deeply concealed that even the person himself does not notice it (CL 531).
     Accordingly, even during times of great despair, and turmoil within a marriage, the ideal of an eternal perspective should be preserved, for it is by and through our marriage, as we look to the Lord and shun evils as sins, that we are being prepared for love truly conjugial. Therefore, maintaining an eternal perspective in marriage is not only one of the means by which marriages in the world are preserved for the sake of family, society and the regeneration of the married couple, but it is a primary ingredient to our preparation for love truly conjugial in the life after death. Indeed, without the thought of what is eternal in marriage, we are taught that the woman is not a wife, nor is the man a husband for from a lack of what is eternal, conjugial love perishes and the marriage is said to be "dissolved in the home" (SD 6110:16; CL 216, 275). The plain teaching of doctrine is that despite the fact that a marriage may have been entered from external rather than internal affections, and while this may result in various states of cold in the home, nevertheless, in the world, marriages are to continue to the end of life (CL 274-276).
     During states of difficulty in marriage, the truths of the Word provided by the Lord for the sake of amendments, accommodations and reconciliation in marriage should be implemented.

These truths, or tools for preserving our marriage and our hope for the conjugial, include the doctrine of "conjugial simulations," which are appearances of love and friendship between two partners who differ as to their minds. These simulations are said to be "praiseworthy" because they look to the uses of marriage, including preserving order in domestic affairs, mutual aid, and especially the care of tiny infants and children, as well as numerous other uses (CL 279-289). Through this process of preserving the ends of marriage by simulating friendship and love, two people who are quite remote as to their interior affection may, in time, actually be conjoined, and conjugial love, which at one time seemed to be entirely absent, may gradually appear with them (CL 228, 531, 279, 176). By keeping an eternal perspective a couple who may have felt there was no hope is suddenly blessed with a state of love for each other that exceeds anything they may have ever thought possible.
The tools for preserving our marriages have clearly and mercifully been revealed in the book of the New Word entitled Conjugial Love. From this book of Divine revelation we see that the imprint of the eternal is contained in every teaching relating td the marriage covenant. From preparing for marriage in which young people are encouraged to pray to the Lord for a legitimate and lovely partnership with one (CL 49), to an outline of the states of courtship where the roles and responsibilities of young men and women are described in some detail, to the rite of betrothal providing for a marriage of the spirit before that of the body, and finally to the consecration of the marriage by a priest, each of these preliminary steps that lead to the marriage ceremony has within it a looking to what is eternal in the marriage. It is an eternal perspective in marriage that protects and nurtures a couple's relationship during states of cold, and offers vision and delight to a husband and wife during states of peace and happiness. Indeed, whatever state a couple may be experiencing with regard to their marriage, a looking to what is eternal will elevate their thoughts and affections to what is from the Lord for the sake of the uses He is leading them to in His Providence.
As we have observed, all people are created eternal beings because of that special gift of the human soul. We have been provided a knowledge of the life after death, and as a consequence may choose to look to what is eternal in all things of life. This is especially true in our marriages, for in the struggles that accompany the regenerative process within a marriage, a couple acknowledges in their commitment to one another that the joy and bliss of this world is but a fleeting shadow when compared to the joy and bliss of eternal life (DP 73:6, 7). The things of this world are as nothing, and are said to be something only when they look to what is eternal (AC 10409:3).

     People demonstrate a trust and confidence in the Lord and His Word when they commit themselves to uses that are united with an eternal perspective. The states of love truly conjugial, consisting of "innocence, peace, tranquility, inmost friendship, full confidence, and a mutual desire of the mind and heart to do the other every possible good" can be bestowed by the Lord on those couples who are willing to be led within their marriages by a vision of what is eternal (CL 180). It is this end, this "gladness of heart" that exists with those in love truly conjugial, that causes the Lord to teach the importance of an eternal perspective in marriage and in all things of life (CL 216, AC 8637). May every person in the church live with the spiritual freedom that comes with this view of life, and as a consequence they will grow in their appreciation of the Lord's own words when He said, "1 am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die"(John 11:25, 26; DP 73:6, 7).

     LESSONS: Gen. 1:24-28, 31; Matt. 19:1-30, CL 216

     LESSON FOR SERMON, "AN ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE"

     That those who are in love truly conjugial look to what is eternal in marriage; not so those who are not in conjugial love. That those who are in love truly conjugial look to what is eternal is because eternity is in the love, its eternity being due to the fact that it increases to all eternity with the wife, as also does wisdom with the husband. In this increase or progression, the partners enter ever more deeply into that blessedness of heaven which their wisdom and the love thereof simultaneously store up within themselves. Therefore, if the idea of what is eternal were to be taken away, or if by any chance it should slip from their minds, it would be as though they were cast down from heaven. As for myself, the nature of the state with married partners in heaven when the idea of what is eternal falls from their minds and in its place comes an idea of what is temporal, came into the open from the following experience: Once, when two married partners from heaven were with me by permission, a certain worthless spirit, by cunning speech, took away from them the idea of what is eternal in respect to marriage. With this gone, they began to lament, saying they could no longer live and that they felt a wretchedness such as never before. When this was perceived by their fellow angels in heaven, the worthless spirit was removed and cast down, and with this done, the idea of what is eternal instantly came back to them, whereat they rejoiced with gladness of heart and embraced each other with the utmost tenderness.
     From these experiences, it can be clearly seen that those who are in love truly conjugial look to what is eternal.

DIVORCE AND WAYS TO PREVENT IT 1986

DIVORCE AND WAYS TO PREVENT IT Rev. ERIK SANDSTROM 1986

     I am thinking of these lines as a letter, the first part particularly addressed to couples whose marriages are in trouble, and the second mainly to parents and young people. I would therefore first like to discuss what a husband and wife may think and do to lead their no longer happy marriage back to a measure of peace and happiness, or even to a rediscovery of deep and real happiness; and then try to outline steps and elements in home education that look to the preparation of children and young people for a marriage such as the Lord intends for them.
     Divorce is forbidden in the New Church. It is also altogether permissible. It is forbidden in these words: "What God has joined together, let not man put asunder" (Matt. 19:6); and in these: "That marriages once contracted must continue to the end of life in the world is from Divine law; and being from this it is also from rational-law, and hence from civil law" (CL 276). The words in Matthew were spoken by the Lord in His first advent, and they were law for the Christian Church He then established. In the New Christian Church instituted by Him in His second coming there is further emphasis added to them, because the laws of conjugial love, as these operate in heaven and in a heavenly state on earth, have been revealed; and on account of such revelation a Divine promise has been set before this New Church: "After His [second] advent conjugial love will be raised up anew by the Lord, such as it was with the ancients; for this love is from the Lord alone and is with those who are made spiritual by Him through the Word" (CL 81e). That promise must not be belittled or despised.
     Forbidden-and permissible. It is permissible when the marriage has been destroyed by either partner. It is even of order that divorce should take place in some cases, for it is not good that the one who destroys should continue to exercise a foul influence in the home. Nevertheless, the external bonds of marriage may be retained in special circumstances, as when there are little children in the home, and when a legal divorce would inflict the greater harm on them. The Writings speak of other cases as well, such as fear of a public lawsuit and certain economic circumstances (see CL 469). But even then there is an internal divorce, and carnal conjunction between husband and wife is no longer lawful (see CL 469e).
     What destroys is adultery. Hence the law: "Adultery is the cause of divorce" (CL 255).

Degrees of adultery

     There are four degrees of adultery, successively more grievous: 1. Adulteries from ignorance; 2. Adulteries from temporary lust; 3. Adulteries from confirmed reason; and 4. Adulteries from the will (see CL 485-495).
     Note well that in their analysis of evil of various kinds the Writings consistently distinguish between degrees of evil. Thus they invite us all to see if evil with another is perhaps mild, so that there may be repentance and thus forgiveness. In themselves, however, all adulteries are cause for divorce. Such is the law. Adulteries of whatever degree are forbidden. Yet the offended partner may find a way to save the marriage, if there is open confession, a plea for forgiveness, and a resulting hope that there will be no more adultery. This hope, I would suggest, would need the test of time before hope can be translated into genuine trust and a normal marital life restored.
     Such forgiveness, however, cannot be demanded by the offender, but might be given by the offended.
     These thoughts concerning possible repentance and forgiveness are suggested, perhaps, by what is said about the above four kinds of adultery. It would appear that the first two could fall in the category of possible forgiveness, yet certainly not without repentance. But what shall we say about the latter two? For our guidance we have two teachings to consider. One is in the opening number of the second part of Conjugial Love, and speaks about "mild kinds of adultery" and also about "the grievous kinds of which a person (homo) actually repents" (emphasis added). And it is added: "The latter do not become the opposite of conjugial love, and the former are not the opposite" (CL 423-emphasis added). The other is the actual description of adulteries of the third and fourth degrees, especially the fourth "which are grievous in the highest degree" (CL 493). The third degree consists of adulteries of confirmation, and the fourth of those of the will, thus of set purpose. How likely is real repentance in these cases? The criterion of a repentance that is more than show must be: No more adultery of any kind, including the more subtle forms "that fill and infest the house with shameful panderings" (CL 468). A truly clean atmosphere, with no secret escape, must be the set goal, even though the way might be slow and difficult. No falling back was also the Lord's proviso (in John 8) in forgiving the woman taken in adultery. "Neither do I condemn you," He said. "Go and sin no more" (John 8:11-emphasis added). Repetition of sin tends to confirm; and the deeper the confirmation, the more difficult the repentance. But there is also the question of just how an offended party may follow the Lord's example of "not condemning." We will return to this portion at the end of this section.

     Let us now look briefly at the four degrees.

     1. "Adulteries of the first degree are adulteries from ignorance, which are committed by those who cannot or as yet do not consult the understanding and thus inhibit them" (CL 486). The words "as yet" are clarified in the next following paragraph, where turning from ignorance to a measure of understanding is implied. We read: "Adulteries of this degree are mild the first time they are committed; and they remain mild so far as in the subsequent course of life he or she abstains from them because they are evils against God, or against the neighbor, or against the good of the state, and being against these, are evils against reason." But they may cease to be mild. "On the other hand, these adulteries are numbered among the more grievous kinds if the parties do not abstain from them for one of the above reasons" (CL 487-emphasis added).
     Now adulteries are by definition acts committed with the wife (or husband) of another (see CL 444a). They are sins. A mild sin is still a sin. In the case of the first degree we see perhaps a person in temporary thoughtlessness and confusion, and enticed by circumstance, falling prey to the temptation of the moment. At the time he or she does not consult the understanding. We can see that this form of adultery is mild-a mild sin-if done once, and then, after honest reflection, is not repeated. Forgiveness is here possible.
     2. "Adulteries of the second degree are adulteries from lust, which are committed by those who are indeed able to consult the understanding, yet, on account of contingent causes, are not able at the time" (CL 488).
     In discussing this form of adultery the Writings first remind the reader of the two things that combat each other in a person who "from natural is becoming spiritual," namely, the spirit and the flesh. "And since the love of marriage is of the spirit, and the love of adultery of the flesh, there is a combat between these also," that is, between the love of marriage and the love of adultery (ibid.). In "one who from natural is becoming spiritual" the love of marriage is in the ascendancy and the love of adultery is being subdued. But here the "contingent cause": "If it happens that the lust of the flesh is aroused to a heat beyond what the spirit acting from reason can restrain, it follows that the state is inverted and the heat of lust pours such allurements over the spirit that it is no longer master of its reason and hence of its duty" (ibid.). It is added: "This is what is meant by adulteries of the second degree."
     For further clarification examples are offered, first a case of a wife seducing a man, and then a man seducing a wife: "If by cunning arts a meretricious wife captivates a man's mind, enticing him into her bedroom and so inflaming him that he becomes incapable of judgment, and the more if she then also threatens him with disgrace if he does not . . . .

Likewise if a man by soft allurements leads on the wife of another until her will, being inflamed, has no longer any control" (CL 488)
     The description of this form of adultery and the examples show us what is meant by contingencies making a person "at the time" not able to consult the understanding clearly a person well advanced in the way of becoming spiritual is both able to consult his or her understanding and so also to control the situation. And clearly it is a sin not so to consult and so to control.
     But forgiveness is held out as a possibility, yet again conditionally: "Adulteries committed [by people described in no. 4881 are imputable according as the understanding afterwards does or does not favor them (CL 489). Afterwards: Is the deed favored and excused, with a desire for more of the kind; or is there remorse, shame, and regret? A judge in the world will go by the deed, the inner attitude of the offender being beyond his scope; but after death the distinction between the retrospective favoring or not favoring the deed may spell out the difference between salvation and condemnation will the offended partner be able to see something of the distinction? Would it be possible for him or her to extend conditional forgiveness?
     What is here meant by "imputation." the Writings stress, is not the adjudication of guilt or freedom from guilt by a judge in the world, but the imputation "that is made according to the state of the person's spirit" (CL 489; for particulars, read further in this number).
     3. "Adulteries of the third degree are adulteries from the reason, which are committed by those who by their understanding confirm them as not being evils of sin" (CL 490).
     Note the repeated reference to the understanding. In every case the will is indeed there, using the understanding to formulate its inclinations. What the lips speak or the hands do is then another matter: they may counterfeit or truthfully set forth those inclinations. But interiorly what the will does in the understanding is what determines the state of the spirit; and in the case of the third degree that state is grave.
     Since the distinction between the third and fourth degrees is a distinction between a situation where the understanding is in the foreground and one where the will openly holds the reins, therefore for the purpose of clarification the Writings here introduce a special analysis: "The following may serve for a knowledge concerning will and understanding. 1. The will alone does nothing of itself, but whatever it does it does by the understanding. 2, On the other hand, the understanding does nothing of itself, but whatever it does it does from the will. 3. The will flows into the understanding, not the understanding into the will.

But the understanding teaches what is good and evil, and consults the will that the latter may choose which of the two is pleasing to it and may do it. 4. After this a dual conjunction is effected, one in which the will acts from within and the understanding from without, the other in which the understanding acts from within and the will from without" (CL 490:3).
     In the case of the third degree "the understanding acts from within and the will from without," this being adultery from reason. What seems to be involved here is that the initiative is from the understanding, with the will consenting. The person concerned is giving vent to reasonings and excuses about acts either committed or being schemed. One can hear him or her saying, "It is pleasurable to both sides, isn't it? And what's wrong with pleasure?" That person is looking for confirmations to balance out standards of religion, or yardsticks of old-fashioned values which bother him. And confirmations are fabricated in the understanding.
     Adultery of this degree is "grievous" (CL 491). Why? The reason is seen if we consider that the conjugial consists in the internal, born of heaven, and the external acting as one, thus in innocence and love from within infilling and sanctifying the external act. This internal is argued away by the third degree adulterer. So the conjugial is being destroyed. Is there a way back?
     Adulteries of this kind "are imputed according to the confirmations" (CL 494). Can evil and twisted confirmations be halted, and good and constructive ones take their place? "When a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed, and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive" (Ezek. 18:27).
     Here, however, is the snag: "Anyone can confirm evil just as well as good, and the same is true of falsity and truth. But the confirmation of evil is perceived as more delectable than the confirmation of good, and the confirmation of falsity as clearer than the confirmation of truth. The reason is because the confirmation of evil and falsity draws its reasonings from the delights, pleasures, appearances, and fallacies of the bodily senses, while the confirmation of good and truth draws its reasons from the region above the sensual things of the body" (CL 491; see also 494).
     "According to the confirmations . . . ." How far has the adulterer gone in arguing from what is "delectable" to his senses and what seems so "clear" in external appearance?-how far in silencing the voice from within-the voice that distinguishes between the human and the animal in physical conjunctions?
     There is a way back. As we have previously noted, CL 423 speaks of "the grievous kinds of which a person actually repents"; and in Ezekiel's promise of spiritual life is held out to the "wicked man who turns away from the wickedness which he committed."

But there is no denying the difficulty. Compare what is said about adulteries of the second degree, which "are imputable according as the understanding afterwards does or does not favor them." Here there is no reference to previous confirmations in their favor. If, therefore, it is relatively easy to regret an act committed in the passion of lust, and to repent of it in the light of sober reflection after the event, then we see how much more difficult it must be to regret an act, or perhaps many acts of the kind, when such act or acts were condoned by reasonings beforehand. Yet, anyone finding himself/herself in this situation should stop, and think, and turn! It can be done.
     On the other hand, how the offended partner is to act remains to be examined. We will return to this question after having examined also the fourth degree.
     4. "Adulteries of the fourth degree are adulteries from the will, which are committed by those who make them allowable and pleasing and not of sufficient importance to merit consulting the understanding in respect to them" (CL 492).
     We have seen that the primary difference between the third and the fourth degrees consists in the relative dominance of the understanding or the will; and we realize also that the will is the man himself. The understanding may wander to and fro under sundry influences, but it is identified with the man himself only insofar as the will reins it in and makes it one with itself. The influences are affections; and these, triggered from without, will be subjects to either one of two potential wills inside the man. These are the will of the proprium and the will of conscience, and each is vying for the power to rule the mind. In the balance is spiritual freedom. Should the man in freedom choose to listen to conscience, and to act from conscience, then the power of heaven enters the mind with its humble aspiration to speak the truth and to do what is good. But should he hand the scepter to his proprial will, then the power of hell gets access to him, and he is whisked in whatever direction where lusts and fantasy may point. The door to reason is shut; in the end, if the man persists, he puts a lock to it as well.
     What determines his choice is what will he acts from. The adulterer of the fourth degree is acting from the will of the proprium; and he is acting like an animal, except that he becomes worse than an animal because of the alternative he has rejected. Let such a person, man or woman, stop and consider before he or she-has affixed a lock to the door that would open to reason.
     "Adulteries committed [by those who make them allowable and pleasing and not of sufficient importance to merit consulting the understanding] are grievous in the highest degree, and are imputed to them as evils of purpose and inseated within them as guilt" (CL 493).

"Evils of purpose" are evils of the will. If there is no check in time, these evils possess the man, and become the man.

Forgiveness offered and forgiveness given

     There is a distinction, and the distinction is vital. Men would want to say that God is all mercy, and therefore He would forgive all, provided only that the cheap price of lip confession is paid. But "immediate mercy is not possible, because the salvation of man is effected by means" (DP 221); and the means are the laws of the Divine Providence, chief of which is this, that "man should act from freedom according to reason" (DP 71ff). The will to save is the Lord's, and it is total, that is, infinite and eternal; but whether or not salvation can be given is determined by man. For "whatever a man does from freedom according to his [own] thought is appropriated to him, and remains" (DP 78).
     The Writings put the issue in sum by drawing up the sharp contrast between a false view and a true one: "That sins when remitted have also been removed is an error of the age . . . But when this is reversed it becomes a truth, namely, that when sins have been removed they have also been remitted; for repentance precedes remission, and without repentance there is no remission" (DP 280). In other words, the Lord longs to forgive and save. As we sing in one of our beautiful hymns: "Savior, Thou art all forgiveness, look upon our misery." Yet He can neither forgive nor save against our will, that is, He cannot remove sins without the man removing them as from himself (which is repentance).
     This Divine example is for us humans to follow. It means that we too should long to forgive, while knowing at the same time that forgiveness cannot actually be bestowed upon an offender, that is, spoken and confirmed, unless there is repentance.
     And here there is a difference between what the Lord can do and what we can do, for the Lord alone sees "in secret." We humans cannot go beyond a conditional judgment, or an "if-judgment." thus: "if in internals you are what you appear to be in externals you will be saved or condemned" (CI, 523). When the Lord said, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more," He was reading the interior state of the woman, and knew that if she continued in that state, He could save her.
     We have to judge by the acts and speech we can observe; and when it comes to major decisions it behooves us to inquire well into those acts and that speech. The crucial question for the offended partner, when it comes to forgiving or not forgiving adultery, is: Can I trust him or her? In the case of the relatively mild forms, described above as "first or second degree adultery," actual forgiveness may be possible and trust restored.

Yet even then I would warn that time is of the essence: the offender must prove himself/herself over a period of time. Adultery in any form is a sin, whether mild or grievous, and must not be committed. It is a breach of one of the Ten Commandments. Therefore a mere promise that "I won't do it again" is not enough. Let us remember that the final stage in true repentance is "leading a new life" (TCR 567:5 et al.) and that new life is more than a promise of the lips.
     The problem is more grave in the case of the third or fourth degree. The partner who has committed adultery has now reasoned that it is all right, or worse, has accepted it as a matter of course, not even feeling any need for excusing it or arguing in favor of it. The situation here is weighing against bestowing forgiveness; for "adultery is the cause of divorce" (CL 255). Even then, however, the offended partner may pray that the Lord may work the miracle of salvation in the end, and so forgive.
     In either case-mild offence or grievous offence-the spouse has been deeply hurt. In such a state of suffering it would always be difficult to think clearly and calmly from doctrine and from reason; and therefore it would normally be well to consult some knowledgeable and understanding person before coming to a decision as to how to act.

Marriage is for life

     In the New Church we know and love the teaching that there are marriages in heaven, and that these not only endure but also increase in depth and happiness to eternity; also that a marriage on earth, if there is a bond of internal affections in addition to the legal contract, may continue after death and forever.
     We should also know and remember that even when such internal bonds are lacking, marriages are nevertheless to continue throughout life on earth. "In the world matrimonies are to continue to the end of life" (CL 276). True, the laws relating to marriage, especially in the Western world, tend to be increasingly loosened, to the point that they are "dissolvable at will, as was the case with the Israelitish nation which arrogated to itself the liberty of putting away their wives for any cause whatsoever" (CL 276; see also Matt. 19:3-9). By the laws of the world, therefore, a marriage may be easily dissolved in our day. But not according to the laws of the Writings, that is, not according to Divine laws. These laws, not new but now restated, are binding in the New Church. They are for use in the New Christianity that the Lord is now instituting.
     Many will say that it is cruel to force the continuance of a marriage that has broken down and has become miserable.

Yet think of the consequence if there was not the obligation to preserve marriage for life. Would it not at once follow that marriages would be entered into in lighthearted and irresponsible ways, just as is so frequently done in the world. And think of the consequence for the children in any broken marriage; and the consequence to the community if the pillar of security and stability represented by marriage were to collapse (rather, think of the collapse that is taking place in this day of tottering Christianity).
     But there is another answer as well: Don't allow your marriage to break down and become miserable. There are ways to prevent this. One is very simple and very effective. It is to say, "Sorry, it was my fault." It is the proprium that never finds fault with self and always blames the other fellow. But anyone can discipline his proprium! It only takes adherence to doctrine.
     And then there is another and more universal approach: simulation in marriage. We'll look at that aspect separately.

Simulation in marriage

     The doctrine is unequivocal: "in matrimonies wherein internal affections do not conjoin, there are external affections which simulate the internal and consociate . . . Thence is apparent love between the partners, or apparent friendship and favor . . . These appearances are conjugial simulations which are praiseworthy because useful and necessary . . . . With a spiritual person conjoined with a natural, these conjugial simulations savor of justice and judgment . . . . With natural persons these conjugial simulations savor of prudence for the sake of various causes . . . . They are for the sake of amendments and for the sake of accommodations . . . They are for the sake of preserving order in domestic affairs, and for the sake of mutual aid . . .They are for the sake of the care of the infants, and of unanimity in relation to the children . . . They are for the sake of peace in the home . . . They are for the sake of reputation outside the home . . . They are for the sake of various favors expected from the partner or from the partner's kindred; thus because of the fear of losing them . . . They are for the sake of the excusing of blemishes and the avoiding of ill-repute therefrom . . . [and] They are for the sake of reconciliations" (CL 277-289, headings).
     All the above points are discussed singly in the Writings, but for our present purpose it is enough to see the general doctrine involved. Perhaps that doctrine may be summarized thus: Your marriage is to last at least to the end of this life; therefore make the best of it.
     One hears the contrary argument (an escape argument?) that simulation is playacting, or even deceit. But if so, then it is playacting and deceit also when we say to someone coming to our door, "Glad to see you; please come in," even when inside of ourselves we might say at the same time, "I'd rather not have been disturbed."

Who cannot see the distinction between civility and deceitfulness? And who cannot see that life in society would be impossible if we were always to say whatever we think?
     It is so in marriages as well. Anyone can put up a decent behavior, in which there is both good will and respect for the partner's rights. That being the purpose, the action will stem from the will of conscience, not from the will of the proprium; and so it is "praiseworthy." Remember, marriage is for life. "Living together is enjoined on the partners by covenant and by law and therefore is inseated in both as a duty" (CL 279e)-by covenant if not by law, that is, by the covenant of a New Church wedding, if not nowadays by wishy-washy civil laws. With us, living together is still "inseated as a duty"; and it is never unhealthy to live by duty.

Separations

     Here a thorough examination of the teachings concerning marital separations would be justified. But it would unduly lengthen our present treatise; and besides, the matter has been carefully researched and set forth in a pamphlet called "Marital Separation" by Rev. N. Bruce Rogers and published by the General Church Publication Committee (which see).
     Suffice it here to say that there are legitimate causes of separation from the bed only and from the house also (see CL 251); and that, speaking generally, there is this recourse of separation when the marriage cannot be rescued by means of honorable and praiseworthy simulations, and when there is no cause for divorce (that is, no cause acceptable in the New Church).
     And here we should insert the observation, not only as before said, that adultery is the cause of divorce, but also that it is the only cause. Conjugial Love presents three cases where adultery is involved: (Actual) whoredom; manifest obscenities; and malicious desertion "which involves whoredom" (CL 468).
     In the case of separation, for one legitimate reason or another the marriage is still not dissolved, wherefore marrying another is not lawful. We are not to forget that marriage is a Divine institution; that therefore it is subject to Divine order; and that no man is to tamper with that order at will. The same principle applies as before, namely, that if we loosen the rules related to marriage, we unavoidably loosen also the resolve and commitment at the very entrance into marriage.
     When it comes to separations for acceptable reasons, the New Church does have the law. We are not to accept and apply the license often available in our day through civil law. And, of course, civil law only permits; it does not mandate.

Therefore, a New Church husband or wife, not finding in the Divine law a cause for either divorce or separation, is to look for ways of saving the marriage, and pursue those ways, and not feebly throw up his or her hands and acknowledge defeat.

Forms of adultery

     We shall not dwell on this subject. Briefly, however, we should note that any form of adultery would qualify as cause for divorce, including-it cannot be otherwise-homosexuality and lesbianism. While the Writings emphasize the spiritual sense of "sodomy," they also refer to it as "the evil of the worst adultery" (AC 2220) and "a foulness that is contrary to the order of nature" (AC 2322). See also what is said about "simple, double, and triple adultery" (CL 479ff).
     As I understand it, the four degrees of adultery would apply to any form of it; only that the worse the form, the more remote would seem to be the application of a relatively mild degree to it. Still, if a terrible act has been committed in thoughtless haste, or under severe pressure, we should bear in mind that the imputation, in the Divine view, is "according as the understanding afterwards does or does not favor [the act]."

Marriage is holy

     In our marriage ritual we have: "Marriage is most holy, not only from its origin in heaven from the Lord, but also from this, that it is the seminary of the human race, and that which is the seminary of the human race is also the seminary of the angelic heaven. Since marriage is so holy, it is not to be violated in any manner, for thereby heaven is closed to man" (Liturgy; and see CL 64 and HH 384). Those who have a wedding according to this our ritual ought to believe that these words are true.
     The opposite of what is holy is what is profane. "Marriages are holy, and to injure them is to injure that which is holy; consequently adulteries are profane; for as the delight of conjugial love descends from heaven, so the delight of adultery ascends from hell" (AC 10174). Yet, again repentance is possible; the closing of heaven need not be final. We also read: ". . . for his interiors are closed up, and cannot be opened except by serious repentance" (AC 2750e; italics added).
     So we say: "Divorce is forbidden in the New Church; it is also altogether permissible." Let us know that our marriages are to be kept at least to the end of life in the world; that there are ways of preserving them even in the face of adversity; and that only when the conjugial is destroyed and appears beyond repair, that is, when there seems to be no tangible hope of repentance on the part of the offender, and consequent forgiveness on the part of the offended, is divorce permissible.

     But should there ever be a cause for divorce in the New Church?

HUMAN GESTURES: THE EXTREMITY OF INFLUX 1986

HUMAN GESTURES: THE EXTREMITY OF INFLUX Rev. ERIK E. SANDSTROM 1986

     Introduction

     Everyone knows that the face is the index of the mind. The affections, thoughts, feelings and ideas of the mind find a ready and pliable outlet in the facial expressions and bodily gestures. How many facial features or grimaces are there? As many as there are affections. How about shades of expression using only the eyes? As many as ideas we hold. The actor or actress learns to portray human states of mind, and in a way we are all actors or actresses on the stage of life. But life is short. The question arises, How can man be judged to heaven or to hell after just a few years on earth? It is difficult to answer, because it is difficult to demonstrate everything that happens on earth. What does happen is that all adults make up their minds for heaven or for hell in just one lifetime. All people follow the laws of Divine Providence even without knowing it. When they wake up after death, they will eventually discover to their own satisfaction where they wish to enter. And everyone who then enters heaven knows that but for the Lord's mercy, he has not deserved it. He or she may then ask, "What on earth have I done to deserve this?" or "What have I done on earth to deserve heaven?" So we ask a similar question here and now: How can we tell the presence of heaven here on earth? To what extent can we examine our own state of regeneration?
     The answer, amazingly, lies in part in human gestures and facial expressions. For the spiritual world dwells in the natural, and the spirit of man dwells in the body. In our normal behaviour, there are countless gestures which express spiritual things on the level of the world. We read: "Unless spiritual things were presented representatively in the natural, thus by such things as are in the world, they would not be apprehended at all" (AC 5373:3). In other words, without physical gestures, nothing spiritual would be understood.

Influx Down to the Extremity

     The Heavenly Doctrine provides some penetrating insights on this subject. We can learn about ourselves and others by reflecting on our gestures. There is even quite a basis for a sound New Church approach to the subject of psychology that is, learning something helpful about why we behave the way we do. However, too much introspection is detrimental.

And this address on human gestures is only meant as a positive and pleasant insight into ourselves.
     One main teaching on human gestures reads as follows: "The Divine order, and the heavenly order derived from it, are not terminated except in man, and what is of the body, namely his gestures, actions, looks, speech and external sensations and their delights. These are the extremes of order, and the extremes of influx which are then terminated" (AC 3632).
     Now, if in hearing this quote you have raised an eyebrow, you might as well wonder why you should make such a facial expression to begin with!
     The reason for the body and its actions being the extreme receptacle of all influx, we read, is that the influx does not "stop midway, but goes on to its outmosts" (HH 304). There is nothing in heaven that can terminate an influx, and so the Divine order never stops midway (see HH 315). Everything keeps going down through each heaven, and it does not stop until it reaches the "sensuous and bodily of man, which receives the influx last" (AC 7270:2).
     This, incidentally, is why everything on earth is permanent, whereas in heaven everything can change in an instant, and things can be created or made to disappear.
     Now to understand this further, we have to remember that everything of life inflows from the Lord. All forms of life on earth-vegetable, animal and human-are receptacles of life. The way everything was created to live is the way they continue to receive life.
     But one condition for receiving life is that the receptacle has to be quite dead. For example, the inorganic earth is dead; so are our bodies dead. But we call something alive as long as the spiritual life can inflow and activate the dead natural receptacle. Life activates the soil and germinates the seeds which then extract inorganic elements and turn them into organic life. or organisms. So also the soul activates a body which is quite dead. We move our arms, and wave our hands, and say, "See, I am alive." But it is our spirit which lives, and the spirit is the real person which moves the body. When someone dies, therefore, although to the observer someone's life has come to an end, to the person who dies it is quite different: when you die, you in effect step out of your body, as though it were an overcoat. You then first notice your spiritual body. Every spiritual body survives every death of every natural body. All our facial and bodily gestures here on earth thus originate from our spiritual body, which lives after death.
     So that is why the influx has to come down to extremes, namely the physical which lives from the spiritual. Natural human gestures are consequently the extremities of our spiritual life.

The Face

     Let us see how this works. We read: "the things of the mind beam forth from the face and are manifest in its expressions." The "more interior affections," we are told, "are seen from and in the eyes. When the things of the face act as one with those of the mind, they are said to correspond. The very expressions of the face represent and are representatives" (AC 2988).
     And that is why we always look people in the eye: the interior affections actually are represented for our view. And the same Is the case with our gestures, which manifest what man is thinking and willing. We read on: "The gestures and actions themselves represent the things of the mind, and as they are in agreement, they are correspondences" (ibid.). Consequently, every interior affection has a bodily gesture which corresponds to it (see AC 2153). Just think: the interior affection you feel, say, when you have a silver wedding anniversary, or when you have just been honored or promoted, or when your affections have been powerfully moved, say by some news such as the liberation of a nation from servitude-all these affections have gestures, as well as looks of the eyes which represent them to view. The range of facial expressions and gestures is indefinite.
     Suppose we make a gesture of impatience: a sudden move of the shoulder or head, which says in effect, "I am impatient; I can't stand this situation much longer." We all know what impatience feels like, and we have seen it in others. The question is, can we tell what is going on? Can we interpret people's gestures?
     Of course we can. We read: "Something similar occurs with men, who can sometimes know from another's gestures, looks or speech what he is thinking even though it is contrary to what he saps; this knowledge is natural to man" (AC 1388).
     Not only can we interpret each other's gestures correctly, but it is an inborn ability. This knowledge is natural to man. We can even tell that a gesture does not go with the words. A gesture might say, "I am impatient," whereas the mouth is saying. "How interesting!" We can therefore be talking with someone who has to catch a bus, and although we don't know that fact, we feel impelled to say, "Well, I suppose we could talk all day, but I am sure you have better things to do," but in our thought say, "I wish you had a bus to catch, so I could watch TV."
     In spite of being able to interpret gestures almost automatically, there is nonetheless a great gap between the gesture and the thought or feeling it represents. We read, "Thoughts and affections are not such as they appear in the representative speech and action, but they are on a spiritual plane, and in their own nature" (AC 2959).

This means that although the thought appears in the words of speech, or the love is seen in the action of the body (see AC 738 1:2), nevertheless the thought itself is completely different from the words used to express it; the love as it is in itself is different from the action used to present it. It is therefore a constant miracle that we can communicate at all! We actually see spiritual things on a spiritual level, and gestures and looks are only the natural means of transferring them from mind to mind.
     It is consequently possible to mistake the meaning of gestures or expressions. We cannot make rash judgments, or be sure. Sometimes you just cannot tell exactly what is going on from a mere gesture.
     Take as an example: the universal shoulder shrug, with lips turned down, which to everyone means, "That's the way it goes; what can I do?" But what lies behind it? It could be "Well, I tried," or "I don't care," or, "I don't know what to do!"
     That leads on to a further complication. We add to our consideration the fact that in most western cultures there is a sophistication which hides our thoughts and feelings from view. We read, "Man is accustomed from childhood to maintain a semblance of friendship, benevolence, and sincerity, and to conceal the thoughts of his own will, thereby living a moral and civil life from habit in externals, whatever he may be like internally" (HH 492).
     Is this not a bit of an indictment? We learn to dissemble, almost without being taught. As a result, we read on, "from this habit man scarcely knows what his interiors are, and gives little thought to them" (ibid.). This is what makes self-examination so important.
     Does this apply also to the New Church? Perhaps it does. However, the Writings now give a very important clarification, namely that even good people have a so-called mental "deputy," which as it were monitors his mental life, and guards lest anything of imprudence should come out in the open. This deputy is called in the Writings the "love of means." We all have a love of means, which really refers to our ability to pretend and to simulate. We do this, do we not? If you feel grouchy, you just can't go and hit a stranger. And when in public, we simulate for good ends. And so we manifest gestures which normally mean good things, but these really camouflage our selfish intentions.
     Evil people have such a deputy just for the sake of escaping detection. Such people are the hypocrites-priests who care nothing for the neighbor and do not fear God, judges who take bribes and pervert the cause of justice, merchants who use fraud, and adulterers who talk about chastity (see DP 109).
     But how do good people use this deputy or love of means? Is it right and proper for good people to dissemble?

If Auntie, as the story goes, appears with a perfectly monstrous contraption on her head, and you are asked to comment, is it proper to say, "It becomes you very well"? Would that be hypocritical?
     The answer is no, it would not be hypocritical. For the love of means of a good person also acts as a deputy, teaching and leading him to act from prudence. In fact, the love of means of a good person is prudence. Prudence is a deputy which provides clothing for man's life's love. It is to use prudence in revealing your true interiors (see DP 110). When we observe someone's gestures and speech, we therefore may be observing his love of means, guarding lest his interiors be too readily revealed! We see his "deputy" guarding the real person.
     We all know, for example, that if a stranger gets too familiar, we instinctively shy away from closer contact. Human prudence as a deputy clothes the real love, and ensures that we appear to each other in appropriate spiritual costume. The purpose is not to deceive, but to make ourselves appear attractive and becoming to each other. Human prudence does use subterfuges, but with good intentions.
     In heaven such things are no longer necessary. There, man is truly spirit, and his face and body correspond so completely to his internals that "when he is looked upon, his character is at once known, not only from the face and body, but also from his speech and movements" (HH 552). Man's gestures then come into their own. And because dissembling is no longer necessary, and yet people are different, all who are the same dwell together, and so have nothing to hide. Nevertheless, there are states of privacy, things which not even friends share.
     To sum up this section: we can tell what people mean by their gestures and expressions; but we can also conceal our real thoughts and loves, either in a hypocritical way, which most people see through, or in a legitimate prudent manner of clothing our loves. It is an accommodation of face and gesture to the circumstances. But above and within all gestures, the thoughts and affections are in their own form and nature, which is different from the way they are represented. In heaven there may be a whole new set of gestures not possible here on earth, which portray our spiritual life in its true form. The Writings talk about angelic speech which is mixed with representatives, and gestures which express the same things as the words (see HH 244). So we have that to look forward to.

     Historical View

     Historically, modern man has veered far from the true order found in Most Ancient times. In those days, they could in one minute communicate by very slight lip movements what today takes an hour to express verbally (see AC 1118, 607).

This communication was more complete, clear and full than verbal speech today (see AC 607). Such was the first type of communication on earth (and every earth): namely by facial expressions, using mostly the eyes and lips (see AC 8249).
     But today our lips are locked up in comparison. The layers and layers of muscles in the lips-well known to science-are not as versatile today. This is because of deception. We read, "Whatever man wishes to conceal contracts his face" (AC 4799). When people thus began to think one thing and speak another, the face became silent and dissembling (see EU 54). That is how we have inherited our modern or "civilized" face, where our normal resting position is a face largely drained of emotion, the so-called "poker face" which does not show what cards you are holding.
     Such a serious looking face is now normal, because even the nerves have been altered in their connections in the brain. Today, there is hardly any involuntary expression left in the face (see AC 4326:2). In other words, hardly anything of our mental life shows involuntarily on the face any more: all our expressions have to be put there consciously. There are a few exceptions, however, which we now deal with. Let us take some examples.
     Laughter. The origin of laughter is simply the love of truth (see AC 2072). We all enjoy a good laugh. Laughter is of course voluntary, but there are times when we just can't help it. Well, angels in "celestial or spiritual good do not laugh but express their delight and cheerfulness in face, speech and gesture in another way. It is a cheerfulness of mind, which produces something similar to laughter" (AC 2216). [Angels, of course, do laugh. Ed.]
     We can't practice that one right now! But we know the difference between the type of laughter which shares its cheerfulness, and the type which is at someone's expense.
     We also enjoy the cheerfulness of mind which perhaps giggles rather than laughs-sometimes not even audibly, just a quiet moment of good cheer.
     Kneeling and Prostration. Another bodily gesture is kneeling. Humility of the mind produces a correspondential kneeling of the body. Greater humility produces prostration of the body (see AC 4215; cf. 7596). Since the influx which terminates in the body also terminates in the dead substances in the earth (see AC 6077), consequently lying prostrate on the ground becomes an act of supreme humility, or rather, abject humility. Some spirits in the other life did this: they would have remained prostrate indefinitely except the Lord bade them rise up. So much did they delight in humiliating themselves. Witnesses of this were extremely moved by it (see EU 91). Similarly, bowing is a gesture both of humiliation and joy (see AC 2927e).

     The Hands. From the face and knees we move to the hands. The spreading of our hands is a universally known gesture, originating from Most Ancient times. It represents the supplication of the heart (see AC 7596). And is it not true that we spread our hands as it were to implore friendship, forgiveness and love of the neighbor? It is a supplication from the heart that says in effect, "Since we feel this way, what need is there to say any more?" It means a turning away from words and thoughts to gestures and feelings. It is the heart's supplication.
     Other Examples. Other gestures are well known to us: joyful shouting and singing, as when we welcome celebrities or royalty, or singing songs from the heart. Such gestures are produced by gladness-e.g., shouts of "Bravo," "Encore," "Hosanna," "Hurrah."
     Weeping and wailing, on the other extreme, are produced by sadness. And both in singing and weeping there is a spontaneous element. When we find ourselves going around singing or humming, we can be sure we are glad about something. We weep rather seldom compared with singing: but a deep perception of truth sometimes moves us to tears rather than laughter. There is perhaps a connection here with the Fact that the most beautiful music is often sad. Again, we think of those spirits who delighted in prostrating themselves. Were they sad or glad in their humility? The deepest affections perhaps give birth to both joy and sadness, both singing and repentance, elation and humility (see AC 2153).
     Kissing and Embracing. Having come to deeper mental states, we now consider the gesture of kissing. Kissing, we are taught, represents conjunction from a spiritual affection. Since kissing involves the sense of touch, it belongs to conjugial love. A spiritual affection shared between one man and one woman is therefore properly expressed in kissing, which is thus the origin of this gesture. All kissing can therefore be seen to relate to marriage. For all kinships of family ties stem from marriage. We tend to kiss all those in the extended family. But spiritual kinships of course go beyond natural family; so we have friendships which also are honored, as it were, by the gesture of kissing. But underlying this gesture there is a respect for marriage.
     We are warned, however, that even the kiss can be for our own sake, for honor and gain. It can be as deceptive as Judas' kiss of betrayal, meant for evil rather than good (at least so it would appear).
     A deeper affection, namely for good, produces the further gesture of embracing (see AC 6260, 6261; cf. 4215). Since the affection of good is more closely connected with the whole body, the embrace is as it were similar to the greater humility involved in prostration. There is fuller body contact with a loved person.

It is an appropriate gesture for more intimate and genuine friendships, both with men and men, and with women and women, as well as adults and children, and so forth. But as with kissing, the embrace refers to the conjugial and the ideal of marriage.
     Since the embrace is a gesture which brings into ultimates the conjugial influx, which is universal in its scope, therefore the embrace between a husband and wife expresses the conjunction given by the Creator, from which the human race is also procreated. Since the heavens of angels came from the human race, and every angel was once born a squalling infant on earth, we can see how complete a gesture the embrace is, and the respect that has to attend its use.
     Men and Women. We turn now logically to the gestures of men and women. Because of the distinction between them, men's gestures are said to be stronger, firmer and more unrestrained, while women's gestures are weaker and more elegant (see CL 218). But there is more to it than that.
     Single men and women looking to marriage search each others' faces for those telltale signs of mutual harmony of affection and thought. The ways to communicate such signs-as everyone who has been in love knows-is by means of the eyes and the lips (see AC 8249). Perhaps those slight lip movements which say more in a minute than in an hour-long speech are still possible between those seeking legitimate marriage. Also, the eyes give off the light of the mind (see AC 7361) and thus picture forth what the mind thinks and wills (see AC 8249).
     So the reason why men and women are conjoined by looking each other in the eyes is thus because the conjugial expresses itself through the face. Man sees in a woman's face the very thing he loves to give her, namely his own wisdom; and a woman sees in a man's face what she gives him, namely her love. For man is inmostly love, covered with wisdom, and woman is inmostly the wisdom of the male, covered with love (see CL 32). Consequently, a man is inmostly what the woman appears to be outwardly, namely love. This is why men love the beauty and grace of women and why the love of truth-which is a male love-was in the Ancient Church depicted by statues of beautiful maidens. And a woman is inmostly what the male appears to be outwardly, namely wisdom, which is why women love men who show rational and moral wisdom.
     Being so created, each strives to give to the other exactly what the other loves. It is two-way traffic on two levels. This explains why men appear sterner, harsher and stronger than women, and why they grow beards, whereas inmostly they are gentle men-"softies" who are easily moved by deeply rooted loves, and why women appear of beautiful and elegant form and feminine in manners, but conceal within themselves the wisdom gained the hard way by males.

This wisdom she takes into herself by means which are perhaps so secret that she does not even know them herself (at least not until she is an angel in heaven).
     Now this admirable arrangement allows the wife to transfer to herself the love that man, on his own, would give to his own intelligence. And so the wife loves the husband's wisdom for him, and he can love her for it, without loving himself. That is the secret of Eve created from Adam's rib while he slept.
     We are therefore taught that a husband and wife are conjoined as to will and understanding by merely looking each other in the face (see HH 369). It is a gesture belonging to marriage, coming from heaven. It all comes back to the eyes and lips; and it certainly applies to all romantic love as well; and also to respect for each other. For all people gain from each other's faces what belongs to marriage.
     The Lord and Man's Face. To conclude, we consider why all this is so. It is, we read, because "the Lord wills that all goods be communicable, so that all may be affected by mutual love, and so be happy" (AC 1388). We are human, and able to communicate by facial expressions " and bodily gestures, because the Lord created us that way. Love and life beam forth from the Lord's face, and we merely pass on our versions of them to others.
     The Lord is the face of Jehovah (see AC 10579), that is, the face of love itself. We worship one God, Jehovah, and His face is the Lord Jesus Christ. Jehovah came on earth to show mankind His face, that is, the face of Divine Love and Wisdom, of peace and mercy (see AC 222). He came to face mankind, and to let mankind come face-to-face with their God.
     There is one time when every individual comes face-to-face with his Maker. Yes, it is the time when we usually say we have to face our Maker, namely when we die. That is when we are the most helpless, thus in a state of total innocence. When man is in this most helpless state, the Lord sends His inmost angels to be with him: they are present, sitting around man's head, and sharing their thoughts with the dead person. They do this, we read, "by inducing their own face on him" and by "looking into his face" (AC 173; HH 449). When man's face responds to the angels' facial movements-those fine lip movements of the Most Ancients which are no longer possible with us-then the angels know that man can be extracted from the body.
     Through the celestial angels, we come face-to-face with the Lord. For only the Lord has power to extract the soul from the body. The angels as it were pass on the Lord's face, and the dead person's face is moved by the Lord's face.

The influx descends and is terminated in the lowest extremity, which is now lacking the physical body; so it is the spiritual body which now responds.
     Thus when Moses came face-to-face with Jehovah-meaning the Lord on earth-it involves the Word, which of course is open for all to see in clear light of day (see AC 10554). As we study and hear the Word, and are regenerated by living according to the Word, our facial expressions and gestures, whether spontaneous or formal, can communicate good to each other, for the sake of mutual love and happiness.

Conclusion

     We have considered just a few gestures mentioned in the Writings. The range of gestures knows no limits. We do, however, have a habit of concealing our loves; yet we can instinctively penetrate to what people actually feel, even though it is at variance with their words. But we also can use prudence, to clothe our real loves for the welfare of society. So we have to be charitable in our observations of each other's behavior. For there is also the influx from hell to consider.
     We can also know that when man speaks by facial expressions and by bodily gestures. it is potentially angelic speech. For the influx does not stop midway in heaven, but passes through heaven, taking something of heaven with it, and comes to rest nowhere else than in the extreme receptacles of human gestures and facial expressions. It is consequently honorable to will well to others from the heart, and it is decorous to testify in speech and gesture heavenly affections and thoughts, which as always remain in our minds in their own form (see AC 4574). Heaven thus descends on earth, and we are blessed also here. We learn to sympathize and harmonize on a spiritual level.
     And if we all knew the Most Ancient way to communicate by slight lip and eye movements, this paper would have taken just one minute!
NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 100 YEARS AGO Editor 1986

In 1886 NEW CHURCH LIFE frequently carried many news snippets. Here is one from the February issue.

Dr. Edward Cranch of Erie delivered a lecture before the Erie Natural History Society on "Origin of Animal Forms," treating the subject from the New Church point of view and giving a "sketch of the plan of creation, as revealed in the last century through the specially inspired Swedenborg."

FREEDOM, ORDER AND RESPONSIBILITY 1986

FREEDOM, ORDER AND RESPONSIBILITY SYDNEY R. PARKER 1986

     A TALK TO THE TORONTO CHAPTER OF THE SONS OF THE ACADEMY

     To a large segment of the world, we are perceived to enjoy almost unlimited freedom. We are free, but for our own protection we submit to innumerable self-imposed laws in which our freedom is contained. In addition to all the regulations and prohibitions that our heterogenous society has come to accept, either willingly or unwillingly, there are areas in which our freedom is not curtailed-and we sometimes think that it would be in the best interests of society if it were. Take for example the absence (or nonenforcement) of laws in connection with lotteries, homosexuality, pornography, prostitution, abortion and divorce. In a countless number of ways, we are prescribed and circumscribed by an unending series of codes, laws and regulations of our own making, inhibiting (or improperly extending) our freedom, which are intended to ensure the maintenance of the common good. And we are among the freest countries in the world. Citizens of other countries which do not enjoy anything even approaching our freedom expose themselves to imprisonment, torture and the more subtle forms of harassment, to protest against the curtailment of their freedom.

     In our country, frequent demonstrations draw attention to conditions that are perceived not to be in the best interests of society-people urging the abandonment of nuclear weapons, the abortionists and the pro-lifers, censorship and anticensorship advocates, vivisectionists and anti-vivisectionists, those for and against capital punishment, to mention a few that have become conspicuous from time to time. None of these people are ever exposed to imprisonment, rubber bullets, high pressure water cannon or other extremely disagreeable consequences to which they could be exposed in many other countries. In fact, the police are on hand to protect them from each other should violence erupt. But unless the peace is disturbed or traffic impeded, neither the police nor any other authority will lift a finger to restrain them.
     How is it that we never find ourselves among the advocates or protestors? Surely there are causes to which we subscribe or are sympathetic, or to which we are vigorously opposed.
     Twenty, perhaps thirty, rears ago lotteries, abortion, attempted suicide, homosexuality and indecent exposure were crimes or offences punishable with pretty stiff penalties. When did we last hear of anybody being charged with (let alone convicted of) attempted suicide, bigamy, homosexuality, indecent exposure or alienation of affections?

Did we disagree with the propriety of the laws twenty or thirty years ago, and are now in agreement with them? Is it because we consider demonstrations to be ineffectual in restoring what we conceive to be order? Or do we find it more comfortable not to identify ourselves with such causes-to go about our business and spend our free time reading, going to the theater, engaging in sports, entertaining, watching television, spending time at the Book Store, going to Sons' meetings or whatever?
     In natural terms what we call our freedom may be compared to spiritual freedom-freedom of choice according to reason. How highly do we value the natural freedom we enjoy? The Lord, we are told, guards man's freedom as he guards the apple of his eye (DP 97). Our regeneration hinges upon the exercise of our spiritual freedom. Should there not be a similar concern for the protection and exercise of our freedom on a natural plane? Should we not constantly be on the alert to watch out for anything that would inhibit our (or our neighbor's) freedom, or permit the abuse of it?
     Every day the editorial page of the newspaper I read is headed: "The subject who is truly loyal to the Chief Magistrate will neither advise nor submit to arbitrary measures." It is not known who pronounced this dictum, save that he wrote over the pseudonym "Junius," but his utterance has a ring of truth about it-it is easily understood and appeals to one as being essentially right. Surely our laws cannot be described as arbitrary, yet how can we-i.e., our freely elected lawmakers who represent us-make laws that will provide for an orderly society without a knowledge of what freedom is or what constitutes an orderly society? According to my dictionary, one meaning of arbitrary is: "derived from mere opinion." Our lawmakers strive very hard to enact laws that do conform to the opinion of the electorate. An ungenerous comment here might be that upon their success in so doing hinges their duration in office. But be that as it may, the fact remains that they (and by "they" I mean we) are just not qualified to arrive at a code of behavior that would conform to the laws of order. They are certainly not the consensus of our collective opinion!
     Our laws are contained in hundreds, perhaps thousands, of volumes, and yet the God-given laws of the Decalogue occupy just seventeen verses of the 20th chapter of Exodus; and in the New Testament, the golden rule is contained in a single verse (Matt. 7:12). True, these laws for the conduct of our lives are broken down and enlarged upon in both the Old and New Testaments; but few of our laws (in their application anyway) appear to be simple, direct and unequivocal-they are enveloped in all sorts of qualifications relative to the mental condition of the offender: was he insane either intrinsically or temporarily?

was he drunk or under the influence of drugs? And then there is "plea bargaining"-to reduce the enormity of the offence actually committed, to accelerate, simplify or abbreviate the legal proceedings. Surely all of these things can only detract from, hinder or prevent administration of the justice intended to protect our freedom.
     Take divorce for example. We know that our laws provide for divorce for the most trivial of reasons. We know that this is altogether contrary to order. We also know (or suspect) that denial of divorce to the many that seek it would do little to restore an orderly way of life for the individuals concerned. Also, we are very much a multi-cultural society, and quite apart from "taking the easy way out," there are those who hold views widely divergent from our own. Because we cannot enact laws to enforce morality and integrity, laws and "rights" applicable to everyone have to be written in detail, outlining specifically and minutely what must be done and what is forbidden, and this leaves them subject to misinterpretation and manipulation by unscrupulous lawyers, to the further detriment of the judicial process.
     But can we continue to survive as a society that is becoming year by year more permissive and degenerate? Does it not seem inevitable that eventually there will come a time when we shall go too far, when even the civil code deteriorates (by default) to a point that the very freedom it strives to guarantee and protect becomes so involved and complicated that society will be endangered? When this point is reached-and it won't be in a year or a decade, nor perhaps even in a century-New Churchmen should be among the first to recognize it. Will they be? We do not appear to have much effect on the behaviour of society. How far out would we be prepared to stick our necks, to make ourselves conspicuous-even to defying the law-in attempting to bring about changes to restore what we conceive to be order?
     Defy the law?? No. 322 of Divine Providence reads, in part, as follows: "He is called a civil man who knows and lives according to the laws of the kingdom of which he is a citizen; he is called a moral man who makes those laws his ethics and his virtues, and from reason lives by them.
     "Let me say how civil and moral life is the receptacle of spiritual life. Live these laws not only as civil and moral laws but also as Divine laws and you will be a spiritual man. There is hardly a nation so barbarous that it has not by law prohibited murder, adultery, false witness and damage to what is another's. The civil and moral man keeps these laws that he may be, or seem to be, a good citizen. If he does not consider them Divine laws also, he is only a civil and moral natural man, but if he considers them Divine also, he becomes a civil and moral spiritual man.

The difference is that the latter is a good citizen both of an earthly kingdom and of a heavenly, while the former is a good citizen only of the earthly kingdom and not the heavenly. . ."
     This passage from the Writings, which we believe to be the Word of God, is not to be questioned, but in the light of the conditions existing at the present day, the understanding and application of it give rise to questions. We are a nation so barbarous that adultery is not prohibited by law-in fact, as a society, we have only the most rudimentary idea of what constitutes adultery-even natural adultery (see TCR 313). And even if it were prohibited by law, the Writings themselves say that: "in Christendom at this day, adultery is general . . . the reason is that they do not make the doctrine of faith a matter of life, and are spiritual adulterers" (SD 5539).
     Do we take our freedom too lightly? Surely there must be some pretty serious responsibilities attendant upon its enjoyment and preservation. Failure to accept and act according to them has resulted in the deterioration and disappearance of more than one society. If, as and when we come to the conclusion that we have gone too far, what should we as New Churchmen do to attempt to reverse the situation? Should we be attempting to do something about it now, while society is still viable albeit only barely-in some areas?
     We, as a church, feel that our own responsibility-our use-is on a higher plane, and so, of course, it is. As a body, we don't go in much for what we consider to be the works of natural charity-caring for the needy, rehabilitation of the drunks and bums, salvaging the dope addicts and derelicts from broken homes, indigents discharged from mental institutions, the less fortunate elderly and so on. Sure, we look after our own, but the New Testament contains several passages relative to the virtue (or otherwise) of that (Luke 6:33, Matt. 5:46)! Perhaps we feel that the public welfare and social agencies, the Salvation Army, other church bodies, the service organizations and so on, can perform these services adequately without any help from us. How closely do we enquire? Do we feel similarly aloof to the laws that govern (or ignore) the external conduct of society? If we do, can we justify it? Are we so preoccupied in attempting to perform the primary and secondary uses of the church that we do not pay enough attention to the more prosaic aspects of living? (See AC 6818 and AC 6824.) After all, genuine works of natural charity do serve a higher end in that they are instrumental in our own regeneration, which is a prerequisite for any success in the work of evangelization.
     Another passage from the Writings says that: "When from charity one sees another in misery . . . there arises compassion, and as this is from the Lord, it is an admonition: moreover, they who are in perception know that when they feel compassion, they are admonished by the Lord to render aid" (see AC 6737).

The plight of some of out fellow men, both here and in other countries, is without doubt such as to arouse compassion within us, and we are admonished by the Lord to render aid! Surely adherence to our priorities does not relieve us from applying our teachings in the more mundane areas of life. It brings to mind another admonition, to the effect that this ought we to do and not leave the other undone (see Matt. 23:23)-which would appear to give equal priority to the uses we perform as a church and the uses of natural charity.
     "If anyone by fighting against evils [found written in the Decalogue] because they are sins acquires for himself in the world something of spiritual life, even though very little, he is saved, and his uses afterwards increase like a mustard seed growing into a tree, according to the Lord's words in Matt. 13:32; Mark 4:30-32; Luke 13:18-19" (D. Love 51).
     Because we are conscious of our own feeble efforts to Live as we know we should, this passage, besides affording comfort in regard to our own destiny, may temper somewhat our sedulity in evangelization, or at least mitigate discouragement in the apparent futility of our efforts in this direction. Another passage reads: "Heaven cannot be made up of human beings all of one religion but men of many religions . . ." (DP 326:10).
     I am not overlooking the fact that our evangelical endeavor is directed toward spreading a knowledge and acceptance of our doctrines. If this is successful and widespread it will restore (or rather establish) a state of order-to the extent anyway that we ourselves lead orderly lives. But should we not take another look at the scope of things included in our priorities?
     What would it take, or what will it take, to make (or attempt to make) an effective stand against some of the things that are (or are becoming) the norm which we know without the shadow of a doubt are diametrically opposed to the laws of order?
     I am not unaware, of course, that the plethora of items deliberately included in our newspapers and other media vehicles (from which we gain our knowledge of what goes on in the world) to titillate readers gives an exaggerated idea of the extent of the disorder existing in our society. Disorder makes much better news than order! But perhaps of more significance are the matters that are not considered newsworthy-things that no longer find their way into our newspapers, that have come to be accepted as commonplace.
     Discounting the treatment of Jews during World War II (which I think was of an ethnic rather than a religious prejudice), in the western world freedom of religion on a national scale has not in recent years been seriously threatened.

But millions, perhaps tens of millions, have grown apathetic to religion since World War II-and apathy is very often a precursor of denial (the findings of the 1984 Gallop Poll on religion in America notwithstanding). Unlikely as it may seem at the moment, it occurs to me that society could, with the passage of time and the continuation of existing trends, deteriorate to a point where organized religious bodies could become very unpopular with society at large, and laws affecting us far more intimately than any existing now could come into being, and/or (perhaps more importantly) existing laws that are of value fall into disuse.
Quite aside from the material concern and care of what are generally considered to be the underprivileged among us, what about the great mass of society in all walks of life-including the wife-beaters, child-molesters, adulterers, liars, thieves and other seemingly respectable citizens? Statistics show that we literally rub shoulders every day with people who have no understanding of order and freedom. It would appear unlikely that they would be responsive to any evangelical advances we might try to make. Surely there must be some preparatory work to be done. To whom do we look to do it?
Perhaps I have oversimplified the relationship between spiritual and natural freedom. Perhaps I have got it all wrong, but no matter how distinctive we feel we should try to be in the performance of our use, that we do have a responsibility to society in the commission of the works of natural charity cannot be gainsaid.
NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 YEARS AGO Editor 1986

     So, now to the readers of the LIFE this comes as the last of my Visiting Pastor Reports, which have appeared in these pages for more than twenty years.
     F. E. Waelchli

     In the February issue, 1936, Rev. Waelchli thus concluded a report of his final visit to more than a dozen localities in his regular tour. These included Cincinnati, Cleveland, Erie, and Akron. He found it hard to say farewell to those people he had visited so faithfully. "Often what was in my heart could not find its way into words." But he rejoiced to say that the work was thenceforth to be taken on by Norman Reuter.

SHOULD WE OR SHOULDN'T WE HAVE SELF-ESTEEM? 1986

SHOULD WE OR SHOULDN'T WE HAVE SELF-ESTEEM? CHARIS P. COLE 1986

     Are We Nothing or Something? Wicked or Good?

          Here is a paradox: God is all good. He is all love and wisdom. How then can man, whom God has made, be all evil from self!
     The answer is that man is good. Let me explain, starting with the doctrine that man is nothing.
     Concerning nothing. Spirits are especially unable to tolerate the expression that they are nothing. But it was said to them that they are always something, but that the something is from the Lord.
     We too find it difficult to tolerate the idea that we are nothing. We have less trouble acknowledging that God is infinite, the source of all life, and all love and wisdom. Yet if God is everything, can man be anything?
     Yet this can be a most comforting doctrine. We are not evil if we refuse to claim evil as our own, recognize that it comes from hell, and refuse to harbor it.
     On the other hand, if we acknowledge that all our power, abilities, goods and truths are from the Lord, then we can accept our abilities, be proud of our accomplishments, and reject a false modesty.
     Take a doctor for example. If he acknowledges that there are some areas in which he is not proficient, that sometimes he needs to consult with other doctors, and that healing is in the hands of the Lord, he can say about the things he knows he does well, "Yes, I can help you. I am very good at this and have done many such operations successfully." He knows that he received his talents from God, and help from parents, teachers and many others. But he doesn't have to apologize or continually explain to all his patients that the credit goes to others. This acknowledgment is difficult because we like to take credit and merit to ourselves.
     Many atheists who have turned to God talk of being dragged in by God almost against their wills (C. S. Lewis says "kicking and screaming"). These men had come to see that all that is beautiful, loving, and full of joy has God in it. So they had to come to Him. But it really hurt to acknowledge that the Lord is everything and that man is nothing. It hurt to acknowledge that all wisdom is His. These men liked to think that they, not God, could determine what was best for all. They didn't like to submit their wisdom to anything, even the laws of God.

     It is also very hard to tolerate the idea that man, as of self or from self, is all evil. What does this mean? Very simply it means that man is evil so far as he claims for himself that which is God's. From this comes the love to rule all, an unwillingness to give others the freedom to make their own mistakes, contempt for others, and an unwillingness to obey or even acknowledge God. This was the sin of Adam and Eve. The serpent told them that they could be as gods. This is the fountainhead of all evil.
     I am not talking about questioning one's belief in God and religion. One who is of a non-reflective nature could accept his religion without giving it any serious thought. But a man who truly cares will meditate about these things, see that it involves shunning evils and giving up self-pride, and be tempted many times to turn away from God.
     It is quite different with men who confirm themselves against God and try to destroy all other men's beliefs in Him and His laws. We cannot judge other men's spiritual states but we can judge the destruction of religion, morals and innocence as the monstrous evil it is. We should not find excuses for, or in any way tolerate, the men in public life who do or preach these things.
     Now that we have seen that man is nothing and is all evil from self, I wish to show that man is good.
     We are accustomed to hearing many quotations from the Word telling us that man is all evil from self. Here are some of the numerous passages that tell us that man is good. As a vessel he is not evil but good, because God made him.

     So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.
     And God saw everything that He had made and, behold, it was very good.
     I will praise Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are Thy works (Psalm 139).
     . . . man is wisdom because he was created by an infinite God who is wisdom itself . . . (DP 36:2).

     Other passages tell us that infants are in good.

     Every man when first born and an infant is interiorly an image of God; for there is implanted in him the faculty of receiving and applying to himself the things which proceed from God (Coronis 25).
     That the affection of good and the derivative good of life is the . . . first-born is manifestly evident from the fact that infants are first of all in good; for they are in a state of innocence, and in a state of love toward parents and nurses, and in a state of mutual charity toward their infant companions; so that in every man good is the first-born . . . .

For if man were devoid of such good as he has drawn with him from infancy, he would not be a man, but would be wilder than any wild beast of the field (AC 3494).
     . . . infant boys and girls are in a state of mutual love and innocence; thus their very tender vessels are almost celestial, and are merely capacities of reception, which can be thus disposed by the Lord (AC 1776).

     Other passages talk of infants being defiled by hereditary evils and having nothing of good whatever from themselves. But these evils are not appropriated to the child unless as an adult he makes them his own by loving and living them. So although he has nothing of good from himself he has good from the Lord. The Lord wants us to shun our evils, but he does not want us to put ourselves down or think ill of our abilities. When He asked Moses to lead the Children of Israel out of Egypt, "Moses said unto the Lord, 'Oh my Lord, I am not eloquent . . . but slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.'"
     "And the Lord said unto him, 'Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or the deaf or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth and teach thee what thou shalt say'" (Exodus, chapter 4).
     When Moses continued to put himself down, the Lord was angry with him and told him to get Aaron to help him.
     The Lord was teaching the same message in the parable of the talents. In Luke, chapter 19, all the noblemen's servants received one pound but in Matthew 25 one servant received five talents, one two, and one one talent.
     It seems to me that the number of talents reflects how much each servant thought his own gift was worth. The servant who got one talent thought his gift was worthless and buried it (didn't serve the Lord). The other two servants valued their gifts and went out and served God and their fellow man.
     I believe that it is very important to recognize that the Lord, in giving us ourselves, has given us a very good gift. In fact, as vessels we are marvelous beyond all comprehension. We have rationality and freedom. We have fantastic brains and minds and fantastic bodies. Unconscious to us our soul directs all the functions necessary to life. Our subconscious brain incorporates all we learn and automatically directs our routine movement as in walking, driving a car, or playing tennis. While we sleep, unbeknownst to our conscious selves, the brain keeps working on problems we had been pondering while awake and wakes us up to tell us it has the answer.
     We have nothing of good from ourselves. We want to gain the goods of the world even at the expense of others.

We want everyone to believe as we do and do what we want them to do, disregarding their freedom, and we tend to get furious if they don't. We are unwilling to take correction, and get angry at those whom we suspect are putting us down. We should confess our sills to the Lord and work to get rid of them and live well. But we shouldn't condemn ourselves or devalue our talents. We can be proud of what we do well. We should say, "Yes, Lord, I can and will serve You." If we put down our talents and abilities we are putting down the Lord who made us.
     We are like a man riding his horse in a steeplechase race. The horse is like our innate and learned talents and abilities. The good rider gives his horse his head. He helps him with a minimum of directions, trusting the horse to do his part well. But if the rider doesn't trust his horse and needlessly yanks him about, his mount will not be able to take the jumps correctly.
     So in our life, if we don't trust ourselves, think we are no good, and try to control each movement and thought, we block out our inner voices of experience and accumulated wisdom. We are afraid to try. We can hardly get up in the morning. We give up easily. We are sour and unhappy. We are riddled with spurious guilt. We miss the joy of life. In short we don't trust Providence and so we make it difficult to serve the Lord and our neighbor.
     If self-esteem means being confident of the gifts God has given us then it is good. But if it means thinking we are good from ourselves then it is very bad indeed.
     Let us walk humbly but confidently with our God.
ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH SECONDARY SCHOOLS 1986

ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH SECONDARY SCHOOLS Editor 1986

     1986 SUMMER CAMP

     The 1986 ANC Summer Camp will be held on the campus of the Academy of the New Church in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, from Sunday, July 6, until Saturday, July 12, 1986.
     The camp is open to boys and girls who will have completed eighth or ninth grades in May or June of 1986.
     Specific details concerning the camp are available by contacting T. Dudley Davis. Camp Director or Mrs. Morgan Jones (Nancy), Assistant Camp Director at 215-947-4200 or by writing to them at Box 278, Academy of the New Church, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.
     Students will receive registration details during the first week in March, 1986.

REVIEWS 1986

REVIEWS Various 1986

     Escape from Egypt, by Rev. Douglas M. Taylor; obtainable from the General Church Book Center, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Price: $7.70 (postage paid)

     Many readers will be most familiar with Rev. Douglas M. Taylor in his role as chairman of the Evangelization Committee. In his recent book, Escape from Egypt, he continues to pursue this love, this time, however, concentrating his efforts in the area of "internal" evangelization-reaching those within our own church who may be drifting away from its teachings and life. Mr. Taylor seeks in this work to address "why it is that of all the people, both young people and adults, who begin to come into the church-into the Lord's kingdom-not all of them endure to the end, but return to the world or to the Christian Church" (p. 37).
     In exploring this question, we are taken, in 107 pages, through an entire volume of the Arcana Coelestia as we discover the internal sense of the story of the escape of Israel out of the bondage of Egypt. As the author makes clear right away, "The real subject in the internal sense is our own exodus out of Egypt into Canaan, our own deliverance from the falsities of materialism and our subsequent spiritual journey into the bliss of heavenly happiness . . ." (p. 29). His study begins as Joseph is still ruler of Egypt, and there is a mixture of spiritual things (truth from the good of love and charity-the sons of Israel) with scientifics (things known from the senses and externals -Egypt). "This is the state of any . . . person coming into the church . . . . These heavenly things [flowing in from the internal man] do not seem to pose any threat to the security and safety of the natural man . . . . It seems possible to serve both God and mammon" (p. 7).
     But as the influence of these good affections and true thoughts grows, a new king arises over Egypt-indicating a change of state within the regenerating man-and the conflict becomes apparent. As one becomes inspired to do those useful things seen by insight, and the emphasis becomes the arena of the will rather than merely the understanding, the human proprium senses a threat to itself. So begins the long series of battles between the natural and the emerging spiritual selves which is contained within the story of the Israelites attaining their freedom from the Pharaoh of Egypt. At each stage of this story, the author seeks first to give us the gift of the power of the Word. If we keep in our memories the details of the literal story, and within us it is conjoined to the internal sense, we will not only know what is happening to us during each phase, but we will have powerful ammunition against those forces which might lead us to give up the war when we are only in the first minor scrimmages.

We are encouraged to remember how gradual and cyclical the process of regeneration is, and how it may seem most hopeless when the greatest strides are being made. For, "whenever we take a stand for the Lord and His kingdom and make some new resolution to try even harder to walk in the ways of the Lord, infestation from the hells increases" (p. 56). Nevertheless, the Lord is "most present in those states; . . . deliverance and conjunction with the Lord will take place when the time or the state is right according to the Divine order" (p. 67). Mr. Taylor expresses concern that, "There is no way of knowing how many people have defected from the church and even the Lord's kingdom as a result of not understanding this" (p. 66).
     At each phase we are reminded of the richness within the literal story, as Mr. Taylor extracts various elements and points out their meaning in our own struggles. Observing the cruelty of the Egyptian taskmasters over the Children of Israel. we are to remember how determined, clever, and malicious are the spirits from hell in their endeavor to subjugate those who are in good and truth. We are cautioned to distinguish what is from the hells within us, and not "become an unwitting collaborator with our spiritual enemies" (p. 11). Another affecting image that stays in the mind is the baby Moses in his ark of bulrushes being rescued from the river of Egypt. We are shown that it is necessary to protect and nurture the fresh stirrings of insight from the Divine truth flowing into us through the Word-that without this aid they will die from neglect.
     The author concludes by reminding us that this is only a part of the whole story-the Israelites have yet to wander through the wilderness for 40 years before they can begin the task of entering the land of Canaan. The regenerating man has at last been set free from infesting falsities; now he has the task of confronting his evils and driving them out through temptations. It is easy to see how anyone might become discouraged during the course of such a long and arduous crusade, but, as Mr. Taylor says, it is "worse than useless" to do so-especially when the information and assurance one needs are spelled out so exhaustively within the Writings of his own church. Perhaps this book will make that information more accessible to those who might be intimidated by the prospect of culling it from the pages of the Arcana by themselves. Here the author has done a great deal of the work for them.
     For this reason, although Mr. Taylor has said that he directed his study mostly to young people within the church, its usefulness seems much broader. It is a study, however. This is not easy reading, though the frequent summaries of thought help considerably.

One can best see it used as a text in a senior or college religion course, or for a dedicated group meeting for doctrinal study. Its sturdy cover and spiral binding, along with a well-spaced text, make it idea: for notations. For any serious New Church individual wishing to have the power of the Word behind him in his efforts toward regeneration, this book will be a great aid.
     Patricia Street Scott

     *     *     *     *

An Heritage of the Lord, Selected Readings Concerning Infancy by Rev. Robert S. Junge; 43 pp. General Church Publication Committee, $2.00

     The forty-three 8x10" pages are divided into forty-two sections, headed by Roman numerals and containing passages from the Word. Each section is about a Page long, with at least one passage from the Sacred Scriptures and one or two from the Heavenly Doctrines. The only contribution by Mr. Junge is a very brief foreword and the selection of the readings, which reflect his deep interest in, love and concern for little children and their parents.
     Although intended for devotional use, especially by parents of young children, the readings are suited for all ages-parents of greater experience, and even grandparents. Certainly this reviewer was very much tempted to read the sections, one a day, and reflect upon them, to be reminded of many passages that he knows well and from which he has profited greatly. It was a hard struggle to skip here and there as a reviewer should in order to be able to assess the pros and cons of a work.
     All the selections are excellent. We cannot pick any that we would advance as a particular example of the quality of the work. There is, of course, in Matthew 7 the beautiful statement: "Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."
     And from AC 1707:3: "The internal man in anyone belongs to the Lord alone; from there the Lord stores up the goods and truths with which he gifts man from infancy. Thus from these He flows into the interior and rational man and through this into the exterior. In this way it is given to man to think and to be a man."
     We would have liked the sections to be sub-headed in some form so that they could be indexed, allowing one to find the particular subject about which the reader would want to refresh his mind and to reflect on.
     It would have been good if the manuscript had been edited a little bit more carefully before publication.

For instance, on Page 28, section XIX, in a long quotation from Ezekiel 18, this was printed exactly as it was in the Word. In the Word the selection was composed of a number of different verses, each beginning with a capital initial letter, even if the previous verse had ended with a comma. The quotation in this section keeps the capital letters even though not in verse form, and it is rather upsetting to find in the middle of the text a capital A for "and," though being sure the previous sentence had not been concluded.
     On page 1, section II, TCR 304, the passage as quoted reads: "It may also be compared to recreations of mind and to rest from severe labors, and to the consolation felt by mothers after childbirth, when their parental love (called storge) manifests its delight." This is the second part of a short number, and it would have been ever so much more beautiful if the number had been replaced by the original subject of the number, which is "heavenly peace."
     In the quotation of page 37, section XXXIV, DP 277a: "In every one of these affections . . ." it would have been well to identify what these affections are, namely, the inmost affections of the father's ruling love, transmitted to the infant through his seed.
     But even without such emendations, this work is highly recommended to all, especially parents of young children.
     Rev. Norbert H. Rogers
GHANA NEWSLETTER 1986

GHANA NEWSLETTER Editor 1986

     In the November-December Newsletter from Ghana we find the following:

     The rate at which interest in the "Writings" is growing among Ghanaians is rather amazing, and there are times that one would see someone carrying a book on a bus or in the street. One day when Bishop Garna was traveling on a bus he sat by the side of a young man who held a copy of The Four Doctrines in his hand.
     When they entered into a conversation. the man-not knowing of the identity of Bishop Garna-tried to explain the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Bishop Garna told him that he was convinced and demanded to know where he could get a copy of that book. He told him to try bookshops or write direct to Bishop B. Garna, whose address he gave him.
WHAT IS "DISTINCTIVENESS"? 1986

WHAT IS "DISTINCTIVENESS"? Editor 1986

In the Winter issue of New Church Home (page 107) Julie Rankin Simons speaks of hearing the word "distinctiveness" often. She asks readers to explain what people mean in using this term.

Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     WHEN PEOPLE ARE LIKE ANGELS

     Some of the teachings about angels emphasize how far above us they are. Their wisdom exceeds ours, not by 99 to 1, but more like 999 to 1.

A thousand ideas in the thought of angels from their wisdom can present but a single idea in the thought of men from their wisdom, the other nine hundred and ninety-nine ideas of angelic thought not being able to gain entrance. . . . Divine Providence 34

     More about that type of teaching another time. Even this passage says that angelic wisdom is attainable by people in the life to come.
     But there are teachings that place people just a little lower than the angels. Remember that when John encountered an angel he was ready to fall down and worship him. But the angel said, "See that you do not do that!" and insisted that he was John's fellow servant (Rev. 19:10).
     Concerning this the Writings say:

The angels of heaven are not superior to men, but are their equals and are therefore equally the Lord's servants as men are, because all the angels have been men, born in the world. Apocalypse Revealed 818

     An angel pointed out that in the measure that a person does good and believes what is true as from himself "he is an angel of heaven" (AR 224:10). Thus an angel can regard people on earth as "beautiful human beings, and partners and companions of the angels" (DP 121). The church (not regarded simply as an external organization) may be thought of as the Lord's heaven on earth.

An angel of that heaven is a man of the church who is conjoined with the Lord, and who becomes an angel of the spiritual heaven after he leaves this world. DP 30 (see also HH 30)

     A passage in Doctrine of Charity puts it this way:

Through his civil good the man is a man of the world; according to his moral good he is a man above the world, and lower than heaven; and according to his spiritual good he is a man of heaven, or an angel. Char. 60

     ENTERTAINING ANGELS UNAWARES

     This thought that some people walking upon this earth are even now virtually angels adds another element of intrigue to an already intriguing thought in the Epistles. Be hospitable to strangers, we are told, for some have thereby entertained angels unawares or have "unwittingly entertained angels" (Hebrews 13:2).
     The allusion seems to be specifically to the story of Lot in Genesis 19. It is beautiful. He offers his hospitality and protection to two strangers in Sodom. The reader smiles warmly within and asks, "Who is protecting whom?" Lot bravely risks his own life to protect his visitors, and then they stretch forth their hands to save him. Lot literally entertained angels unwittingly.
     How frequently may it have happened in our life that we have extended kindness to someone, be it a stranger or someone we know, who is on the way to becoming an angel, and in a sense already is one.

     BODY LANGUAGE

     In a November editorial we promised to publish an article on body language. Said article appears this month under the title "Human Gestures." In that editorial we contrasted translations. In singulis gestus has been rendered "in the particulars of his bearing" or "in every detail of his bodily gestures." The word gestus is the key word when searching for what the Writings say about body language. It has been rendered "bearing," "behavior," "attitude," "gesture," or "motion."
     No two people move the same way. "No act in regard either to movement or affection is ever exactly like another's." "His actions with respect to gesture and affection are never exactly the same as another's" (TCR 32). The gestures of women differ from the gestures of men. "They differ in their attitudes and ways." "They differ in gestures and in manners" (CL 33). We see the difference of men and women "from their bearing" or "from their gesture: in that with men this is stronger and firmer," and the manners of women are more elegant (CL 218).
     Each individual has a unique inner character, and this is conveyed to others chiefly through "face, speech and movements"(HH 492). Sometimes we can read looks and gestures or discern from body language in spite of what verbal language is conveying. As the Writings say, we can "sometimes know from another's gesture, looks, or speech what he is thinking, even though it is contrary to what he says" (AC 1388). Swedenborg found almost unbelievable the ability of angels to read this language. "I have often wondered that the angels have such knowledge from the mere action of the body through the hands, but yet it has been shown several times by living experience" (DLW 220).

     Each individual is sending out messages, we might sap, "beyond what he knows." This is indicated in number 593 of True Christian Religion, which goes on to say,

Because of this the angels, from a single action of a man, can perceive what his will is, and from a single word what his thought is, whether infernal or heavenly. Thus they know the entire man; from the tone of his voice they have a perception of his thought's affection, and from the gesture or the form of his action they have a perception of his will's love.

     A CUSTOM OF REJOICING

     The phrase "Palm Sunday" does not occur in Divine revelation. That the Lord's triumphal entry into Jerusalem occurred on the first day of the week (what we call Sunday) is concluded with good reason from two verses in one of the Gospels. At the beginning of the twelfth chapter of John we are told of something that happened "six days before the passover" and then in verse twelve we are told that the triumphal entry occurred "on the next day." That is the basis for the custom of celebration that has come to be called "Palm Sunday."
     Celebrating Palm Sunday creates a problem to which we would like to call attention in the next issue. One might like to devote a few Sundays before Easter to the many events described in the Gospels that precede the rising from the dead. But most of them occur after Palm Sunday, and some have felt that it would be inappropriate to take them up before Palm Sunday. But then there are no occasions left between then and Easter to do this, even if one has a service on Good Friday for that specific part of the Gospels. More on this another time.

     COMMANDED TO REJOICE

     It seems to us that Palm Sunday is a particularly valuable custom because of its emphasis on rejoicing. The commandment is given: "Thou shalt rejoice" (Deuteronomy 16:11; see AC 7093). This in itself is intriguing. Can we be commanded to be happy? Can we sincerely rejoice if we do not happen to feel very joyful? (Of this too, more in the next issue.)

BETROTHAL 1986

BETROTHAL Rev. Alfred Acton 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor,
     Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom, in the December NEW CHURCH LIFE, raised a question concerning the steps taken to enter into the marriage covenant. In that letter he asked a question about Conjugial Love 307, which discusses a conjugial covenant. Although I purposely stopped my discussion of betrothal at no. 306 because no. 307 begins the treatment of the nuptials, I welcome the opportunity Mr. Sandstrom gives for comment on it.
     Let me first observe that no. 307 uses the word "ante-nuptial" in reference to the covenant. The phrase makes it clear that the covenant is not religious but civil, a legal contract. It is not until the next number, no. 308, that the nuptials themselves are discussed with the necessary consecration by a priest.
     As far as I know, the customs in Swedenborg's day concerning getting married involved four different steps. The first was consent, which, as the Writings note, is the essential of all the following steps (CL 21). At consent a couple was engaged or betrothed. After a woman gave consent, or in some cases before, the man made arrangements with her father as to dowry, etc. In the Writings these arrangements seem to be referred to by the Latin word pactum-a set of stipulations. In CL 444 it is pointed out that a couple entering into marriage in heaven was betrothed and "pacted" or "stipulated" before the wedding, apparently implying some kind of formal agreement prior to the wedding service. Perhaps this was the rite of betrothal mentioned in CL 21.
     A wedding in 18th century Sweden also had two parts (the 3rd and 4th steps). One of these parts was a legal contract (Latin: foedus) as described in number 307. The second was the consecration by the priest mentioned in no. 308. During Swedenborg's time this legal contract was in process of being merged into the wedding service, as is now the case in most countries. However, it was often a separate step.
     Today at weddings the priest is usually both an officer of the state and a consecrator in the name of the Lord. At times, however, the two parts are still separate-for example, when a priest blesses a civil ceremony.
     In 18th century Sweden the role of the priest as a representative of the state was not as clear. Sometimes he acted only as consecrator, sometimes as state official prior to the wedding, and sometimes he did both in the same service.

     In CL 480, speaking of the breaking of the marriage vows, Swedenborg outlines the steps with somewhat different emphasis. As I understand it, he uses the word "foedus." for state contract, "pactum," for stipulation between the couple, and "disponsatio," for engagement, the state of betrothal. The sentence reads: "[Adultery] is opposed [to conjugial love] because it violates the covenant (foedus) for life [implying the legal contract, cf. CL 276] contracted between married partners, rends their love asunder, defiles and shuts off the union initiated at the time of betrothal (disponsatio) and confirmed in the beginning of marriage. For after the pact (pactum) and covenant (foedus) the conjugial love of a man with one wife unites their souls." Here "pact" seems to be linked to betrothal or engagement, while the contract is linked to the wedding.
     The concept of a formal set of agreements between prospective husband and father has fallen into disuse in our world. We reject such "arrangements" stressing instead the equality between married partners. However, perhaps we rightly think of the ritual of betrothal as replacing this "pact," as may have been the case in the example mentioned above (CL 21).
     If so, the orderly steps to marriage on earth are as follows: (1) Courtship ending with the man proposing and the woman consenting. The couple is engaged. (2) The state of engagement which lasts from first consent until the wedding service, and which has a formal service, the rite or betrothal. as its proper confirmation. During engagement there is a simultaneous ascent and descent. The minds of the two become closer as they become more intimate physically until with the wedding their souls and bodies are conjoined. (3) The wedding itself which has two parts-the legal union symbolized by the priest pronouncing the couple husband and wife, and the consecration, symbolized by the blessing on the couple.
     Rev. Alfred Acton,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania
WRITINGS IN VERSE 1986

WRITINGS IN VERSE E. Boyd Asplundh 1986

     Dear Editor:
     I was glad to see the examples of selections from the Writings set out in free verse in the December issue.
     Passages from the Heavenly Doctrines seem to lend themselves especially to this treatment. The reasons for this may be explained in the opening paragraphs of a discussion of order by Rev. Walter E. Orthwein, recently published in The New Philosophy.
     As Mr. Orthwein says, ". . . in a real sense the Writings are very poetic, for they . . . point to truth too deep for words, and this is the essence of poetry."

     The use of free verse may help to break through the "dry and academic" style of translations of the Writings.
     It would not be surprising to find that others have made efforts similar to those of Mr. Le Van. In fact, some years ago I set out a few passages myself, for example the following:

     UNITY IN THE UNIVERSE

This great system
Which is called the universe
Is a work cohering as a unity
From first to last
Because God
In creating it
Had one end in view.
TCR 13

     ALPHA AND OMEGA

Every letter of the alphabet
In the spiritual world
Has a signification of its own;
And every vowel,
Because it is a symbol of sound,
Signifies something of affection
Or love.
TCR 19

     THE TABERNACLE OF ABRAHAM

The angels who were with me said:
"Behold the tabernacle of Abraham
As it was
When the three angels came to him
And foretold the birth of Isaac.
It appears plain to the eye
But yet
As light from heaven flows down
It becomes more and more magnificent."
TCR 187:3

     E. Boyd Asplundh,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

ANNUAL COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY MEETINGS 1986

ANNUAL COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY MEETINGS Editor 1986

     March 3-8, 1986

Monday, March 3
     10:00 a.m.      Headmasters' Meeting
     2:30 p.m.      Worship (Pendleton Hall)
     3:00 p.m.      Opening Sermon. Council of the Clergy (Pendleton Hall)
     8:00 p.m.      Consistory

Tuesday, March 4
     8:30 a.m.      General Church Publication Committee
     10:00 a.m.      Session II, Council of the Clergy (Glencairn)
     11:30 a.m.      Session III
     1:00 p.m.      Luncheon at Cairnwood Village
     2:00 p.m.      Session IV
     3:30 p.m.      Session V
     8:00 p.m.      Workshop

Wednesday, March 5
     8:30 a.m.      General Church Sunday School Committee (Cairncrest)
     10:00 a.m.      Session VI (Glencairn)
     11:30 a.m.      Session VII
     1:00 p.m.      Luncheon at Cairnwood Village
     2:00 p.m.      Session VIII
     3:30 p.m.      Session IX
     7:00 p.m.      Dinner at Glencairn

Thursday, March 6
     8:30 a.m.      Translation Committee
     10:00 a.m.      Session X (Glencairn)
     11:30 a.m.      Session XI
     1:00 p.m.      Luncheon at Cairnwood Village
     2:00 p.m.      Session XII
     3:30 p.m.      Session XIII
     8:00 p.m.      Workshop

Friday, March 7
     8:30 a.m.      Traveling Ministers' Meeting (Glencairn)
     10:00 a.m.      Session XIV (Pendleton Hall)
     11:30 a.m.      Session XV
     1:00 p.m.      Luncheon at Glencairn
     2:10 p.m.      Board of Directors of the General Church (Pitcairn Hall)
     4:00 p.m.      General Church Corporation (Pendleton Hall)
     6:30 p.m.      Reception (Bryn Athyn Society)
     7:15 p.m.      Friday Supper
     8:00 p.m.      Open Meeting

Saturday, March 8
     10:00 a.m.      Joint Council of the General Church (Pendleton Hall)
     1:00 p.m.      Luncheon at Glencairn

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA 1986

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA Karen deMaine 1986

     Greetings from Charlotte, North Carolina!

     The Charlotte Circle was officially recognized by the General Church in November, 1984. While church members here have been meeting and worshiping together for many years, the designation "Circle" marks for us a new and exciting beginning. As a group, we are full of expectations for the growth of the church here in Charlotte, and in the Carolinas in general.
     The highlight of the past year was a weekend visit from bishop and Mrs. King. On November 9, friends from all over the Carolinas came to meet with the Bishop and his wife Freya, to greet old friends and new, and most of all, to share in a sphere of worship and commitment to the Lord's New church.
     The weekend commenced Friday night at the home of John and Karen de Maine. An informal gathering, it was a chance to say hello to the Kings and visit with our visiting minister, Nathan Gladish, and his wife Elise. We also enjoyed a lively account of the Kings' visit to South Africa.
     On Saturday evening, Gordon and Fran Smith hosted a lovely social hour at their home in nearby River Hills, South Carolina. This was followed by a delicious banquet and enlightening doctrinal class in a very comfortable and relaxed setting at the River Hills Country club. Bishop King then opened the floor for discussion of any issues on people's minds, especially our attitudes and questions about the growth and future of the church in the Carolinas. It was a fresh opportunity for everyone to think as a group about the practicalities and possibilities of church growth in the Charlotte area.
     Sunday worship was a special one. Our rented worship room was filled to the brim with 31 adults and 18 children (about one-third of whom were from other parts of North and South Carolina). The worship sphere was indeed enhanced by the presence of so many friends. Following the service, which included the holy supper, all were invited to Jack and Peggy Fehon's home for lunch and a chance to relax and visit further. It was a delightful way to conclude a truly inspiring weekend.
     Karen deMaine
MAPLE CAMP 1986

MAPLE CAMP Editor 1986

We have heard that the dates for the Maple Leaf camp in Canada are to be June 19th to 27th. We hope to publish more information in the March issue.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES Editor 1986

     ANNOUNCEMENTS

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
RIGHT REV. LOUIS B. KING, BISHOP
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, 19009, U. S. A.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES
Information on public worship and doctrinal classes provided either regularly or occasionally may be obtained at the locations listed below. For details use the local phone number of the contact person mentioned or communicate with the Secretary of the General Church, Rev. L. R. Soneson, Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, Phone (215) 947-4660.

     AUSTRALIA

     SYDNEY, N.S.W.
Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom, 22 Dudley Street, Penshurst, N.S.W. 2222. Phone: 57-1589.

     BRAZIL

     RIO DE JANEIRO
Rev. Cristovao Rabelo Nobre, Rua Xavier does Passaros 151, Apt. 101 Piedale, Rio de Janeiro, RK 20740. Phone: 021-289-4292.

     CANADA

     Alberta:

     CALGARY
Mr. Thomas R. Fountain, 1115 Southglen Drive S. W., Calgary 13, Alberta T2W 0X2. Phone: 403-255-7283.

     EDMONTON
Mr. Daniel L. Horigan, 10524 82nd St., Edmonton, Alberta T6A 3M8. Phone: 403-469-0078.

     British Columbia:

     DAWSON CREEK
Rev. William Clifford. 1536 94th Ave., Dawson Creek, V1G 1H1. Phone: (604) 782-3997.

     VANCOUVER
Mr. Douglas Crompton, 21-7055 Blake St., V5S 3V5. Phone: (604) 437-9136.

     Ontario:

     KITCHENER
Rev. Christopher Smith, 16 Bannockburn Rd., R.R. 2, N2G 3W5. Phone: (519) 893-7460.

     OTTAWA
Mr. and Mrs. Donald McMaster, 726 Edison Avenue, Apt. 33, Ottawa, Ontario K2C 3P8. Phone: (613) 729-6452.

     TORONTO
Rev. Geoffrey Childs, 2 Lorraine Gardens, Islington, Ontario M9B 424 Phone: (416) 231-4958.

     Quebec:

     MONTREAL
Mr. Denis de Chazal, 17 Baliantyne Ave. So., Montreal West, Quebec H4X 281. Phone: (514) 489-9861.

     DENMARK

     COPENHAGEN
Mr. Jorgen Hauptmann, Strandvejen 22, Jyllinge, 4000 Roskilde. Phone: 03-389968.

     ENGLAND

     COLCHESTER
Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh, 2 Christchurch Court, Colchester, Essex C03 3AU Phone: 0206-43712

     LETCHWORTH
Mr. and Mrs. R. Evans, 111 Howard Drive, Letchworth, Herts. Phone: Letchworth 4751.

     LONDON
Rev. Frederick Elphick, 21B Hayne Rd., Beckenham, Kent BR3 4JA. Phone: 01-658-6320.

     MANCHESTER
Mrs. Neil Rowcliffe, 135 Bury Old Road, Heywood, Lanes. Phone: Heywood 68189.

     FRANCE

     BOURGUINON-MEURSANGES
Rev. Alain Nicolier, 21200 Beaune, France. Phone: (80) 22.47.88.

     HOLLAND

     THE HAGUE
Mr. Ed Verschoor, Olmenlaan 7.3862 VG Nijkerk

     NEW ZEALAND

     AUCKLAND
Mrs. H. J. Keal, Secretary, 4 Derwent Crescent, Titirange, Auckland 7. Phone: 817-8203.

     NORWAY
OSLO
Mr. Eyvind Boyesen, Vetlandsveien 82A, Oslo 6. Phone: 26-1159.

     SCOTLAND

     EDINBURGH
Mr. and Mrs. N. Laidlaw, 35 Swanspring Ave., Edinburgh EH 10-6NA. Phone: 0 31-445-2377.

     GLASGOW
Mrs. J. Clarkson, Hillview, Balmore, Nr. Torrance, Glasgow. Phone: Balmore 262.

102

     SOUTH AFRICA

     Natal:

     DURBAN
Rev. Geoffrey Howard, 30 Perth Rd., Westville, Natal. 3630. Phone: 031-821 136.

     Transvaal:

     TRANSVAAL SOCIETY
Rev. Norman E. Riley, 8 Iris Lane, Irene, 1675 R. S. A., Phone: 012-632679.

     Zululand:

     KENT MANOR
Mrs. D. G. Liversage, Box 7088, Empangeni Rail, 3910, Natal, South Africa. Phone: 0351- 23241

     Mission in South Africa:
Superintendent-The Rev. Norman E. Riley (Address as above)

     SWEDEN

     STOCKHOLM
Contact Mr. Rolf Boley, Arvid Morners Vag 7, 161 59 Bromma. Phone: efter kl. 18.00, 08-878280

     UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

     Alabama:

     BIRMINGHAM
Dr. R. Shepard, 4537 Dolly Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Phone:(205) 967-3442.

     Arizona:

     PHOENIX
Mr. Hubert Rydstrom, 3640 E. Piccadilly Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85018. Phone: (602) 955-2290.

     TUCSON
Rev. Frank S. Rose, 2536 N. Stewart Ave., Tucson, AZ 85716. Phone: (602) 327-2612.

     Arkansas:

     LITTLE ROCK
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Holmes, Rt. 6, Box 447, Batesville, AR 72501. (501) 251-2383

     California:

     LOS ANGELES
Rev. Michael Gladish, 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescenta, CA 91214. Phone: (213) 249-5031.

     SACRAMENTO
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ripley, 2310 N. Cirby Way, Roseville, CA 95678. Phone: (916) 782-7837

     SAN DIEGO
Rev. Cedric King, 7911 Canary Way, San Diego, CA 92123. Phone: (714) 268-0379.

     SAN FRANCISCO
Rev. Mark Carlson, 4638 Royal Garden Place, San Jose, CA 95136. Phone: (408) 224-8521.

     Colorado:

     COLORADO SPRINGS
Mr. and Mrs. William Reinstra, 708 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, CO 80829. Phone: (303) 685-9519.

     DENVER
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone (303) 429-1239

     Connecticut:

     HARTFORD

     SHELTON
Rev. Glenn Alden, 47 Jerusalem Hill Rd., Trumbull, CT 06611. Phone: (203) 877-1141.

     Delaware:

     WILMINGTON
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 417 Delaware Ave., McDaniel Crest, Wilmington, DE 19803. Phone: (302) 478-4213.

     District of Columbia see Mitchellville. Maryland.

     Florida:

     LAKE HELEN
Rev. John Odhner, 413 Summit Ave., Lake Helen, FL 32744. Phone: (904) 228-2337.

     MIAMI
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 15101 N. W. Fifth Ave., Miami, FL 33169. Phone: (305) 687-1337.

     Georgia:

     AMERICUS
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee St., Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.

     ATLANTA
Rev. Christopher Bown, 3375 Aztec Road #72, Doraville, GA 30340. Phone: (Home) (404) 457- 4726, (Office) (404) 452-0518

     Idaho:

     FRUITLAND
(Idaho-Oregon border) Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Dr., Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.

     Illinois:

     CHICAGO
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     DECATUR
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.

     GLENVIEW
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

103

     Indiana:
Contact Rev. Stephen Cole in Cincinnati, Ohio, or Mr. James Wood, R. R. 1, Lapel, IN 46051. Phone (317) 534-3546

     Louisiana:

     BATON ROUGE
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 1652 Ormandy Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Phone: (504) 921-3089.

     Maine

     BATH
Rev. Allison L. Nicholson, 897 Middle St., Bath, ME 04530 Phone: (207) 433-6410

     Maryland:

     BALTIMORE
Rev. Donald Rogers, #12 Pawleys Ct., S. Belmont, Baltimore, MD 21236. Phone: (301) 882- 2640.

     MITCHELLVILLE
Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Rd., Mitchellville, MD 20716. Phone: (301) 262-2349.

     Massachusetts:

     BOSTON
Rev. Grant Odhner, 4 Park Ave., Natick, MA 01760. Phone: (617) 651-1127.

     Michigan:

     DETROIT
Rev. Walter Orthwein, 132 Kirk La., Troy, MI 48084. Phone: (313) 689-6118.

     EAST LANSING
Mr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.

     Minnesota:

     ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS
Rev. Michael Cowley, 3153 McKight Road #340, White Bear Lake, MN 55110. (612) 770-9242

     Missouri:

     COLUMBIA
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 103 S. Greenwood, Columbia, MO 65201. Phone: (314) 442-3475.

     KANSAS CITY
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.

     New Jersey-New York:

     RIDGEWOOD, N.J.
Mrs. Fred E. Munich, 474 S. Maple Ave., Glen Rock, NJ 07452. Phone: (201) 445-1141.

     New Mexico:

     ALBUQUERQUE
Dr. Andrew Doering, 1298 Sagebrush Ct., Rio Rancho, NM 87124. Phone: (505) 897-3623.

     North Carolina:

     CHARLOTTE
Mr. Gordon Smith, 38 Newriver Trace, Clover, SC 29710. Phone: (803) 831-2355.

     Ohio:

     CINCINNATI
Rev. Stephen Cole, 6431 Mayflower Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45237. Phone: (513) 631-1210.

     CLEVELAND
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.

     COLUMBUS
Mr. Hubert Heinrichs, 8372 Todd Street Rd., Sunbury. OH 43074. Phone: (614) 524-2738.

     Oklahoma:

     TULSA
Mrs. Louise Tennis, 3546 S. Marion, Tulsa, OK 74135. Phone: (918) 742-8495.

     Oregon-Idaho Border.-Se Idaho, Fruitland.

     Pennsylvania:

     BRYN ATHYN
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-3665.

     ERIE
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Rd., Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.

     KEMPTON
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: (Home) (215) 756-4301; (Office) (215) 756-6140.

     PAUPACK
Mr. Richard Kintner, Box 172, Paupack, PA 18451. Phone: (717) 857-0688.

     PITTSBURGH
Rev. Ray Silverman, 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: (Church) (412) 731-1061.

     South Carolina:- see North Carolina.

     South Dakota:

     ORAL-HOT SPRINGS
Rev. Erik Sandstrom, RR 1, Box 101M, Hot Springs, SD 57747. Phone: (605) 745-6714

     Texas:

     FORT WORTH
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 13410 Castleton, Dallas, TX 75234-5117. Phone: (214) 247-7775.

     Washington:

     SEATTLE
Rev. Kent Junge, 14812 N. E. 75th Street, Redmond, WA 98033. Phone: (206) 881-1955.

     Wisconsin:

     MADISON
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.

104

WORDS IN SWEDENBORG AND THEIR MEANINGS IN MODERN ENGLISH 1986

WORDS IN SWEDENBORG AND THEIR MEANINGS IN MODERN ENGLISH Editor 1986

WORDS
IN
SWEDENBORG

     AND THEIR MEANINGS IN MODERN ENGLISH

     by The Rev. Frank So Rose

     General Church Publication Committee
1985

     Postage paid $3.20

     General Church Book Center
Box 278, Cairncrest
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
Hours: 9-12 Mon-Fri
Phone: (215) 947-3920

105

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI March, 1986 No. 3
NEW CHURCH LIFE

106

     Notes on This Issue

     It is particularly apt to have a substantial letter on music in the New Church (p. 142) in the issue in which the 1986 Music Festival is announced (p. 150).
     Some people read rapidly and feel obliged to do so in order to "keep up with their reading" in this busy life. Fine. In the case of the article by Rev. Stephen Cole on the question of the internal sense we suggest a careful and deliberate reading. This seems likely to bring the most enjoyment and benefit from this valuable article.
     ". . . suddenly these same abstract teachings become profoundly alive . . . touching his inner heart, overwhelming him with delight . . . ." In his Easter sermon Rev. Geoffrey Childs speaks of truths which first only pleased one mentally but come to move the heart to joy.
     We have been receiving letters and comments to the effect that the "Poems from Swedenborg" have filled some readers with joy (pages 138, 139).
     Rev. Brian Kingslake has become a popular author in the New Church. We are told that his book For Heaven's Sake has sold briskly at the General Church Book Center. We are glad to have an overview of some of Mr. Kingslake's work done by Dr. Kurt Simons, who adds a postscript on reincarnation.
     A charming and informative article by Brian Kingslake will appear in issue no. 1 of Chrysalis magazine. The theme of that issue will be "The Holy City." Issue no. 1 is not to be confused with the model issue that has already been published, the theme being "the search for the soul."
     The long, long delay in getting this magazine launched makes its appearance now all the more gratifying. A review of the model Issue is now being prepared. There was a delightful coincidence on the time of publication. There was a Swedenborg's birthday banquet in Bryn Athyn on January 31st which featured three distinguished speakers from the Swedenborg Foundation, Dr. Alice Skinner, Dr. George Dole and Lawrence Cranch, Esq. Because the magazine was to be made available on this occasion, the placemats and the table centerpieces were on the chrysalis-butterfly theme. Many people went away with copies of Chrysalis, and one expects that a number of them will want to get their subscription for the three issues coming out in 1986 ($20 to the Swedenborg Foundation).
     For information on women's weekends and various summer camps turn to pages 110 and 149.

107

RABBONI 1986

RABBONI Rev. GEOFFREY CHILDS 1986

     AN EASTER SERMON

     "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing Him to be the gardener, saith unto Him, Sir, if thou have borne Him hence, tell me where thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself; and saith unto Him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master" (John 20:15, 16).

     Mary Magdalene was among the highest chosen of women. For she was the first to see the risen Lord. She was privileged to witness an event of the greatest magnitude, one that will never be forgotten. Yet of the personal history of this woman we know almost nothing. It was only at the time of the crucifixion that she stepped into the light of the greatest event in the history of the world.
     Of her life before this, we are told one thing. Mark writes that "out of Mary Magdalene Jesus had cast seven devils." Spiritually speaking, these words are the key to Mary's character, for they explain why she was chosen. "Seven" represents all, or completeness; and the "devils" represent the heinous qualities of hell. It is clear then that Mary Magdalene at one time was evil, and that she represented at that time a completely depraved state. Before her liberation by the Lord, she depicted man-unliberated man-in his native evil.
     It seems unfair that a woman who had been so degraded was permitted to see the risen Lord first. Yet there was nothing degrading in it. For every man at one time in his life is potentially practically in that state represented by Mary Magdalene. He is unregenerate. And the promise of this story is that such a man is actually able-if he wills it-to change, and to see the risen Lord.
     There is no one who cannot change. At some time in his life, the Lord gives to everyone the temporary ability to see himself as he is. And then He gives man the strength to change, to ascend that path that leads out of self-love. Man can actually as it were rise out of himself.
     "Behold I stand at the door and knock" (Rev. 3:20). The Lord stands outside the door. He will not force admittance. Rather, He speaks from the Word, and waits patiently for man to hear His voice. To hear the voice of the Lord is to hear that first teaching of the Word: to shun evil is to find heaven.
     The name "Mary" is derived from the Hebrew word "Miryam," which signifies charity (AC 8337). Magdalene is thought to be derived from Hebrew "migdol," meaning tower.

108

These words disclose the inner representation of Mary after the seven devils were cast out-she represents a tower of charity. Alter the proprium has been rejected, a tower of charity is raised up, taking the place of rejected evil.
     The experiences of Mary Magdalene on early Easter morning reveal what happens when charity first begins to rule. "The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, to the sepulcher." The first day of the week for the Jews was Sunday, our sabbath. And the sabbath day represents peace-the peace that follows the agonies of temptation.
     However, when Mary came to the sepulcher, it was still dark. Darkness is a state of obscurity in the understanding, when the light of heaven is absent. The Lord while on earth, up to the time of His crucifixion, represents the faith of a man who has not yet "cast out the seven devils." That is, He depicted a faith that is not truly eternal and not man's own. As long as evil is a dominant force within man, his faith cannot be really living. However, it is an obvious truth that man must have some faith, some guide, during the time that he is repenting and beginning reformation. If he is ever going to reject evil as the dominant force in his life, he must have some faith that enables him to fight, even though this faith is not alive in itself.
     This faith is the love a man has for the teachings of his church, even though for the most part he believes them without clear light. It is also the affection a man has for the simple truths of the Word-truths he has resolved to follow regardless of the difficulty. Such faith is affectional, yet lacks the light of heaven. It is a faith that rules both with the simple and the intellectual, as long as they are beginning to shun evil. With most New Churchmen, it is a faith that believes that the Writings are the Lord speaking to men, but which at the same time involves little understanding of many of His teachings.
     The crucifixion of the Lord is the death of such a nearly blind faith, a faith that is so little-seeing. For the time comes when what is inadequate must die, and what is immortal and alive must take its place. This occurs when charity for the first time begins to rule, to be the dominant force.
Then faith that is not truly alive must perish. The Lord was crucified. For a time man seems to be left alone, in darkness, as was Mary Magdalene at the Lord's sepulcher.
     When Mary saw that the stone was rolled away, and the body gone, she "stood without at the sepulcher weeping." For a while at this stage of regeneration man feels alone-without any guide. The faith he had believed in has died and disappeared. And he doesn't know where to turn or what to do. And so he mourns, as Mary wept, for the complete loss of the only guide he ever knew.

109

     As Mary wept, "she stooped down, and looked into the sepulcher, and seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain" (John 20:11, 12). In his, bewilderment, man goes to the Word to the two Testaments, and the Writings-to see what has happened at this time. These Divine revelations are to him a sepulcher because he can no longer find any life within the Word. It is then that the angels are seen. The angel at the head represents the truth of the Writings; the angel at the feet, the teachings of the two Testaments. Man suddenly becomes aware of a new light in the tomb of revelation. When he reads from the Testaments and the Writings, he is aware of an inner light he can't explain or understand.
     The two angels said to Mary, "Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid Him." When man becomes aware of the new, mystifying light in the revelations, he is filled with a sense of wonder and of bewilderment. This new light is unexplained. He is still not sure where is the Lord whom he formerly followed. And this light within revelation, though it is an awing thing, is not enough to satisfy the yearning of his heart. Mary still mourned and wept that the body of Jesus had been stolen away. Man still mourns the loss of his dead faith.
     Mary turned back, away from the sepulcher; "and she saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing Him to be the gardener, saith unto Him, Sir, if thou have borne Him hence, tell me where thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away."
     The vegetation in a garden represents rational doctrine within the understanding. Until man progresses in regeneration, the rational teachings of his faith are only intellectual ideas in his mind-ideas which he believes, but doesn't really see spiritually. Rational truths aren't really alive to him; they are simply ideas, enjoyable to contemplate. The Lord is the gardener of such intellectual concepts in man. He cares for them, and aids their growth. Therefore, it was correspondential that Mary thought Jesus to be a gardener. And she asked this supposed gardener, "Sir, if thou have borne Jesus hence, tell me where thou hast laid Him."
     For years man has been hearing the teachings of the Writings, and has believed them intellectually. But these same teachings had never affected his inner heart-they never really moved him with unbearable joy. But now suddenly these same abstract teachings become profoundly alive. Man finds them touching his inner heart, overwhelming him with delight. His whole heart experiences a complete change, so that the truths that formerly only pleased him mentally now each singly moves his heart to joy.

110

He suddenly fully realizes that truth is immortal and alive. He sees that the caretaker of these truths is not a mere gardener. It was then that the supposed gardener said: "Mary. And "she turned herself, and saith unto Him, 'Rabboni.'" The affection and joy she expressed are Easter. Before charity, the Lord is alive-forever.
     Before charity stands the resurrected Lord surrounded by a garden of living truth. The Lord then speaks directly, clearly and livingly, as Jesus spoke directly to Mary, saying her name. Man's reaction has that same joy within it: "Rabboni, that is, Master." At last man has truly found his eternal Lord.
     Within this miracle are all the other miracles taught indirectly by the Easter story. In Mary's word "Rabboni" there is recognition of life after death, of peace after temptation, of spiritual spring after winter. All these things are man's because the Lord arose from the tomb on Easter morning. There is no word of more beautiful import than that of the text: "Mary Magdalene turned herself, and saith unto Him, Rabboni."
     This is the human heart making its greatest discovery: The Lord Jesus is not just a name, not just an ancient figure out of childhood church stories. Rather, He is alive! He is our Master in terms of our heart: of inmost loves and tenderest affections. Thomas expressed this after seeing the wounds and hearing the Lord. In almost frightening awe, he whispered, "My Lord and my God." Even that which doubts in man can be fully convinced. But before this it is his heart, his repentant heart, that makes life's most poignant discovery: "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing Him to be the gardener, saith unto Him, Sir, if Thou have borne Him hence, tell me where Thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto Him, Rabboni, which is to say, Master" (John 20:15, 16). Amen.

     LESSONS: John 19:1-18, John 20:1-31 sel., Doct. Lord 35:9, 10; 36 LAUREL CAMPS AND SINGLES WEEKEND 1986

LAUREL CAMPS AND SINGLES WEEKEND Editor 1986

A "singles in the church weekend workshop" is to be held in Pittsburgh from April 11th to 13th for people between the ages of 25 and 35.
There will be two six-day Family Laurel Camps this July, one beginning on the 20th and the other on the 27th. An adult Laurel will also be scheduled for later in the summer. Contact the Pittsburgh pastor for information on the above events.

111

FINDING THE INTERNAL SENSE 1986

FINDING THE INTERNAL SENSE Rev. Stephen Cole 1986

Dear Editor,
     In your August 1985 issue a reader pleads for help in defending the exposition of the spiritual sense as it is given in the Writings (p. 374). The question to be addressed might be put this way: "Why should we trust Swedenborg's explanation of the Scriptures?"
     What reasons can we give for believing that the spiritual sense given in the Writings is correct? This may seem a silly question for members of the New Church, who believe that the Writings are the work not of Swedenborg but of the Lord. We believe that the explanations given in the Writings are true because the Lord has said so. This is the best reason one can have for believing. There are two reasons, however, for the use of further support: 1) Citing the Divine authority of the Writings is no explanation for people who have not yet accepted it, and 2) There is further support given by the Writings themselves, support, thus, that will strengthen our own convictions about and sight of the spiritual sense.
     The explanations given in the Writings can appear arbitrary when they are first encountered, especially, unfortunately, as they are often presented by New Church people. The letter referred to above gives an example of the challenges one may get because of this. Another example comes in a fairly recent book called Scripture Twisting: 20 Ways the Cults Misread the Bible (James W. Sire, Inter Varsity Press: 1980). "Swedenborg's" explanations are classed as "Esoteric Interpretation" by the author, who then complains:

Swedenborg is not so much engaging in exegesis according to an interpretive principle as seeing scripture solely in the light of his conversations with angels. Those of us without his insight can have nothing to say about such readings; we can only wonder at them and accept them or reject them. They have only as much authority as Swedenborg himself (p. 113).

     The charge is that there is no way to check Swedenborg's reading and that such interpretations will vary from person to person. But the science of correspondences really is a science and does share characteristics with modern sciences. The science of exposition is consistent for anyone who applies it.

112

How is the spiritual meaning derived by the Writings?

     Several aspects of the method of exposition used by the Writings parallel techniques that one would use in deciphering a code. To illustrate this let us solve a cryptogram:

QBYH C XLYQ HYULYL, C MUQ NBCM CHMWLCJNCIH UVIPY NBY XIIL, HOHW FCWYN-CN CM HIQ JYLGCNNYX.

(Those who are familiar with cryptograms may want to solve this now before proceeding with what follows. Those who are not will benefit more from the example if they follow the solution step by step, rather than looking ahead to the final solution.)

     Comparing the internal sense to a coded message may sound as if it makes spiritual enlightenment a very mechanical process. After all, the Writings do warn us:

It may be supposed that the doctrine of genuine truth can be acquired by means of the spiritual sense of the Word which is obtained through a knowledge of correspondences. Doctrine, however, is not acquired by such means, but only illustrated and corroborated . . . . Moreover, the spiritual sense is not communicated to anyone except by the Lord alone (SS 56).

     One must know the doctrine of genuine truth (which can be derived from plain statements of the letter of the Word) before one seeks the spiritual sense through correspondences. And to see the spiritual sense itself can only come through enlightenment from the Lord.
     Yet even with these qualifications, there remain similarities to the decoding process. Just as one must know what doctrine one is seeking in the spiritual sense, so one must know the language of the message that has been encoded. It would be hopeless to try to decipher a message the original language of which was unknown. Thus one must know what individual words are legitimate and also the grammar that connects the words (mere lists of words would be very difficult to decode). Furthermore, even after one has some clues one must make certain leaps by insight. One plods along substituting values until, all of a sudden, one recognizes a word or a whole sentence (a kind of enlightenment, albeit very rudimentary).
     With these things in mind, let us study our example and note what techniques we use to solve it. At first glance the task looks hopeless. There is nothing familiar and it looks as though it could mean anything. But let us examine it more closely. First, look at the "CN" immediately following the dash. There is only a limited number of two-letter words. We could make a list of these and know that one of them is what is represented by "CN."

113

This is still a bit much to cope with, but it is all the information we can get from the "CN" alone. If we look around we see that the next word is another two-letter word beginning with the same letter. This narrows down the list of possibilities considerably, as there are only a few pairs of two-letter words in which each begins with the same letter (e.g., "or" and "on"). If we look further we see that "c" occurs in the first line as a one-letter word, which means that it is probably either "a" or "i." Now we have a very short list of possibilities for "CN" and "CM." They can't be "or" and "on" any longer. They might be "as" and "an," or maybe "is" and "it" (or "it" and "is"). Notice that certain possibilities are ruled out by the grammar (you wouldn't likely have "at as," for instance).
     Having established certain possibilities simply by looking for values that are fairly obvious (such as the lone "c" being "a" or "i"), let us now try another approach. If we scan through the whole message, we see that "y" is frequently used. This frequency and the places in words in which it occurs suggest that it might be the very common letter "e." (Notice that there is no one word from which this is obvious, but only frequency and placement throughout the message). Let us then substitute "e" for each occurrence of "y." Observe that this means that the second to last word of the first line "NBY" would end in "e." One wants to be on the lookout for three-letter words ending in "e" because so often a message will contain the word "the."
     If "NBY" is "the," then replacing every "B" with "h" and every "N" with "t" suggests that "CN" is "at" or "it." In the context "it" seems more likely, so let us assume "i" for "c." At this point our message reads:

     h e     I      e          e     e     I     t h i
QBYH           C      XLYQ           HYULYL,      C      MUQ NBCM

i     i      i           e      the
CHMWL     C JNCIH      UVIPY      NBY      XIIL,

          i e t     i t     i
HOHW          FCWYN -      CN     CM HIQ

e     i t t e
JYLGCNNYX.

     It is pretty obvious now that "M" is "s" (from "NBCM" and "CM") and if that is true, then from "MUQ" and "QBYH" one can guess that "q" is "w" (making "saw" and "when"). Filling in these and "a" for "u" and "n" for "H," we get:

     when     I      ew     n e a     e     I      saw     this
     QBYH     C     XLYQ     HYULYL,     C     MUQ      NBCM

114

i n s     i t i n      a     e     the
CHMWL     CJNCIH     UVIPY     NBY     XIIL,

n n      i e t     it     is     n w
HOHW     FCWYN -     CN     CM     HIQ

e itte
JYLGCNNYX.

     Now, perhaps, one has some insights. Maybe one is "enlightened" to see that "HYULYL" (neae-n) must be "nearer," or maybe that "ins-i-ti-n" is "inscription." One might just see that the last word probably ends in "d." If one gets either the "x" = "d" or the "L" = "r," one is apt to add this to the obvious double letter "II" in "XIIL" and infer that it must be "door." From these conclusions we would have:

when I drew nearer I saw this
QBYH C XLYQ HYULYL, C MUQ NBCM

inscription a o e the door
CHMWLCJNCIH UVIPY NBY XIIL,

n nc icet     it is now
HOHW FCWYN - CN CM HIQ

per itted.
JYLGCNNYX.

     At this point insight should have no trouble filling in the rest: "When I drew nearer I saw this inscription above the door, NUNC LICET-it is now permitted." The "NUNC LICET," since it is not English, is one of the last things to be recognized.

     So is solved a cryptogram. Even if one arrived at the solution with different steps they would involve the same principles and the final result would still be the same. What techniques, then, did we employ?

     1)      Look for cases where the meaning is obvious ("C" = "a" or "i").
     2)      Examine all contexts for a symbol ("k" is frequent = "e").
     3)      Apply meanings discovered to all occurrences of symbol.
     4)      Infer meaning of problem symbols from context ("m" in permitted).

     Do we have any reason to suppose that the Writings use such methods in explaining the spiritual sense? Are not the meanings simply given by the Lord through heaven? As a general answer to this, let us consider Arcana Coelestia 4614, which is explaining the lists of names in Genesis 36:

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As the subject here treated of is the good which was Divine in the Lord from birth, and the conjunction of this good with the truth and good which He acquired to Himself as a man born, and also the derivations therefrom; and as before said these things are of such a nature as not to fall into the understanding, not even the angelic, they therefore cannot be explained in detail. Moreover, they are mere names, by which this Divine good with its derivations is described; and to unfold the meaning of mere names, without any historic sense preceding and following to give a confirming light, would be to bring the subject into doubt, because no matter how clearly it may be shown them, there are few who can believe that real things are signified by names in the Word (emphasis added).

     The spiritual meaning is not given in this case because it cannot be demonstrated by the methods of the science of exposition, one of which is even explicitly mentioned: the examination of the narrative context, the story, in which a name or word occurs. The application of this principle is also mentioned by the Arcana with regard to the "dudaim" (mandrakes?) found by Reuben:

What the "dudaim" were the translators do not know . . . . That by "dudaim" there is signified the conjugial of good and truth may be seen from the series of things in the internal sense (AC 3942).

     This passage goes on to note the context in which "dudaim" occurs in the Song of Solomon. Still the Arcana does not attempt to give a specific meaning for the literal sense. It simply infers the spiritual meaning from the spiritual meanings of the contexts in which the word occurs, in very much the same fashion as our rule #4 above for decoding.
     Again with regard to names mentioned in lists the Arcana says that they cannot be explained because these names do not occur elsewhere in the Word (AC 1247) or that the meaning can only be derived in a general way from the series in which they occur (AC 1230, 1249). These passages note an inability to practice the method corresponding to rule #2 above.
     To see that the Writings use rule #1, let us look at some specific examples. If one simply starts at the beginning of the Arcana with the explanation of the first chapter of Genesis, one finds that in explaining the "void and emptiness" as relating to ignorance and stupidity, Arcana 17 quotes Jeremiah 4:22, 23:

My people is stupid, they have not known Me; they are foolish sons, and are not intelligent . . . . I beheld the earth, and lo a void and emptiness, and the heavens and they had no light.

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AC 20 showing that the Lord is the light cites John 1:9: "He was the true light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
     AC 22 explaining that "morning" is "whatever is of the Lord" quotes II Samuel 23:2-4: "He is as the light of the morning, when the sun ariseth, even a morning without clouds."
     AC 28, in saying that seas represent knowledges, includes Isaiah 11:9: "The earth shall be full of the knowledge of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea."
     AC 29 notes the parable of the sower in connection with the seed-bearing plants created on the third day.
     AC 40:3 quotes Isaiah 46:11 to show that birds represent things rational and intellectual: "Calling from the east the bird, and from a distant land the man of my counsel.
     AC 42 explains "whales" by making reference to Ezekiel 32:2: "Take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, thou art as a whale in the seas." It has already been seen that "seas" relate to knowledges and it will later be seen that Egypt is the land of knowledge, so the meaning of whales as the general things of knowledge is doubly confirmed by this passage.
     This is just a sampling of the use that the Arcana makes, in explaining just the first chapter of Genesis, of images from elsewhere in the Word where the spiritual meaning is obvious. Lest it be supposed that this is unique to the beginning of the Arcana, or that it only works on the composed stories of the early chapters of Genesis, let us examine another example from the beginning of the true historicals. As Genesis 13 opens, we learn that Abram went up out of Egypt heavy in cattle, in silver, and in gold. In this section of the Arcana there are explanations of "Egypt," "cattle," "silver," and "gold."
     The meaning of Egypt is expounded in AC 1462 by comparing thirteen different places in the Word where the subject is Egypt. One of the passages included is I Kings 4:30, which states that Solomon's "wisdom was multiplied above the wisdom of the sons of the east, and above all the wisdom of the Egyptians. Egypt is clearly identified, even in the sense of the letter, as a land where knowledge was cultivated.
     With regard to cattle (or flock) AC 1550 refers back to the demonstrations given in AC 343 and AC 415, which between them include eleven passages from the Old Testament, even after noting that the image of the shepherd of the flock is a well-known symbol for one who exercises the good of charity. Among the passages is Ezekiel 34:14 prophetically comparing Israel to the flock: "I will feed them in a good pasture.
     AC 1551 includes among its fourteen passages cited Ezekiel 28:341 which has a beautiful example of emblematic parallelism (where the second line of a couplet restates the concept of the first in metaphorical terms):

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"In thy wisdom and in thine intelligence thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures," in which gold is paralleled with wisdom and silver with intelligence.
     The qualities of quotations from the Old and New Testaments that one finds in the Arcana or the expositions of the Apocalypse are not merely incidental; they are the demonstration of the spiritual sense. It is not, indeed, necessary to follow every one of these series of citations in order to see something of the spiritual sense. But one should understand what the passages are doing there. One may accept an explanation of the internal meaning without checking every one. But it should be realized that the means for checking is there if one wants it.
     The exposition in the Writings is scientific. Two different people examining the same text can arrive at the same spiritual understanding. It must be confessed, however, that the spiritual sense is much more complex than a simple coded message. For one thing the message is the whole Word-a vast context to try to examine. For another, there is more than one plane of meaning in the Word. Furthermore, any given word or image may range over a number of meanings. Does this level of complexity render the science of exposition hopelessly subjective?
     One can complain that a dictionary of correspondences lists more than one meaning per word, that this makes correspondences too confusing to be able ever to understand. But just look at a dictionary of English! More often than not one will find more than one meaning per word. One may find a great range of meanings for one word, but even children have learned the trick of interpreting in context so that the intended meaning of a word is obvious. So it is with the spiritual sense.
     It is one of the marvels of the revelation of the Lord in His second advent that the opening of the spirit of the Word is not merely a mystery of faith. We are all invited to learn the science of exposition, to apply it to the literal sense of the Word, and to enter then with the understanding into the mysteries of faith.
     Rev. Stephen Cole,
          Cincinnati, Ohio

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REPORT OF THE GENERAL CHURCH EVANGELIZATION COMMITTEE 1986

REPORT OF THE GENERAL CHURCH EVANGELIZATION COMMITTEE Douglas M. Taylor 1986

     1985

     In 1985 we began putting into effect the five year plan mentioned in last year's report. Here is what we achieved in implementing the 1985 portion of the plan.

     1. We appointed Mr. Willard Thomas to the volunteer position of Audio/Visual Coordinator. Mr. Thomas, who has many years of experience in this field, has already given us valuable advice and help in purchasing much needed equipment for this use.
     2. We undertook to encourage the formation of "daughter churches" or groups near existing societies. To this end six ministers from various places, together with one laywoman, participated in a three-day seminar near Philadelphia on "Planting Churches," put on by seasoned experts from the Fuller Institute of Pasadena, California. While there were some things we knew already, there was much other valuable information we gained from this experience, especially about the relevance of demographics.
     3. We have emphasized the importance of understanding the process of assimilating new and lapsed members. The chairman accordingly took advantage of the opportunity to speak on this subject at the General Church evening at the conclusion of the Council of the Clergy meetings in March. An increasing number of local societies have assimilation committees.
     4. With a view to producing eventually a film on the model of the Tabernacle, we filmed an interview with Bishop de Charms by Siri Yardumian.
     5. Two evangelization seminars took place this year: one sponsored by this committee just prior to the clergy meetings in March and covering a wide variety of evangelization subjects; and the other sponsored by Mr. Garth Pitcairn at Glen Tonche in July. In addition, the chairman conducted training courses for the first time in England and France.
     6. We began our efforts to establish a central film and video/tape library in Bryn Athyn.
     7. A task force or action team has been formed with a view to producing a "How To" manual for pastors in the field. This will include specifics; for example, on how to write news releases, how to arrange a film evening, a public lecture, etc. This task should be completed in 1986.

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     8. Material to help those who wish to greet visitors to church has been gathered and is now available from the committee.
     9. Seven pastors agreed to do further study on the Apocalypse Revealed treatment of the seven churches which are in Asia (Revelation 2, 3). As these studies come in, we are impressed with how valuable the project has been, especially in helping us frame questions to help identify the interests of people who inquire about the church.
     10. Some twenty radio spot announcements have been produced for the Glenview radio station WMWA, and are now in use.
     11. In accordance with a strong recommendation in the Denney Report, we have produced a series of pamphlets under the umbrella title of "A Religion That Makes Sense." The subject was the Divine Providence, and includes such titles as, "Why Does a Loving God Permit Evil?' (Rev. Frank Rose), "Affliction Turned to Good" (Rev. Donald Rose), "Why Are We Here?" (Rev. Douglas Taylor), and "How Providence Works" (Rev. B. David Helm). These can be ordered from the committee, and the initial response is very gratifying.
     12. We have been encouraging local pastors to arrange for local cable TV channels to show the Rev. Wendel Barnett's fourteen-part program entitled "Dying, Death, and Beyond," which he produced for cable TV while a pastor in San Jose, California. Several pastors have succeeded in this, but the Rev. Cedric King in San Diego went a step further: he found a commercial channel willing to show them. In order to obtain the considerable funding needed for this, he submitted a well-thought-out proposal to the Board Evangelization Committee, setting forth the specific goals of the project. The committee, after being satisfied that the goals were feasible and measurable, provided funds for nine sessions. The program was aired from September into November, and produced some very encouraging results indeed. Whereas they had set a goal of 250 new contacts, they have actually added over 300 names to their contact list. Further, the pastor has started a series of inquirers' classes, attended by 7 of these new contacts.
     The San Diego Society has had to look for larger premises, as has the Tucson Circle, where the Rev. Frank Rose's door-to-door research has yielded some regular visitors to church.
     The Board Evangelization Committee now has other projects which it is either actually funding or evaluating. For example, a proposal from the society in Los Angeles has been accepted and is being implemented. These proposals must include realistic goals and procedures for measuring them.
     Our bi-monthly periodical, the Missionary Memo, continues to record the accelerating growth of evangelization activities in the church throughout the world, such as the continuing success of the Toronto Society's bookstore, which is now being used for evening Inquirers' Classes.

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Altogether there are now five Inquirers' Classes sponsored by the Toronto Society.
     There still remains a lingering feeling among some lay people that "evangelization" is synonymous with persuasion, hard-sell proselytizing, and aggressive door-to-door haranguing. Nothing could be further from the truth or from our philosophy. Evangelization is simply a form of instruction, a means of spreading the knowledge and understanding of the New Evangel. It does include the assimilation of new members, but only those who voluntarily ask for baptism.
     Throughout the church we are continuing to find people who have been prepared by the Lord to receive the New Evangel. Some of these are not associated with churches but some are. The experience of the Glenview Society with its Chicago group shows conclusively that there are people outside our ranks who are prepared and are actually eager to join the church. From that group there have been nine baptisms in the past two years, as well as two more from the Glenview Society itself, making 11 altogether. In the previous twenty pears there were fewer than 10 adult baptisms there.
     Douglas M. Taylor
GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM CORPORATION SECRETARY'S REPORT 1986

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM CORPORATION SECRETARY'S REPORT Stephen Pitcairn 1986

     for the year ending December 31, 1885

     MEMBERSHIP

     During the year 1985 the number of persons comprising the membership of the Corporation increased to 726. There were 164 new members of which 18 were men and 146 were women. There were ten deaths of members.

     DIRECTORS

     The bylaws of the Corporation provide for election of thirty directors, ten of whom are elected each year for terms of three years. The board presently consists of twenty-seven directors. At the 1985 annual meeting, ten directors were elected for terms expiring in 1988. The present directors, with the dates their terms expire, are as follows:

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1987      Asplundh, E. Boyd           1986      Horigan, W. Lee
1987      Blair, Brian G.               1988      Hyatt, Garry
1988      Blair, Kenneth B.           1987      Johns, Hyland R., Jr.
1986      Brickman, Theodore W., Jr.      1987      Junge, James F.
1986      Buick, William W.           1986      Klippenstein, Glen
1987      Buss, Neil M.                    1987      Leeper, Thomas N.
1988      Coffin, Philip D.           1986      Orchard, Basil C. L.
1988      Cooper, Thomas R.           1986      Pitcairn, Lachlan
1986      Evans, Roy B.                    1986      Pitcairn, Stephen
1987      Frost, John A.               1986      Schnarr, Maurice G.
1988      Genzlinger, Dale B.           1988      Schrock, W. Roger M.
1988      Gladish, Donald P.           1987      Smith, Robert A.
1988      Heldon, Murray F.           1988      Wyncoll, John H.
1987      Henderson, Albert D.

     Ex Officio members of the board:
Asplundh, Kurt H.
King, Louis B.

     Lifetime Honorary Members of the board:
de Charms, George
Pendleton, Willard D.

     OFFICERS

     The Corporation has five officers, each of whom is elected yearly for a term of one year. Those elected at the board meeting of March 8, 1985, were:

Vice President      Kurt H. Asplundh
Secretary,               Stephen Pitcairn
Treasurer               Neil M. Buss
Assistant Treasurer      Bruce A. Fuller
Controller               Ian K. Henderson

     CORPORATION MEETINGS

     The 1985 annual Corporation meeting was held at Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, on March 8, 1985, this being the only Corporation meeting held during the year. The president, Bishop King, presided, and there were 109 members in attendance. Reports were received from the nominating committee; treasurer, secretary, and the election for directors was held.
     Bishop King reported that the first amendment to be considered involved permitting women to become members of the Corporation.

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He said that a special committee composed of clergy and laity, appointed to consider the question of admission of women to the Corporation, had recommended in 1983 that this be done and that the matter be brought to the 1984 General Assembly for consideration. The committee further recommended that the nominating committee refrain from nominating women to serve as directors until the clergy had had time to further study the question in the light of the teachings of the doctrines. The matter was discussed in open forum at the 1984 assembly. Instead of calling for a vote to express consensus, the assembly members elected to just discuss the matter. After the discussion was over, the committee in charge of the meeting reviewed the tapes of the meeting and made a written report to the Bishop that concluded that the majority of the assembly members were in favor of women being admitted to the Corporation.
     Bishop King said that the affirmative recommendation is now back before the Corporation to admit women to the Corporation and asked the nominating committee to refrain from nominating women to the Board of Directors until further study has been made. He said there is a feeling by a group in the church that asking the nominating committee to refrain from nominating women to the board is not sufficient assurance and that stronger action should be taken to preclude women from being elected to the board. He said this group felt they could not vote in favor of the amendment to allow women to join the Corporation unless they have that assurance.
     After discussion, a resolution was adopted which instructed nominating committees not to nominate women for the Board of Directors of the Corporation of the General Church in accordance with the recommendation of the Bishop's committee until further study and reflection of the matter has taken place and the Corporation provides specifically either for or against an inclusion of women on its Board of Directors.
     After further discussion, the Corporation approved amending the by-laws to permit women to join the Corporation. Certain other amendments to the by-laws, pertaining to the makeup of the Board of Directors, officers and vacancies in offices, were approved.

     BOARD MEETINGS

     During the year there were four regular meetings of the Board of Directors. At the organizational meeting following the annual meeting, the incumbent officers were re-elected and standard resolutions pertaining to corporate business were approved.
     During the year Neil Buss made several reports on the activities of the Real Estate Finance Committee.

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The committee continues to work: with the societies in Washington, Detroit, Glenview and Kitchener on their developments. The committee is also considering requests for assistance in purchasing or remodeling church buildings in Twin Cities, Kempton, Tucson, San Diego, Boston, Miami, Freeport and Transvaal. Mr. Buss further commented that the Development Fund, which is administered by the Real Estate Finance Committee, was first conceived as a revolving fund but that this is no longer the case. The committee is now restructuring how they operate and focusing more on the need for church buildings and loans to societies in lieu of outright grants.
     Mr. Walter Childs, the new Development Officer, and his department have been concentrating on six primary areas: (1) Development of the Library Fund campaign; (2) The Academy annual fund drive; (3) The General Church annual fund drive; (4) Defining and implementing a General Church/Academy computer data base; (5) Creating a one-year tactical plan for broadening the base of contributors; and (6) Continuing the emphasis on the Deferred Giving Program.
     Mr. Hyland Johns, chairman of the Personnel Advisory Committee, reported several times on the active work of his committee. He emphasized the following areas in which the committee was involved:

     1.      Working with pastors, school teachers and community people to discuss and find solutions to the problems of drug and alcohol abuse.
     2.      Giving guidance and assistance to pastors in financial matters and secular employment.
     3.      Working with the Bishop's Representatives in the development reviews for ministers.
     4.      Preparing position descriptions for the Executive Bishop and the Bishop's Representatives.
     5.      Continuing to review and recommend improvements in the Advanced Teacher's Salary Program.

     The Board Evangelization Committee continued to be active under the chairmanship of Mr. Garth Pitcairn. Mr. Pitcairn reported that the committee had made real progress in 1985. He said that the majority of the societies and circles now have programs to attract non-members. The committee is planning a special fund drive in 1987 to build an evangelization endowment to support this important work.
     The treasurer, Mr. Neil Buss, reported on a trip he and the Bishop made to England, visiting the London and Colchester societies. He said the issues of real estate, salary scales, exchange rates and future planning were discussed.

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Mr. Buss said he was impressed by the dedicated and hard working laymen that are running the two societies' financial affairs in a very professional way.
     Bishop King said that he had asked church representatives in England to submit a nomination for a candidate to fill the unexpired term of Philip Waters, who passed away recently. He said that he had received the nomination of Roy B. Evans, and the board unanimously elected Mr. Evans to fill the unexpired term.
     At the October meeting, Mr. Neil Buss reported on the sale by all members of the New Church Investment Fund of their entire holdings of PPG Industries Common stock back to PPG Industries. The proceeds from the sale will be in the form of cash and 10.75% PPG Industries notes. After re-investment of the proceeds, there will be a one-time increase in the fund pay-out and it is proposed that the increase be applied to teachers' and ministers' salaries.
     During the year the directors received written reports from the president on the activities of his office. At the board meetings he commented in more detail on the reports and answered questions. Referring to his travels, he discussed his trips to Rio de Janeiro and South Africa, visiting the societies and circles in Transvaal, Durban, Kent Manor, Diepkloof, Soweto, Clermont, Kwa Mashu, Impaphala and Enkumba.
     Bishop King also reported on the General Church seminars held in July of 1984 and 1985. He said the seminars, which included ministers and laymen, had proved very beneficial in helping resolve problems the church faces and making plans for the future. There are tentative plans for a seminar in the summer of 1986.
     At the October meeting, Bishop King emphasized three important priorities of the General Church, which are: (1) Continue the current proposal to keep ahead of inflation with regular, appropriate increments to the salary plans; (2) Assist in providing places of worship to eight societies and circles; and (3) Raising endowment funds for evangelization, support of local schools and translation and publication.
     In conclusion, he said that the overall outlook for the church was positive and encouraging.
     Stephen Pitcairn,
          Secretary

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Resurrection Address for REV. HENRY HEINRICHS 1986

Resurrection Address for REV. HENRY HEINRICHS Rev. CHRISTOPHER R. J. SMITH 1986

     2 August, 1897-24 December, 1985

     The Lord Jesus Christ says that He is "not a God of the dead, but of the living" (Luke 20:38). On another occasion, while He was speaking to His disciples during the night before His crucifixion, preparing them for His own death and resurrection, He said: "I will not leave you comfortless. I will come to you . . . . Because I live, you shall live also" (John 14:18-19)
     Because of the fact that Jesus Christ lives, and because, as He teaches, He is Lord and God of the living, we are to think not so much of death as of life. Remember also what He said to the repentant thief who was crucified with Him: "Today you will be with Me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). Life continues immediately after death.
     We are here in this chapel, then, to commemorate not death but the resurrection into the spiritual world of the Reverend Henry Heinrichs.
     The reality is that there is not death, only life. That is why the Lord spoke of well-known people, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who were born two thousand years before, as being still alive. He is not the God of the dead but the living.
     In the pages of the Sacred Scriptures He confirms this for us many times, as, for example, when we read about King Saul meeting Samuel some time after Samuel had left this world (I Sam. 28: 15). We see how three of the disciples noticed Moses and Elijah speaking to Jesus when He was transfigured before them (Matt. 17:3). The most telling evidence of all is the Lord's resurrection. Even Thomas finally accepted the truth on the second Sunday, when he said, "My Lord and my God" (John 20:28).
     We have no reason to doubt the Lord, therefore, when He said, "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all to Myself" (John 12:32). That is why He says, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die" (John 11:25-26).
     Every single person born on this planet comes to a time when the spirit, the real person, is separated from the physical body that serves us while we are here. That separation is called death. It is merely a passage, however, a doorway, allowing us to pass from this world to the next.

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     Because it is merely a passageway, people in the other world do not look upon it as death. They think of it as resurrection. It is beautifully represented in nature by the way caterpillars change into butterflies. The newly formed butterfly is a glorious image of the resurrection, of the release from the natural world into the spiritual world.
     Mr. Heinrichs began his resurrection last Tuesday, very early in the morning. He left forever the physical body that had served him for 88 years. After three months of hospitalization due to a broken hip, he had a strong premonition that his life on earth was to end soon. For this reason and most especially because he very much wanted to be with his wife, his children, and his grandchildren, he got his wish to be brought home before Christmas. He was at home, then, when he left this world, asleep in his bed, with his family close to him.
     Over the past three days he has been experiencing first-hand what he has known well from his lifelong study of' the doctrines of the New Church. In these doctrines a great deal of detailed information is given about what happens to us when we leave this natural world and enter the spiritual world to find our final home, be it in heaven or in hell. This information, given to all nations on this earth by means of His servant Emanuel Swedenborg, is part of the many things the Lord, as He said while He was still on earth, had yet to explain to us (John 16:12).
     This information is known, however, to only an extremely small fraction of the human race today. The idea of a life after death is generally obscure and ignored. We can imagine the surprise, the delighted surprise, therefore, that has been felt by the angels who have assisted Mr. Heinrichs these past three days. Here was a man who not only expected them, knew what they were doing, but likely asked many penetrating questions.
     These various angels, whose love it is to do the Lord's bidding in assisting people to make the transition from this world to the next, have just completed their work. Mr. Heinrichs is now fully conscious in the spiritual world. Unfortunately we cannot see it.
     There was a time on this planet when people had open communication with those who had passed on to the next life. Today it is a rare phenomenon. We see it permitted, for instance, when Elisha asked the Lord to open the spiritual eyes of his servant so that he could see the mountain covered with the huge army that was on their side, horses and chariots of fire (II Kings 6:17).
     If we had the senses of our spiritual body opened at this moment, we would be deeply touched by watching Mr. Heinrichs. He will be thinking about his wife and family that he has left behind, feeling regret for the parting.

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But he knows that his wife is in good hands and that their parting is going to be a short separation. In contrast to this sorrow, he will be ecstatic over his new body and new surroundings. He would be like a little boy enjoying his favorite Christmas present!
     He is no longer tied to his bed. He is no longer hampered by arthritis. To his keen joy, he has regained his full sense of hearing.
     If he had any doubts about the reality of the spiritual world; if he had any doubts about finding his surroundings to be so similar to his earthly home that he would be hard put to tell the difference, then those doubts have been banished.
     If he had any doubts about seeing his earthly parents again, those doubts have also evaporated. For in the spiritual world, when we think about someone, wanting to see that person, he becomes instantly present. As Mr. Heinrichs would have very much wanted to see his parents, they must have already exchanged greetings.
     There is one special person that Mr. Heinrichs would have been unable to stop himself from wanting to see. Fifty years ago he and his wife were separated from one of their children, their daughter Mary. She died here in Kitchener when just eight years old. In sharp contrast to the pain of that day, and carrying the memory of it all these years, imagine the delight we would see on their faces if we were able to watch the reunion of father and daughter.
     Mr. Heinrichs knows only too well, however, that Mary is not his daughter, any more than he is her father. The Lord Jesus Christ is their Father. They are to be brother and sister. Mary herself has long since grown to adulthood and has her own home in heaven. Most likely she was married soon after she became a beautiful young woman. Perhaps she has brought her husband with her to welcome Mr. Heinrichs. The rejoicing of this occasion will be even greater when Mr. Heinrichs will eventually be joined by his wife and all of the children born to them on this earth. They could together organize a celebration in the Heinrichs tradition!
     In the meantime, Mary and Mr. Heinrichs' earthly parents will be interested to hear what he has done with his life. They will be particularly interested to know about his 46 years of work in the priesthood (1923-1969). They will sense his regret that he had to leave full-time employment as a priest when he and his family moved from Denver to Kitchener in 1936 and he had to struggle to make a living.
     During the Second World War he served in the army overseas. To his delight, he found that during this time he regained his optimism about life in general. On returning to Kitchener, he worked in the post office. This provided the funds that allowed him and his wife to ensure that their children, in spite of all difficulties, would continue to receive a formal New Church education.

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     Until a heart attack in 1969, he continued to freely and generously offer his time to assist the pastors of the Carmel Church in Kitchener and the Olivet Church in Toronto whenever it was needed. Looking at the record, we see that he was much needed.
     Now, at a good old age, Mr. Heinrichs has been called by the Lord to carry on his work, not here but in the spiritual world. His earthly life has ended and it can be summarized and appreciated by quoting his own words, spoken just last May: "Well, now I am 87 years old. All these things are in the past. I look backwards and I can see there is Providence. And I know that Providence has as its end uses, and a person's usefulness. I can see that I have been useful, and I have been happy to be so" (unpublished reflections, 16 May, 1985).

     [Photograph of Rev. and Mrs. Henry Heinrichs.]

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[Photo of the living Henry Heinrichs children.]

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Books of Brian Kingslake 1986

Books of Brian Kingslake Kurt Simons 1986

     You've been talking off and on with a friend about doctrinal ideas without being too specific about their source, and your friend has shown interest. One day he or she asks you specifically about your religion and you mention Swedenborg and the church. Then the moment of truth arrives: "is there a book I can read?" your friend asks.
     What to recommend? If you feel he or she is a "remnant" Christian, concerned with detailed confirmation from the letter of the Word, and willing to follow extended theological discussion, Rev. K. R. Alden's The City of God may be your choice. (You may want to recommend that your friend read the first chapter last, however, since its discussion-not to say sales pitch!-on the need for a New Church makes more sense after, rather than before, a review of the unique doctrines that build up to that need.) But what if your friend is a member of the non-remnant audience that is probably more typical of the late 20th century type of inquirer?
     Helen Keller's My Religion is certainly less theological, but it is even more learned than City of God, and more focussed on Swedenborg the man and Miss Keller's reaction to the doctrines rather than the doctrines themselves. Van Dusen's The Presence of Other Worlds is far more readable, but to an even larger extent than My Religion it blurs the distinction between what the doctrines actually say and the author's interpolations from doctrine. Warren's Compendium? Sig Synnestvedt's The Essential Swedenborg? Both are masterful editing jobs that provide an overview drawn from the words of the Writings themselves, but that seriously limits their potential late 20th century general reader audience. The Writings, even in modern translations, are heavy going for a generation being raised on the slick prose of the media and modern writing (including popular religious and "inspirational" writing). It's a long jump from an ad or article with only one or two major ideas in a page to a paragraph of doctrine that may have that many ideas per sentence!
     In sum, none of these (or similar works, such as Gorange's The Structure of New Church Teaching) may really be what the doctor ordered for your late 20th century non-remnant friend as far as an initial introduction is concerned. The initial introduction aspect is critical, since experience has made clear that that's the hard part. Once someone in the appropriate state discovers the gold mine lying in the pages of the Writings, such considerations as readability fall by, the wayside. Indeed, your reviewer is familiar with one individual who read the Scriptures and the Writings avidly while still learning English, even though he could only understand part of what he read at that point, because he was so struck by the teaching of the delight that angels feel when people read the Word.

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     What alternatives then do you have for your friend? Perhaps one of the books of Rev. Brian Kingslake, a Conference minister who traveled widely in his youth before becoming a minister and then served in places as diverse as England, Africa and the Convention church in Washington, D.C. This eclectic background shows in his vivid prose, which is often insightful as well and nearly always just plain interesting. His language is plain vanilla English, and his material is always broken up into bite size pieces, in the form of short chapters and in some cases with subheadings as well.
     A first, and highly recommended, example is his inspiring For Heaven's Sake (North Quincy, Mass: Christopher, 1977). Presumably adapted from sermon material, these are the words of a pastor, not a theologian. Doctrine is included, usually not labeled as such, though the work's origins in the Writings are made clear in the introduction and with an occasional quote or reference. But the main thrust is inspiration, with lots of practical application to daily life. A wide range of subjects is covered, from self image to worry and growing old, to the meaning of "Resist not evil" when confronting a mugger! The issues are timeless but presented in timely prose, and anecdotes abound, from Tolstoy to Alexander the Great. The chapters are brief, doctrinal appetizers in effect-and, like all good appetizers, it's hard to eat just one!
     The only ripple in the book's smooth stream is the author's perhaps doctrinally questionable (and scientifically credulous) beliefs about psychic phenomenon and "faith healing" and intercessory prayer, which also show up in a lesser way in his other books. But the presentation of these issues is done in the context of a nice sphere, and there is certainly room for honest difference of interpretation here, even from a scientific point of view. These problems do not detract from the book's overall usefulness. You can safely hand it to almost anyone.
     But suppose your friend wants an explicit review of what exactly the doctrine teaches, chapter and verse. You will then want to consider Swedenborg Explores the Spiritual Dimension (London: Seminar Books, 1981), and "consider" is the appropriate word since this book is a combination of great strengths and some serious flaws. In its favor is the fact that in a remarkably brief compass (173 paperback size pages), it covers an extraordinary range of subject matter, from basic teachings about the Lord and Providence to applied doctrine questions such as the ecumenical movement and abortion.

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Rev. Kingslake's secret in this respect is, as noted above, his clear and pithy prose. Some traditionally difficult subject matter for newcomers, such as the Writings' teachings about the Pauline Epistles (p. 116), the Last Judgment (Chapter 23) and the Second Coming (Chapter 24) are covered in a low key, matter of fact way that neatly avoids hackles-raising. He also makes effective use of tables and diagrams to help explain concepts such as the trinity and the kingdoms of heaven. This appears to be a first in our recent evangelization literature and seems worth further exploration as an effective way of getting some large-scale doctrinal ideas across.
On the negative side of the balance, unfortunately, are some uncharitable-sounding statements that may stop the reader in his tracks if not prepared. These include a statement on the first page of the foreword that Swedenborg "declared that the Christian church, both Catholic and Protestant, was corrupt, liquidated, finished," followed up by a statement on the next page about the "death of the old Christianity," and the "utter ineffectualness of its ancient creeds." This is followed on page three by-to say the least-premature recruiting statements about how the reader will become "hooked" on the doctrines and then "be proud to call yourself a 'New Churchman.'" This all is intermixed, however, with some well-taken points, such as that Swedenborg put up with disrepute and mockery (so that the reader won't think we are strangers to incredulity), that his ideas have been "boycotted" by traditional Christian thinkers (so the reader will begin to see why he's never heard of Swedenborg) and the major undertaking that reading the Writings may be (another surprise avoided). The first chapter continues this fits-and-starts pattern, combining well-made points such as the Lord referring to "the end of the age," not the "end of the world" of
earlier translations, and the human race having at last passed its "you cannot bear them now" limitations in the adult phase of its development, with further hammering on the end of the Christian Church, a comment about "people who still cling to the old Pauline formulas" (p. 15), and a closing paragraph of admonition about avoiding the faith alone "heresy" that may offend both Old and New Church men!
In Chapter 2, the book begins to roll, with food for thought for "old pro" New Churchmen as well as the newcomer (e.g., the neat distinction between the human shape and the human form in explaining the grand man-p. 77). There are even outright quotable quotes on occasion, such as that the inhabitants of hell, permanently putting the Lord behind them, "are always in their own shadow" (p. 44), and that the Lord's glorification gave Him a "permanent foothold in humanity" (p. 86). Frequent, and often intriguingly-worded, subheadings are used that both aid skimming and attract attention to a part the reader might have otherwise jumped past.

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Unfortunately, possibly reader-aggravating statements recur occasionally as well, including comments that the idea of devils with horns and hooves is "nonsense" (p. 37), that the traditional Christian idea of the vicarious atonement "does not make much sense as you will agree" and is a "myth" (p. 77), and an attempt to explain the conjunction of interiors in marriage that has the wife coming off, apparently, second best (p. 62). There are also occasional errors in doctrinal interpretation, some mild (e.g., on the question of devils, they can in fact appear bestial to the angels; cf. HH 553ff.), some more serious, such as the interiors of marriage: example, a more tolerant attitude toward divorce than would appear justified from doctrine (p. 67), and suggestion that reformation sometimes follows rather than precedes regeneration (p. 97).
When all is said and done, however, this is still the most readable "non-remnant" overview available, and worth serious consideration if your friend will listen to your word of warning about its weaknesses and still read it with an open mind. Hopefully, there will be a revised edition produced at some point, when the shortcomings can be repaired, at which time it will become a really useful missionary tool. (If such a revision is produced, thought might also be directed toward modifying the cover design. The stylized silhouette view of a man-i.e. Swedenborg-sitting at a table with a quill pen, the neo-Gothic type style, the unusual chartreuse-like cover color, and the title itself are all too reminiscent of books typically found in the "Occult" section of most bookstores. Something more "classy," hence credibility-building, would seem called for.)
Falling on a continuum between For Heaven's Sake and Spiritual Dimension is Out of This World (Arthur James: Worchester, England, 1978), more theological than the former work but more pastoral than the latter. Unfortunately, it is out of print at present. It continues Rev. Kingslake's to-the-point, brief style. There is one surprising lapse in the use of a Sacrilegious swearword in a limerick used to illustrate a doctrinal point in a chapter on predestination and free will that itself is not one of the book's strongest. But the book also has some important strengths, such as the attempt to confront some important social issues (though the treatment on race would have been stronger with some reference to the teachings on genius). The closing chapters, on "Do we need church buildings?" and "The New Ecclesia" are really directed at the New Church and contain some issues worth pondering by the church as it reviews forms and policies in a new era of evangelization and approaching the year 2000.

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(Should there be some significance expected for the church of the Second Coming at the beginning of the third millenium?)
     Rev. Kingslake's other work, The Aqueduct Papers (North Quincy, Mass.: Christopher, 1970) is a New Church version of C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters, but coming from an angel rather than a devil, and in the form of a conversation with the reader rather than letters to an assistant angel. Though your reviewer isn't sure he's met an angel (though he's wondered a few times!), the book's conversation sounds quite realistic. It is easy to believe an angel would appear in just the gentle and thoughtful way presented here, with profound reverence for the Lord and the Word, and regretful puzzlement at disorder. The reader is conducted by the angel (Aqueduct by name, for a good reason) on a guided tour of the other world. Anecdotes and mini dramas (e.g. from memorabilia incidents) occur along the way, with a surprising amount of doctrine woven into the story. As the Lord Himself long since demonstrated, such teaching via stories is a perhaps unbeatable way to catch and hold attention. (Maybe that's one reason why the memorabilia and such "colorful" parts of doctrine as the teachings about life on other planets were included in the Writings!)
     Aqueduct Papers is probably not for just any newcomer. It-obviously!-lacks the biting humor of Screwtape, possessing instead an unusual blend of gentleness, which may appear affected to the uninitiated reader, with firm statement of principle. As angels make evil spirits uncomfortable, so this book's style may look silly to someone not in the right state-maybe for some related reasons! But for those in the right state, such as perhaps young or idealistic newcomers. it should have great appeal.
     If you're using these books (or others, for that matter) in a bookstore setting or as display or sales items at a lecture or in a brochure, it might be a good idea to put a small card next to each book. On the card would be a brief descriptive paragraph pointing up the book's strengths (and weaknesses), so the browser/buyer is aided in judging which matches his or her state. For instance, the cards for the books we've been reviewing might say,

For Heaven's Sake is a book both practical and inspiring, providing insight into the fears and questions we all face in traveling down the road of life. Presented in bite-size, easy-reading chapters, you can read this book in installments over coffee breaks, after you put the kids to bed or any other time you have a few minutes together. But it's only fair to warn you--you may have trouble stopping with just one chapter!

or

Swedenborg Explores the Spiritual Dimension is a brief, often intriguing, and highly readable overview of Swedenborg's theology.

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The author feels strongly about some of the issues discussed, and so makes some pretty strong statements, especially at the beginning of the book! If occasional jolts don't bother you, though, we think you'll find it a fast and fascinating trip.

or

The Aqueduct Papers are for you if you've ever wanted to talk to an angel about the life after death. Well, yes, it's only make believe. But if what Swedenborg teaches about that life is true, this book is a pretty realistic picture of a conversation we're all going to have one of these days when we wake up on "the other side." The guided tour this book provides, with the angel Aqueduct for a guide, may be useful for a practice run, to help you think a bout getting your life read y for the real thing.
Kurt Simons
PROBLEM WITH REINCARNATION 1986

PROBLEM WITH REINCARNATION KURT SIMONS 1986

     AN APPENDIX TO THE REVIEW OF THE KINGSLAKE BOOKS

     In reviewing Rev. Kingslake's Swedenborg Explores the Spiritual Dimension, I noticed a point missing from his discussion of re-incarnation that appears to be missing from other church commentary on this matter as well. It is that reincarnation's basic flaw as an idea, doctrinally speaking, is the elimination of free will. Under the reincarnation concept, you are in effect recycled through existence as many times as necessary until you measure up to the "quality control" standards of the higher life. Sooner or later, you have to make it. (From this springs the idea, presumably, that life on earth is the only hell.)
     Since in the Eastern religious context that reincarnation typically occurs there is a loss of personal identity as you merge with the Godhead in the higher life, lack of free will is apparently not seen as a problem. But from a doctrinal point of view, where apart from God, as-of-self free will is fundamental to the purpose of creation, it's a big problem. If we're all just robots, we have no voluntary say to make our relationship with God meaningful, to choose to reciprocate His love. Therefore God created the universe only to serve His own self-oriented desire for subservience, adulation-or absorption, for that matter. If self-love is defined as evil (as the Writings teach), then God is evil. Not a very appealing idea for someone looking for purpose in life, and so perhaps worth mentioning in missionary context discussions of reincarnation.
     Kurt Simons,
          Lutherville, MD

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     THE GESTURES OF THE ANGELS

     Last month we mentioned teachings about people who are virtually angels while yet on earth. We would add that the very first paragraph of True Christian Religion speaks of the character of people on earth who are already angels in respect to the interiors of their minds. As to exteriors they may not seem like angels. Outwardly they may not appear beautiful. The teaching is very familiar to New Church people that often in the other world those who were not outwardly attractive become eventually very lovely to look at. We all know that the face is changed in the life to come.
     But the face is only one of four external elements that are changed when we go from one world to the next. Those four are discussed in number 224 of Divine Providence. They are gesture, tone, speech and face. (We' noted last month that "gesture" may also be called "motion," "bearing" or even "body language.") The Writings speak of striking, cheerful, virtually shining, faces of people who become angels (HH 479, 489 et alia). They tell us that to hear angels speaking is sheer joy. Their tone and their speech can charm you or even bring you to tears. This is unforgettably portrayed for us in the passage that tells us "how choice and delightful their talk must be, affecting not only the ears but also the interiors of the mind of those who listen to it" (HH 238).
     If the speech affects deeply and the face dazzles the beholder, what then of the gesture? A passage in Heaven and Hell about the way our externals change after death speaks about "looks and gestures" (HH 457). "After death man puts off everything that does not accord with his love; yea . . . he successively puts on the face, tone of voice, speech, gesture and manner of his life's love" (CL 36). What would the gestures be like? Think about it. Don't the movements or gestures of little children affect us? Innocence "shines forth from the face of children and from some of their movements and from their first speech and affects those about them"(HH 276; emphasis added). Although children are not the only ones in innocence they are particularly touching examples of the innocence which is said to be "visible to the eyes, as seen in the face, speech and movements (gestibus), particularly of little children" (HH 276).
     Angels are in the innocence of wisdom, and the point of this editorial is to invite reflection on the fact that angels are "loves and charities in form" and that their quality is "clearly perceived from their faces, their speech and their gestures . . ." (AC 10177:4).

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     A CUSTOM OF REJOICING (II)

     Celebrating the Triumphal Entry

     It would be unrealistic to suggest for the life of our church societies that we celebrate Palm Sunday three or four weeks before Easter instead of only one week before. What would we gain if we followed this unrealistic suggestion? Well, then we could follow on in something of a sequential way in our church services the events that took place between the Lord's triumphal entry and His resurrection. For in each Gospel we find such a wealth of material between these two events (more than twenty chapters from the four Gospels fall between Palm Sunday and Easter).
     We noted last month the two verses in John from which we conclude that the triumphal entry took place on what we call a Sunday. A longstanding custom of Christendom is to use that Sunday for a special service. We follow this custom. A far more realistic suggestion would be to start with the material that follows after Palm Sunday a few weeks earlier (obviously giving up an element of sequence in our services). In some societies it has turned out that almost the only adult sermon for the Easter season is the one on Palm Sunday. The reason is that the Good Friday service is often devoted mostly to the reading at length of chapters of the Gospels. (And this is often much appreciated.) Then Easter has in many cases been one joint family service without a full adult sermon. Such a situation can be improved by starting Easter-related sermons earlier in the year.

Commanded to Rejoice

     A particular value of the Palm Sunday service is its spirit of rejoicing. We enter into the spirit of that occasion when "the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen" (Luke 19:37).
     Last month we raised the question of being commanded to rejoice (Deuteronomy 16:11). If we don't feel like rejoicing, how can we do it sincerely? If the circumstances of our life were deplorable, how, then, could we rejoice?
     It is true that the joy of Palm Sunday was highly spontaneous. That event seemed to have sparked off an outpouring of grateful praise, and there must have been a powerful influx from heaven. We sometimes do have moments of spontaneous joy, but the natural man by itself does not acknowledge that we are constantly receiving good from the Lord. The multitude of disciples were made spontaneously mindful of the mighty works that they had seen. We need to plan for moments when we focus on the acknowledgment of the wonderful things the Lord does for us.

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The Scriptures contain commands that the people of Israel should hold feasts, and "it was commanded that on those occasions they should be glad." To hold a feast means to "worship from a glad mind" (AC 7093).
Going to church is not the essence of religious life, but it is such a helpful part of it. The singing of a joyful hymn is not a meritorious act of piety; it is an opportunity to leave behind the gloom and incredulity and ungratefulness of the natural man. There is always a reason for rejoicing, although it is understandable that we are sometimes so overcome with external circumstances that it is hard for us to feel that this is so. On such occasions as Palm Sunday we arrange to have the external of worship. The Writings say that through external worship internal things may be excited, and that in such worship the externals are so disposed that "internal things can flow in" (AC 1618). The reasons for joy are there, and angelic presence is there. And so it is appropriate to think of ourselves as commanded to rejoice. For such a command comes from the One whose constant purpose and end is "the happiness of all from inmosts and in fulness" (HH 397).
POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG 1986

POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG Linda S. Odhner 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor,
     "Poems from Swedenborg" filled me with delight. It amazed me how powerful the words of the Writings became when arranged in free verse. This form makes the structure of the ideas immediately visible, especially by highlighting Swedenborg's use of parallel sentence structure and setting off key words and phrases in lines of their own for emphasis. The shortness of the lines also invites a more leisurely reading. Complicated, tortuous sentences become simple, clear verses. Because they appeal to the eye, these poems are more likely to stick in the memory than linear prose phrases. For the same reason they would naturally lend themselves to decoration and needlepoint projects.
     Leon C. LeVan's fresh viewpoint of the Writings has offered a new perspective to all of us. I hope more people will be inspired to run to their sets of the Writings to find "Poems from Swedenborg.
     Linda S. Odhner,
          Phoenixville, Pennsylvania

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POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG 1986

POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG Lark Walter 1986

Dear Mr. Rose,
     I loved the poems from Swedenborg. What a wonderful way to see gems from the Writings!
     It is much easier for my mind to receive the words in this form. The ideas flow in with increased beauty. They invite re-reading.
     Please do put them in a booklet form. They are a delight. I would very much like to read more.
     They could be useful for evangelization.
          Lark Walter,
               Kempton, Pennsylvania
POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG 1986

POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG Mrs. Dorothy C. Yeoman 1986

Dear Editor,
     I have read the "Poems from Swedenborg" in the December issue. I think they are beautiful and so well done.
     I especially identify with "Light and Glory," because the light and glory of faith have been manifest to me over and over.
     I wish very much to read a booklet of many such poems or blank verse (free verse). Some of Swedenborg's Writings are difficult to read, but these are very easily read and understood. Do put them in book form. It would be an asset to my library and many others' I'm sure.
     I've known of Swedenborg's Writings for forty-some years and have studied them seriously for the last ten.
     Mrs. Dorothy C. Yeoman,
          Stockbridge, Michigan

     P.S. I'd like to subscribe to NEW CHURCH LIFE.
"CAN I KNOW IF I AM GOING TO HEAVEN?" 1986

"CAN I KNOW IF I AM GOING TO HEAVEN?" Laurel Odhner Powell 1986

Dear Editor:
Responding to Rev. Dan Goodenough's letter about whether we should "seek to experience the joy of salvation," I would like to recall to you a verse by William Blake:

He who binds to himself a joy
Does the winged life destroy;
But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity's sun rise.

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     Jesus saves. His salvation is all around us, bathing us, holding us. We are safe. This is a tremendous, wondrous, life-filling joy. When you're thinking about the Lord and His salvation, you feel that -you rejoice. When you are thinking about yourself, you lose the sight and the feel of that sunrise. When you turn your attention from the end of working toward everyone's salvation to check up on your "own" salvation, you put your mind in the shadow and can't see so clearly.
     The joys that come do not come because you are seeking to experience them. They come when your attention is on sharing with other folks, on loving other folks. The delight of heaven isn't from seeking to experience but from communication, sharing, living the joy of the Lord. Mr. Goodenough pointed out that people who believe they are saved are "sources of the most trouble," of "abundant problems in history and current affairs," and of "human damage." I agree. I would like to point out that on the other hand the gentlest, most charitable, cheerful, prayerful, helpful, and joy-giving people I have known were people who believed they were saved. That belief has a lot of power, whether it is true or not. When it's true, it has power for good.
     Can you know whether it's true?
     You can't appropriate the knowledge. You can't bend it and apply it and make it stick to your proprium. You know the certainty of salvation when you know the Lord and your neighbor, not when you study yourself. It doesn't belong to time and you can't make it permanent in a worldly way.
     But: Jesus says, "By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another."
     Laurel Odhner Powell,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania
LETTER TO NEW YORK TIMES ON SWEDENBORG 1986

LETTER TO NEW YORK TIMES ON SWEDENBORG Richard R. Gladish 1986

     (1922)

Dear Sir:
     Why don't more people accept the Writings the way one May Philo did as evidenced by the letter by her in The New York Times in April of 1922? Your magazine reprinted the letter in September of that year as follows.
     Richard R. Gladish,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

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To the Editor of the New York Times:
     Truly there is nothing new under the sun, as has been said some millions of times. The latest information regarding life in the spirit world, as given out by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, can be found in a book first published in London in 1758. These findings are contained in Swedenborg's Heaven and Its Wonders and Hell, and can be purchased for 5 cents. This may console some who are seeking information, but can't afford the $3.50 down a seat. Accidentally running across the book the other evening, I consulted the Encyclopedia Britannica to find who Swedenborg was, and among other things learned that he enjoyed immediate revelation from the Lord, was admitted into the angelic world, and had committed to him the key with which to unlock the Divine treasures of wisdom.
     Having lived in the other world twenty-seven years (according to his own statement) while still living here, he was able to report with scientific accuracy what he observed there. According to the Encyclopedia, he was 150 years ahead of other scientists. His death, by the way, occurred in 1772, just 150 years ago. Because he was so great a scientist, perhaps, he preferred to get his information direct, instead of through mediums, ectoplasm, automatic writing, etc., which Sir Arthur considers important. Swedenborg never received a penny from his voluminous writings, covering twenty-seven years' observations, but gave them freely to the world.
     While I know nothing about spiritualism, and have read the book mentioned only enough to find out how much more information it gives than is given by Sir Arthur, it seems to me that those who are thinking of experimenting with mediums will save themselves time, money and mental strain by first glancing over this book. The author went direct to "headquarters" for his information, and reported it fully in 1758. Whether right or wrong, it is the same information that is being brought out a little at a time through darkness, mediums, etc., 164 years later. The main difference is that where Swedenborg reported all sorts of details, and spoke with the positiveness of one thoroughly familiar with his subject, present-day investigators seem hazy and unconvincing.
     MAY PHILO,
          NEW YORK, APRIL 19, 1922.

     New Church Life, 1922. p. 511

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MUSIC IN THE NEW CHURCH 1986

MUSIC IN THE NEW CHURCH Carla Zecher 1986

Dear Editor:
     Mr. Dillard's article about music in the October issue offers some points for reflection as well as practical suggestions. The subject of music in the church does not belong exclusively to musician's and the clergy, but to all who participate in worship. It is for them that we prepare our musical offerings. And so I hope that the topics raised here will elicit responses from many different perspectives.
     Our music program is in its very earliest stages. We are not yet producing New Church music, that is, a significant repertoire of compositions created from our set of beliefs. We do have a few scattered works, and some original songs for children a good place to begin. We also have Whittington's collection of Psalms, but these cannot really be called New Church music. They are settings of the Psalms that happen to have been composed by a New Church man. Nothing about the music precludes the possibility that they could have been written by someone of another faith (indeed, many generations of composers have worked with the Psalms). Whatever "New Church" music is to be, we can say this much: it must by definition be distinguishable either musically or textually from that of other churches.
     Each of the Lord's successive churches on earth has practiced its own forms of worship, in keeping with the characteristics of its spiritual state. Sadly, the music of the ancients is all but lost to us, although perhaps something can still be learned from oriental peoples. But the history of Western music-our own musical tradition-commences with ancient Greece, and that is (relatively speaking) very recent. The music of the Israelitish Church is depicted for us in the Old Testament: singing, dancing, the playing of certain instruments. The ritual of the early Christian Church is well documented in the manuscripts of the Middle Ages. This church turned more and more toward chant, as a result of their increasing awareness of the importance of Scripture. Chanting (which actually developed from spoken recitation) represented a means to enhance (orally) sacred texts: the Psalms, prophecies of the Lord's coming, the words of Jesus Himself. The Reformation in the 16th century introduced choral writing into the Christian churches. A desire for more active congregational participation in worship led to the composition of such hymns as "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," a non-scriptural poem set to a melody that was highly expressive, but simple enough to be sung by all.

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This trend in sacred music begun by Luther culminated in the creation of large combination-type works such as cantatas and oratorios, in which chorales, solos and instrumental sections were all woven together in the service to present various aspects of the theme of the day.
What will be the New Church's contribution to the sacred music tradition? We hold a privileged position, first of all, as caretakers of this wealth of wonderful music that has come to us from the former churches. In fact, professional musicians do devote much time to the repertoire of past centuries. Organists play Bach, choral conductors return again and again to the great English anthems. And the works of many others still lie in manuscripts and old editions, tucked away in libraries and church archives, waiting to be rediscovered. As American Catholic churches continue to shift away from their liturgical tradition, and the folk mass becomes the common mode of worship, the fate of chanting falls into our hands. Thus, while we hope to create our own works, I do not believe that the ultimate goal is necessarily that all of the music in our services should be New Church music. It seems right that the beautiful sounds generated by past artists should continue to fill our places of worship. Just as such symbols as the star of David and rose windows are still incorporated into our architecture, there is a use in our services for each of the musical genres we have inherited: the playing of different instruments (bearing in mind their representation); the singing of both scriptural and non-scriptural texts, the former because of the importance of the internal sense, the latter because we need forms of self-expression; the alternation of solo with congregational singing, and of unison songs with many-voiced ones, all of this also according to representation.
And so, as we look forward to the publication of a new Liturgy, we need to evaluate what we already have, and then to determine which areas of our liturgical practice can be improved. The majority of our hymns come from the various Protestant churches. We must review these, retain those that are good musically, and add to them from the large collections of other churches. The present content of our Liturgy is quite limited in comparison with what is actually available. The Episcopalian and Lutheran books, for example, contain many powerful hymns which we could be singing too. Our first consideration when choosing hymns must be musical. A good poem deserves good musical treatment; otherwise it would be preferable to recite it. Sometimes we find in other hymnals beautiful songs which we would like to use, but parts of the text emphasize old Christian doctrines that we are trying to reform. Even our own Liturgy is certainly not exempt from this problem.

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In such cases, some word changing can be done. In general, though, we must be careful when substituting new words for a section of a piece. The original composer started with a text, and wrote music to express it, not the other way around. A replacement text is not likely to fit as well as the original, and the piece loses its potency
     Our chants are based upon Anglican models, and unfortunately few are of a quality comparable to the old ones, or even to some being composed today. (Again, the Episcopal and Lutheran churches present good examples.) We need to reflect upon this aspect of our ritual. If we believe in the principles behind chanting, we must learn more about them, first turning to our Old Church neighbors for instruction and inspiration, later perhaps developing our own style. Likewise with the antiphons. These are adapted from Early Catholic responsorial forms in which the solo verses were originally chanted as well as the congregational ones. The objective was to sing antiphonally a text as a whole unit. Traditionally the solo passages were more complex musically, and were rendered either by the priest or a soloist ("cantor") or a choir, depending on the particular type of piece involved. In some churches antiphonal singing is done this way. The congregational responses are beautiful, but not so difficult to sing as to distract attention from the significance of the words. Is our present half-sung, half-recited format more useful or meaningful in any way than either a fully chanted or fully recited form would be? Or does it serve rather to distort a text, and to weaken the impact of its internal sense? The question is worth pondering.
     All of this-a large task in itself-is in a sense just preliminary work that must be accomplished before we can begin to create our own music. Here is the biggest challenge, and it is one that must be met from a well-informed position that includes knowledge of the contemporary musical scene and its influence on our own customs, familiarity with the practices of the craft of composition, and of course an understanding of what the Writings have to say about music and worship in general.
     We find ourselves today in the twentieth century in a situation that is unique in the history of Western music, for never before has a culture centered its musical activities to such an overwhelming extent around the creations of previous generations. It is also only fairy recently that music has begun to be assigned a function in society that is primarily ornamental, rather than one which permits it to operate at the center of our lives. These shifts in attitude can be illustrated by comparing the contents of present and past concert programs. Nowadays, if someone were to banish al) historical music from concert halls and churches so as to perform only modern works, soon the halls would be deserted.

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Yet exactly the same thing would have happened in Mozart's day if his public had been deprived of contemporary music and forced to listen to old stuff every day. Pre-twentieth century listeners typically lacked the historical perspective we cultivate today. Early musicians devoted energy to creating; we recreate.
     Another example: the very reason we possess so many lovely cantatas by J. S. Bach is because of the requirements of his job. His position at the St. Thomas Church in Leipzig was not just that of organist and choir director, although he did fulfill those duties. He was also expected to compose for Sunday services and for festivals. The result: over 200 cantatas. The jobs of church and court musicians throughout Europe were similar. Music was presented for the enjoyment of courtiers on a fine evening, composed to launch state processions, created to fill the walls of family chapels. Today we have lost this custom of fitting music-new music-to the uses and events of our daily lives (with the exception of modern popular radio, and Muzak, which goes with us everywhere; but this latter should really be called anti-music, as it is especially intended not to be listened to, i.e. not to communicate).
     What has all of this to do with music in the New Church? It clarifies our situation in the sense that these cultural phenomena do not lose their influence over us the moment we step through the church door. We have also lost somewhat the custom of actively listening to music in church. Sometimes we shove it into the background and treat it with indifference in the same way that we speak certain phrases by rote. Or, what is even worse, we use music to avoid silence. When a minister is speaking from the pulpit, we make every effort to give our full attention. The music in the service also has something to communicate, but are we so attentive to it? The purpose of music is not simply to provide a soothing background to our thoughts. It should transform us, just as we are transformed by hearing a sermon and by reading the Word. And just as the lessons contained in sermons range from joyful to somber ones, so too the states evoked by music are of a great variety: exciting, peaceful, lighthearted, melancholy, even disturbing. We must strive to comprehend these messages, as we do with all forms of communication.
     There is a passage in the Arcana about the origin of human speech which is relevant to music as well: "Human speech in its first origin is the end which a man wishes to manifest by speech. This end is his love: for what a man loves he regards as an end. From this flows the man's thought, and at length his speech . . . . Because this is so, a man who attends to the speech of another does not give his attention to the expressions or words of speech, but to the sense of them, which is that of the thought of him who speaks; and he who is wise attends to the end for which he so spake from thoughts, that is, to what he intends, and what he loves.

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These three things are presented in the speech of man, to which things the language of words serves as the ultimate plane" (AC 9487).
     Music is essentially non-representational in contrast with writing and speech. Nonetheless it is, within its own sphere, the most precise possible language, for it actually embodies a type of thought, rather than describing or presenting it. Whereas in literature, for example, it is the words themselves that fulfill the purpose of expression, in music it is such features as gesture and inflection that are the expressive devices. This is why music's first action upon us is physical. But if we restrict its field of communication to this level alone, we do it an injustice.
     Music is similar to language in that it only really becomes useful to us as a tool for communication beginning from the moment that we assimilate it as a whole system. We can take a trip to a foreign country, and learn a few words of its language before we leave, in order to be able to cope when we arrive there. Our few vocabulary words, however, will probably not permit us to really enjoy communication with the people we meet. In the same way, we cannot really comprehend or appreciate the nuances of music until we learn its language. Beginning from the point when we are no longer thinking about grammar, or stumbling over vocabulary, or continuously attempting to translate from our own language into the new one, this is when we will really be attending to "the thought of him who speaks."
     How many times have we been to a concert or to church and afterwards heard someone say, "Well, that was a good player, but I didn't like the piece. It was too modern for me." Recently, to my amusement, someone made that comment to me about a composition which I happened to know had been written in the 19th century. Obviously, if this music failed to communicate, it was not because it was "modern," but because it was written in a language which that person was not familiar with (or which the performer was not adequately familiar with). The musical language of each age possesses its own particular characteristics, and composers naturally write for a community that speaks the language. If there is today, as seems to be the case, a rupture between the music being produced by contemporary composers and the modern public, this is neither necessarily the fault of the music or of the public. The one is written in a language which the other doesn't (or won't?) speak, and which of the two will eventually be forced to learn the language of the other is a question still to be answered. On the other hand, even our continuing use of old music is only justified if our ultimate purpose is to render it meaningful in the present. If it exists simply to decorate the service, like a meaningless carving inserted to fill space in a corner, then we would be better off without it.

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It all comes down to the same thing-learning to understand the language.
     We haven't yet discovered the language that will be New Church music. We can begin to predict, though, the areas where it might begin to develop: the places in our ritual where we feel a need for something not provided by the music of the former churches; music that expresses concepts found in the Writings; works that treat Old and New Testament texts in the light of the internal sense; perhaps even pieces that offer new theories of harmony, based upon teachings on that subject. The possibilities are intriguing, and it is exciting to contemplate the day sometime in the future when we will create powerful music that will draw others to the New Church.
     Carla Zecher,
          Paris, France
WORKING WITH REV. RILEY 1986

WORKING WITH REV. RILEY Rev. B.I. Nzimande 1986

Dear Editor,
     I have worked under Rev. Riley as Assistant Superintendent since July 1978. It was a great pleasure to work with him. I remember the first day he came to Clermont. To welcome this unknown visitor, and show honor to him, children lined the street on both sides, marching, singing and playing drums.
     At first I was not very impressed with him, but at the time I did not know what was to come. He soon became my friend. There was one thing we had in common, and that was in passing jokes and making people laugh. But when it came to serious matters we became serious. I was always made welcome at the Riley home, and became as one of the fairly, for I always felt at home. I played the piano with pleasure and without restrictions.
     Now let me come to more serious matters. Mr. Riley was a practical man. He did not merely talk about things, but did them. He was very sympathetic and accommodating, and became one of the people in sorrow or in happiness.
     At Clermont we had no church house; we were worshipping in the hall of the manse, under very crowded conditions. For many years there had been the feeling that there should be a church house. Permission to build had been secured and plans drawn up but no concrete steps had been taken. Then came this practical man. He built for us a beautiful small church, so we now worship in a special house. He did the same at Enkumba. At Impaphala he renovated the church house so that it might become a church and manse. Now we have a minister living there.

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     I did a lot of travelling with Mr. Riley, to Enkumba, Hambrook, Johannesburg and many other places. He never grew tired of communicating; we could talk and laugh all the way from Durban to Johannesburg.
     He organized our church from the more embryonic state in which it was and brought it to the present standard, so that now we are able to fend for ourselves. I will still look to Mr. Riley for help. As I have said, he was very sympathetic, and was with people when in sorrow; he did not keep aloof from them. I remember him along with me conducting the funeral of the late Rev. Buthelezi's daughter. I remember him with the Rev. Mbatha conducting the funeral of my beloved wife. I was in great sorrow, but Mr. Riley's words at the service comforted me. It seems to me that life will not be possible without him. I would like him to be the one who conducts my funeral when the time comes. I do not mean to rush it, I mean only when the time is ripe!
     Rev. B.I. Nzimande,
          South Africa
NCL 50 and 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 and 100 YEARS AGO Editor 1986

     Fifty years ago this month the news from Toronto highlighted joyful wedding celebrations, and then we read:

     The laughter and songs had hardly died away when, on January 20th, in common with the rest of the Empire, we learned with grief of the passing into the spiritual world of our Monarch, George V. On Tuesday the 28th a special Memorial Service was held at the church. In the simple but moving service the pastor pointed out that it is right to assume that a man so devoted to his use will carry on such a use in the spiritual world.

     While the March issue of 1936 spoke of difficult times financially during the depression in the United States, the March issue fifty years prior to that had among its news gleanings a hint of difficult financial times in Australia.

     South Australia also sends bad reports. The country is in low condition from depression in business, and the New Church society in Adelaide partakes of the universal suffering.-NEW CHURCH LIFE 1886, p. 48

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1986 WOMEN'S RENEWAL WEEKENDS 1986

1986 WOMEN'S RENEWAL WEEKENDS Editor 1986

     MAPLE LEAF ACADEMY

     Maple 86 will be held north of Toronto on Wood Lake from June 19 to June 27, 1986. "The Festival of Friends" is our theme this year. Graduates of grades 9-12 are invited to come and bring their friends who need not be members of the New Church. Rev. Terry Schnarr and Jeremy Rose are camp directors. For further information and application forms please write to: Rev. Terry Schnarr. 279 Burnhamthorpe Rd., Islington, Ont. M9B 126, Canada.

     April 18-20 (Friday evening-Sunday noon): Camp Lutherlyn, Prospect, Pennsylvania (near Pittsburgh)

Accommodations: large heated cabins
Theme: Spiritual Discipline

April 25-27 (Friday evening-Sunday afternoon): Camp Men-O-Lan, Quakertown, Pennsylvania (between Bryn Athyn and Kempton)
Accommodations: heated cabins
Theme: Spiritual Friendship

     Lutherlyn's program will focus on spiritual discipline (see January issue, p. 45). Men-O-Lan's program will focus on spiritual friendship. What is it to be spiritual friends? How can we enrich and nourish our relationships to bring us closer to living the life of heaven here on earth? We will examine the art of spiritual friendship and share insights and experiences given in our daily lives.
     We invite interested women to share In our presentations by contacting our program directors, Tryn Clark (on the topic of spiritual discipline) or Claudia Gladish (on the topic of spiritual friendship).

     You are welcome to join us.

     Lutherlyn
Director: Tryn Clark
5853 Smithfield
E. Lansing, MI 48823
Phone: 517-351-2880

     Men-O-Lan
Director: Claudia Gladish
2512 Murray Ave.
Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006
Phone: 215-947-0718

     Registrar: Trish Lindsay
186 Iron Bridge Rd.
Sarver, PA 16055
Phone: 412-295-2316

     Registrar: Debbie Williams
P. O. Box 172
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009
Phone: 215-947-0897

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MUSIC FESTIVAL 1986

MUSIC FESTIVAL Editor 1986

Attention all New Churchmen interested in the development of New Church music or just making music: from Sunday, June 8th, to Tuesday, June 10th, 1986, the first New Church Music Festival will be held in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania. All are welcome to participate in this event. Morning sessions will include workshops on various subjects related to the development of music, or a better understanding of this art form, as well as small group rehearsal sessions. Afternoon sessions will look toward small group performance or continued rehearsal and workshop involvement. Evenings will involve performances before larger audiences for both the professional and amateur musician. If you are interested in making a presentation at the Music Festival, either in the form of workshop or performance, please contact the Rev. Alfred Acton, Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009 so that your contribution can be worked into the overall program. We are interested in hearing from both the professional and amateur musician, and we hope we will have a variety of different forms of music.
The program committee consists of Rev. Alfred Acton, Mr. Lachlan Pitcairn, Mrs. Douglas Taylor and Mr. Richard Show.
FREDERICK EMANUEL DOERING TRUST 1986

FREDERICK EMANUEL DOERING TRUST Editor 1986

     Applications for assistance from the above fund to enable male Canadian students to attend The Academy of the New Church at Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., for the school year 1986-87 should be received by one of the pastors listed below by June 30, 1986. The amount of the grant per student has been lowered, because at present there are more applicants than funds available. It has also been necessary to set an absolute deadline for applications, in order to apportion the grants evenly, and to meet the deadline for immigration forms regarding student financing.

     Before filing their applications, students should first obtain their acceptance by the Academy immediately, as dormitory space is limited.

     Any of the pastors listed below will be happy to give any further information or help that may be necessary.

Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs      Rev. Christopher R. J. Smith
2 Lorraine Gardens           16 Bannockburn Rd., R.R. 2
Islington, Ont. M9B 424      Kitchener, Ont. N2G 3W5

Rev. William H. Clifford
1536 94th Avenue
Dawson Creek, B.C. V1G 1H1

151

Church News 1986

Church News Elisabeth Keal 1986

     NEW ZEALAND

     The past few years have seen the beginning of a new era for the General Church Group in Auckland. Countless incidents have led us to see clearly the hand of Providence in the growth of a group which had dwindled to four or five devotees to one which now includes thirteen adults and nine children.
     With the immigration of Hugh and Jenny Keal and family, Hugh and Doreen Keal, Denis and Elisabeth Keal and family, and Raymond and Mary Smuts and family, all from Australia, the future outlook of the church here has blossomed. With the increase of members, the Group was granted "Circle" status in 1984 and had been meeting fortnightly for lay services in private homes.
     However, Rev. Erik Sandstrom's visit to Auckland in October 1985 marked the climax of years of hopes, dreams and work as the Circle gained the use of a community chapel for weekly services. The Waikumete Chapel seats eighty. and has been restored from a derelict condition to former glory in time for its centenary this year. It is to be used for weddings and church services, and we hope to participate in occasional community (inter-denominational) services in the chapel.
     It was an historic occasion when Rev. E. Sandstrom (our visiting pastor from Hurstville, Australia) conducted the first church service in the chapel, for the General Church Circle in October 1985. The congregation numbered thirty-five, of whom fourteen were visitors. We welcomed five members of the Auckland Society of the Conference Church, and Mrs. Judith Long, the lady responsible for the renovations to the chapel. When later asked what she thought of the service, Mrs. Long said that words failed her, but could only say that it was "holy."
     The late Mrs. Doris Flood left the General Church in Auckland a substantial bequest, leaving us in a very healthy position, and able to plan actively for the future. We are now holding weekly lay services conducted by Mr. Hugh K. Keal, and occasionally Mr. Denis Keal, and we use a classroom in a nearby school for Sunday school and babysitting purposes.
     We are grateful to Mr. Lloyd Bartle, Mrs. Doreen Keal, and Mrs. Jenny Keal for providing us with music on the chapel's antique organ, to all the men for rostering the ushers' duties, and to all the ladies for rostering the Sunday school teaching. We are always very appreciative of Mr. Fairley Vincent's effort to drive across the city to the chapel even though he is now in his late eighties, and it is always heartening to welcome Miss Ray Tuckey from the north when she is able to visit. The immigration of the Raymond Smuts family has helped to swell our small congregation and to lend a brighter outlook to the Sunday school.
     Our Women's Guild meets on a monthly basis, with one lady each time giving a short lesson on a topic of spiritual interest. In the year ending November 1985, we organized the making of June 19th gifts for the children, the June 19th banquet and other social functions. We participated in three fund-raising stalls, making a total of $610-77 for church funds.
     The circle was also excited to be able to participate in the community Christmas carol service which is held at the chapel. This year, Mr. Hugh K. Keal was asked to read a lesson, and it was announced there that he is the lay reader for the Church of the New Jerusalem which uses the chapel for weekly services.

152

We also advertised our Christmas day service, and were very pleased to welcome thirteen adult visitors and two children, making a total attendance of twenty-five adults and eleven children on Christmas morning!
We all are happy and grateful that so many opportunities have arisen to provide us all with a bright and smiling future. With charity in our hearts and the Lord's truth working with us. May we each do our part in helping the Lord's church to grow. The fields are white unto the harvest.
Elisabeth Keal
IN OUR CONTEMPORARIES 1986

IN OUR CONTEMPORARIES Editor 1986

     The Missionary Memo is full of information about activities going on in various localities. We have heard much favorable comment about the leading item by editors Taylor and Cranch in the October issue. Here it is:

     Imagine those five men meeting in London on December 5, 1783-the first public meeting ever held by New Churchmen in this world. Nod try to imagine one of their number saying to the others at the conclusion of the meeting: "Of course, gentlemen, we want to keep this to ourselves and our families. We seem to be a very harmonious and congenial group. We don't want any others coming along and spoiling it."
     What would have been the response of the others in the group? They surely would have castigated the possessive one with great indignation, reminding him of the New Testament concept of stewardship, which is not ownership. They would have pointed to the Writings' "invitation to the whole Christian world to enter this church" (Coronis LV), and the teaching that storing up these new truths for our own delight alone is a form of "spiritual avarice" (Influx 18), urging him to have a conscience about sharing what he knew with others (ibid.).
     Looking back, everyone can see how incongruous would have been the man's suggestion at that time-when only a mere handful of people received the New Revelation. Fancy limiting the New Church to the first five who were interested!
     But has anything really changed? Has there ever been a time since then in which it has become appropriate to "keep it for ourselves"? Since when have we been mandated to decide what is the "right number" of adherents?
     There has never been a time since the beginning of the New Church when such a suppression of the truth has been appropriate or in order-nor will there ever be.

     The accelerating attitude change towards evangelization in the General Church is very pleasing. Probably none of us would actively suppress the truth. But we could do it inactively.

153

SWEDENBORG SCIENTIFIC ASSOCIATION 1986

     Announcements


     The 89th annual meeting of the Swedenborg Scientific Association will be held in the Pendleton Hall auditorium, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, on Monday, April 28, 1986, at 8.00 p.m. Members and friends of the association are most cordially invited to attend. This year's speaker is Mr. Kenneth Rose. His subject will be "East, South, North, and West."
     Kenneth Rose has been teaching mathematics and other subjects at the Academy of the New Church for over thirty years. In 1957 the International Geophysical Year drew his attention to the sky, and astronomy has grown into an extensive avocation for him. This year he has introduced many people to Halley's comet. His address on "East, South, North, and West" will have a terrestrial basis, but will extend to the celestial in two different senses of the word.
     Membership is open to anyone interested in the association's purposes. The annual membership fee of $5.00 for regular members includes a subscription to The New Philosophy, which is published quarterly by the association. Communications regarding membership, subscriptions or other business should be addressed to Mr. E. Boyd Asplundh, Treasurer, Box 11, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

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Two books reprinted 1986

     SELECTED PAPERS
AND ADDRESSES
AND
THE GLORIFICATION
BY

     NATHANIEL DANDRIDGE PENDLETON
LATE BISHOP OF THE GENERAL CHURCH
OF THE NEW JERUSALEM AND PRESIDENT
OF THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH

     Hardcover     Postage paid 47.95 each

     GENERAL CHURCH PUBLICATION COMMITTEE
BRYN ATHYN, PENNSYLVANIA
1985

     General Church Book Center
Box 278
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
or by appointment
Phone: (215) 947-3920

157

Title Unspecified 1986

Vol. CVI April, 1986 No. 4
NEW CHURCH LIFE

158

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

     Supreme among the doctrinals of the church is the doctrine concerning the Divine Human. We are not to think that this is in any way a doctrine exclusively for the learned or the elite. It is sometimes grasped more fully by the so-called simple than it is by the highly educated. We are pleased to feature a sermon on this subject this month. Last month the sermon was by Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs. The sermon this month is by his son Robin. You may recall that Robin is one of the two ministers who visited Ghana last summer (see the July and December issues).
     Please note that three items in this issue go together. The editorial "When Disastrous News Impacts on Millions" is to be associated with the article on the uncertainty of life (p. 163)and the observation on page 175 that fifty years ago people were marveling about the fact that news could impact on people all over the world at the same time by virtue of the wonders of modern communication.
     Readers may share our surprise at how much response has come in on the "Poems from Swedenborg" which we have been treating of in recent months. Quite recently we saw a communication from Denmark expressing enthusiasm for these "poems." We have readers in other nations who get their issues much later than most. We have reason to expect more response when, for example, our Australian readers start in on this subject.
     Please do not expect the item beginning on page 167 to be the same as the "poems" already published. This is something quite different. Rather than easier, you may find it even more difficult to read than the Writings in the normal form. But you may sense the intent of the man who went to such lengths to arrange the wording in this manner and actually did so for the entire book.
     Apologies for not identifying the photograph that went with the memorial service for Henry Heinrichs in the March issue. The nine children of this gentleman had not been all together for more than thirty years, but they were photographed in Kitchener last December standing in order of their age. Although color photographs do not reproduce well in black and white we published this one.
     The book Swedenborg Explores the Spiritual Dimension by Brian Kingslake (reviewed in the March issue) is available from the General Church Book Center, Bryn Athyn, PA ($5.70 postpaid).

159

DIVINE HUMAN 1986

DIVINE HUMAN Rev. ROBIN W. CHILDS 1986

     "Arise, end do not be afraid" (Matt. 17:7).

     The Lord says, Take up your cross and follow me. "Assuredly I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom" (Matt. 16:28). Six days pass. The Lord leads Peter, James and his brother John up a high mountain. He turns to them. His face shines like the sun as His clothes become like light itself. Moses and Elijah appear and talk with Him. Peter speaks out, but while he speaks a bright cloud comes over and suddenly a voice says, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him." The three disciples prostrate themselves, face to the ground. The Lord comes to them, touches them, and says, "Arise, and do not be afraid." When they lift their eyes to look they find themselves alone again with their beloved Jesus. As they walk down the mountain He commands, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead." Who is this who shines as the sun and then while we lie prostrate touches us and eases our fears? Who is this who is Divine and Human?
     Are we able to prostrate ourselves with humility before the Lord and yet also receive the gentle touch of His hand and comfort of His words? The Lord is the spiritual sun penetrating us with heat and enveloping us with light, yet He also stands before us a Man with eyes that look into us and hands that touch us. He is above us and in front of us. He is outside of us and in us. He is holy and human. To see and feel the marriage of these two aspects of the Lord is a working process in our life. As we struggle to marry our will to His we will be given a kindred appreciation for His parallel struggle to marry His Human to the Divine, Like us, the Lord strove to battle the hereditary loves the hells offered His mind and heart, so that Divine loves could reign within Him. When we ask for His wisdom and the power of His love to see and defeat the same hells who seek to entice us, we are wedded to His Divinely Human cause. The Lord transfigured, holy and compelling, is also He who touches us, bids us to rise and not fear, and then to join Him in being about His work of serving others. Understanding the transfiguration and surrounding drama may help lead us into a holy fear which prostrates us, and yet also inspires us to rise and work with our Divinely Human Lord.
     Before we ascend with our. Lord to His transfiguration it may help us to know what it means to love Him from essence to person (see AR 611:7). The Divine Itself as esse has never appeared in any face (AC 5585:2, AE 64). The esse or soul of the Lord Himself is infinite love and wisdom, or heat and light, and is the source of all life. We could no more come to know and embrace this life force, as it is in itself, than we could approach and embrace the sun of our solar system.

160

We are unable to know the esse or soul of any man, angel, or devil because it is one with this esse from the Lord. It is the essence of a person we can know, not his esse. Essence is the mind or spirit. A person's esse is his life force. Our mind-essence-is the vehicle which chooses how our life force-esse will be harnessed. The esse of our Lord, or any friend, is unknowable except as we see it used in mind and body. So we are exhorted to know the Lord or any true friend from internals to externals, from mind to body (see AR 611:7). Historically we may have been overly zealous to emphasize the Divinity of Jesus and could possibly have asked our people to do the impossible, that is, to approach the Lord from esse to person. To approach the Lord from esse to person is to leave Him still invisible. It is to look at the sun and then a lifeless body, the unapproachable and the external. He remains inhuman and unknowable because His mind or essence is abandoned (see TCR 787). As we ascend up the mountain we must know that only in our Lord's visible humanity on all levels Can we approach and know the Divine heat and light within (AC 32:2, 9212:4). [See further references at end of sermon.]
As we follow the Lord up to the height of His love He turns to face us transfigured (AR 336, HH 119, AC 7083). As His disciples we recognize the human mercy, goodness, and peace in His face, but now we stand in awe of the Divine power which emanates from His being (AC 3195:9, 5585:2, AR 53, AE 412:5). All Divine love and wisdom He has united to the cause of recognizing and defeating the subtlest and most blatant approaches of the hells. As we see Him now He burns with a desire to save the human race and to establish heaven within each of us in the same way. The power to effect this shines from His face as the sun, and the will to do it wisely makes His garment become as the light of truth itself (AC 5319:1, AE 195:18, 405:25). This is the marriage of love and wisdom which unites the Holy Divine itself to His Human (AC 954, 2576:19). He who is becoming the law and fulfilling the prophets is joined by Moses and Elijah who talk with Him as they who embody the Word (AC 6752:9, AE 937:4). Peter, who embodies those who wish to be loving and wise, by marrying their will to the Lord's, speaks of building tabernacles in which to worship (AE 820:5). There is no reply to Peter. A bright cloud overshadows them corresponding to how the internal sense glorifies the letter of the Word. This internal sense fully proclaims the Divinity of the Lord's Human and so out of the shining cloud we hear: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him" (AE 64).
Overcome, we prostrate ourselves now before the voice of Divinity and the vision of our Lord transfigured. It is right that we should humble ourselves before Him who is Galled the Word incarnate.

161

All revelations prophesied and proclaimed His coming and now declare His Divinity, and so we lie prostrate before Him to worship Him (AR 24). The cloud of the letter filled with the light of the internal sense announces the holy presence of His Divine soul (AE 906:2, 594:2, 64, TCR 222). But does the Lord wish us to be stunned into inaction by the presence of His Divine nature? Can we rise to the very human work He wishes to accomplish within us and through us if we lie upon the ground? If we allow our relationship with the Lord to become a simple worship of an unknowable, faceless Divinity, the hells have won their dearest victory (see TCR 159). Even the flower offers its reverence by following the are of the sun across the sky. The Lord wishes to be conjoined with every level of the humanity within each of us, levels that He glorified within Himself; that is, the rational, natural, and sensual planes (AC 4211). He glorified these levels of humanity by continually battling the hells and now wants, with all His power and love, to help us recognize and defeat them. To truly "hear Him" is to ask His advice and strength to face every challenge to our spirit (AC 3869:4). It is a Divinely Human affectionate conjunction that the Lord offers those who will "hear Him" and follow (AC 9972, 10737; HH 79-86).
"Jesus came and touched them and said, 'Arise and do not be afraid.'" Humility comes with an inner sight of the fact that of ourselves we are nothing but evil (AE 77). Nothing will bring a stronger sense of humility and appreciation of the Lord's true nature and presence than battling hellish spheres. As He exposes the presence of evil spheres and we call on Him to defeat them within us, we become humbly grateful for His power and presence. If we lose in temptation we will be moved to humbly apologize for our weakness and lack of faith. Gradually we develop a holy fear of hurting our friendship with the Lord. When the Lord is allowed to touch us in our state of humility, He can transfer His life or love to us and effect victory over hell (AE 79:1-3). We are also given a dearer love for Him and for obeying His commandments; our spiritual awareness is heightened. Holy fear or humility lets us realize that in our next struggle we need not fear defeat if we call on Him to conquer the hells in us (AR 55). Whether it's a sphere of adultery, anger, contempt, pride, envy, or any other blatant or subtle approach, we can be assured that our Divinely Human Savior has faced and conquered every hell and will face and conquer them again in us if we ask Him to.
The Lord touches Peter, James, and John, eases their fears and bids them rise. They follow Him back down the mountain. They come upon the disciples who have been trying to cure an epileptic boy. Jesus cures him immediately by casting a demon from him. We cannot defeat the hells or heal others from ourselves alone.

162

The disciples ask why they could not cure the boy. The Lord says it is "because of your unbelief, for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will mover and nothing will be impossible for you However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." As we work to battle hell and heal others, our will will be married to our Divinely Human Savior. He has transfigured Himself before us so that we will remember whom to call for when the hells seek a victory over us. When we call, He will come as our source of warmth and light, touch us, and say: "Praise and do not be afraid." Amen.

     LESSONS: Matt. 17:1-9, John 17:20-26, TCR 787

     Note: Key passages concerning the Lord's Essence are TCR 21 and 36 (see also TCR 3843, 157). On the Esse of the Lord see TCR 18-21, 22:1, 25:3, 26e. On the marriage of His Divine and Human Essence see AC 3023, 9199:3, Faith 35).

     From the third lesson:

     Man is natural, and therefore thinks naturally, and conjunction must exist in his thought, and thus in his love's affection, and this is the case when Ire thinks of God as a Man. Conjunction with an invisible God is Like a conjunction of the eye's vision with the expanse of the universe, the limits of which are invisible; it is also like vision in mid-ocean, which Peaches out into the air and upon the sea, and is lost. Conjunction with a visible God, on the other hand, is like beholding a man in the air or on the sea spreading forth his hands and inviting to his arms. For all conjunction of God with man must be also a reciprocal conjunction of man with God; and no such reciprocation is possible except with a visible God. That before the assumption of the Human, God was not visible, the Lord Himself also teaches hi John: "Ye have neither heard the voice of the Father at any time, nor seen His form (v. 37). And in Moses: "No one can see God and live" (Ex. xxxiii. 20). But that He is visible through His Humanity is stated in John: "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath manifested Him" (i. 18). And in the same: "Jesus said I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one cometh unto the Father but by Me. He that knoweth Me knoweth the Father, and he that seeth Me seeth the Father" (xiv. 6, 7, 9).
     That there is a conjunction with the invisible God through the visible, that is, through the Lord, He teaches in the following passages: "Jesus said, Abide in Me, and I in you; he that abideth in Me and I in him, the same beareth much fruit" (John xv. 4, 5). "In that day ye shall know that I am in the Father, and ye in Me and I in you. (John xiv. 20). - True Christian Religion 787

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UNCERTAINTY OF LIFE 1986

UNCERTAINTY OF LIFE MARK CARLSON 1986

     In Isaiah it is written: "All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the Lord blows upon it: surely the people are grass" (Isaiah 40:6, 7).

     Death-the withering away of the natural body until it can no longer receive the warmth of the Lord's life and grows cold. Death is the one absolutely inevitable event in our future. It was the one absolutely inevitable event in the lives of the seven astronauts who were so tragically killed last Tuesday. But as is often the case, neither they nor we had any expectation that it would happen on the 25th mission of the space shuttle. So often death takes us by surprise, yet we know it is inevitable.
     No doubt you are here this morning because you know inside that preparing for this one inevitable event is important, and perhaps you wish to think and pray about the meaning of the events of the week which so clearly relate to the meaning of life and death. This was to be a space mission to instruct the children of the world about space travel and its advantages to the earth-bound. It was this aspect of the mission which focused the attention of so many children and adults on this otherwise routine launch. It was indeed a mission of instruction, but the lessons the Lord had in mind turned out to be more of eternal value than NASA had in mind.
     Before we look at what is to be learned from the tragedy itself, several things need to be laid to rest. First, the Lord never wills that such accidents happen; He did not make it happen so that He could teach us, or NASA, a lesson. Rather, what happened was a result of the working out of His Divine laws by which the universe operates. The spacecraft was in fact using one of His laws to propel itself into space, a law which is the very basis for earthly existence. This law dictates that when oxygen and hydrogen come together, they release a tremendous amount of energy and combine to form water. When controlled, such burning fires a rocket engine, but when uncontrolled, it produces a violent explosion. Whatever cause the burning of hydrogen with oxygen on the space shuttle to proceed out of control was man's doing, not God's. Perhaps it was faulty design, or faulty workmanship, or a misjudgment of the weather, but it was not the Lord's doing.
     However, the fact that it was likely to happen was known to the Lord, and from His foresight of all the possible outcomes of the accident.

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He secretly prepared the seven people who died for their transition from this world to the next; and furthermore, He prepared those who would receive these fine men and women in the other world. Because the Lord is omniscient, He is always in control, and constantly sees to it that the eternal welfare of those who are caught up in natural disasters is preserved and even enhanced.
     Now, when such tragic events occur the Lord always is able to bring something good from it, both for the individuals directly involved, and for those indirectly involved. The specific good that has come to those who died we cannot know, but we do know they are in good hands. As for the rest of us who were indirectly involved, and in this case we number in the millions, the good the Lord can bring out seems more clear.
     There are lessons here that we as a nation needed to learn or to relearn. The first and most obvious one seems to me to be the Lord's desire that millions of us be reminded of the frailty of natural life and the reality of death. When in the history of the world have so many men, women, and children watched as the lives of not one but seven of our brothers and sisters were snuffed out in a millisecond? Right in the midst of our technological triumph, not hidden in space, but close enough for all to see, a tiny spark ended seven lives and destroyed a billion dollar machine. How timeless are the words of Isaiah, and how well they fit the reality of Tuesday. "All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass." Were not millions reminded of this eternal truth in the very context of our worldly success?
     We who live in the western world are so insulated from the reality of death that perhaps from time to time we need to be vividly reminded of the facts. Usually death takes place in a hospital or nursing home where the event is hidden so as not to frighten other patients. The body is neatly disposed of by professionals. And the world goes on. How many of us have actually witnessed another human being die? How many have had brothers or sisters die in a bed next to them, or a child in their arms? Less than a hundred years ago this was a common experience. But today it is almost unheard of, and many can delude themselves into believing that it doesn't happen, or at least that it won't happen to them.

     Yet the only reason we are born is so that we may die, having made a free choice about the kind of person we wish to be to eternity. In the words of the Heavenly Doctrines, "Human life is nothing but a progression from the world to heaven, and the last, which is death, is the passage itself" (AC 3016).

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To ignore this fact of existence is to walk in folly, placing the importance and purpose of life in the here-and-now, which must soon be gone. But of such insanity does much of the world about us consist. Thus it is written in the Psalms: "Surely every man walks about like a shadow; surely they busy themselves in vain; he heaps up riches, and does not know who will gather them" (Psalm 39:6). No doubt the Lord has taken this opportunity to in some measure correct the teachings given through the school of experience.
     It is so easy for us to acquire a measure of complacency in regard to natural existence. It is so easy for us to put the truth out of mind and think, deal, and act as though our natural life will go on forever. We might stop to reflect for a moment as to the origin of this persuasive idea. Which of our spiritual associates would insinuate a false sense of natural permanence? Though we may feel quite secure at the moment, within bodies full of strength and vigor, apparently with a long life ahead of us, do we realize that our natural position is truly quite precarious? Our continued natural existence depends upon the intricate balancing of thousands of mechanical, electrical, and chemical functions; the failure of any one function could bring down the whole -not to mention disease or accident. We literally live in a house of cards. Only the gentle, wise, caring, healing influx of life from the Lord keeps the temple of our bodies from collapsing.
     Do we ever stop to think that even the seasons of the year are trying to tell us something? The grass sprouts, grows to fullness, then withers and dies. What gives us the arrogance to think that we are more permanent than the grass of the field? "As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more" (Psalm 103:15).
     Another lesson the Lord may have had in mind was to demonstrate to us just who is in charge here. When we look at the times in which we live we see how strong the persuasion has become that we mortal beings can become total masters of our destiny, that we are in charge of our universe. Given enough research, given enough applied technology, we may one day live forever with plastic hearts and throw-away kidneys. For many, the wonderful success of the space program has been seen as a huge step in the direction of achieving complete control of our human future. This notion was dealt a mortal blow on Tuesday. Not only was the tragedy unexpected, we do not even know what caused it-and possibly never will. As a nation we have had a spectacular reminder of the timeless truth expressed in Proverbs: "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth" (Proverbs 27:1).
     We are not in control of our destiny. The little events of our daily lives and the grand events of exploration and discovery are all part of an even greater scale of events than any one of us can imagine.

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The universe, both natural and spiritual, is in the Creator's hands not ours. "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork" (Psalm 19:1).
And what may we say about the condition of those seven brave men and women now? Their transition from this world to the next was not just for the benefit of our learning. We know that they are healthy and well in the spiritual bodies that were always the source of their sense of identity and well-being. They are being well taken care of in the world of spirits. In this regard it is fascinating to note that their deaths must have marked a new stage in the development of that world. We know that many good spirits find their eternal use in helping us make a smooth, untraumatic transition from this world to the next. Often, they construct an environment and condition exactly like the one those who die have left in the world. Just imagine, they must have created a space shuttle! And perhaps the angels are playing the part of mission controllers on the ground. Would it not make sense for them to allow the mission to go on so as not to upset their great expectations of the mission? Imagine those space travelers looking down on the spiritual earth. What a beautiful and marvelous sight that must be. Perhaps they are not yet even aware of their own deaths. Perhaps the mission controllers are gradually, gently, breaking the news to them, and reassuring them that their families are being well taken care of. And imagine the place where they will come back to earth; what a welcome they will receive. Truly, they have set off on a mission of exploration which will reveal to them new worlds they never dreamed of seeing.
We may know with certainty that those who gave their lives for the advancement of our frontiers and for the improvement of our knowledge did not die in vain. Their lives were rich with the Lord's goodness; their deaths were within the Lord's providential care; and the legacy of their departure will live on for generations, reminding us all of the reality of life and of death.
"When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your finger, the moon and the stars which You have ordained. What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you visit him? For you have made him a little lower than the angels, and you have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, even the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea that pass through the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth!" (Psalm 8:3-9)

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TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION ( 1986

TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION ( CLARENCE HOTSON 1986

Nos. 43-47) In English Blank Verse

PUT IN THIS FORM BY

Love's essence is to love others outside of self,
To will to be united with them, and bless them
From itself. There are two things
That make God's essence: Love and Wisdom they;
But there are three that make essence of His Love:
To love some other ones outside Himself,
To will to be one with them, and to bless
Them from Himself; the same three make His wisdom's
Essential, for in God, the Love and Wisdom
Make one, as shown above; but Love wills them,
And Wisdom them produces.

That is, to love others outside of self,
Can be acknowledged from the love of God
To all mankind, and therefore God loves all
That He created, for that they are means,
For he who loves an end loves also a means;
All men and all things in the universe
Are outside God, because they are finite
And God is Infinite; the love of God
Goes and extends not only to the good
And good things, but to evil men and things
As well, and therefore not alone to those
In heaven, but to those that are in hell
As well, and thereby not alone to Michael
And Gabriel, but also to the devil
And satan; God is everywhere the same
From everlasting unto everlasting;
He says, moreover, that He makes His Sun
To rise on good and bad, and sends His rain
On just and unjust; but that still the evil
Are evil, and things evil are things evil,
Is in themselves as subjects and as objects,
In that they do not take the love of God
Such as it is inmostly in themselves,
But such as they are, even as thorns and nettles
Receive the sun's heat and the rains of heaven.

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The Second Thing Essential of God's Love,
Which is to will to be at one with them,
Likewise acknowledged is from His conjunction
With heaven angelic, and with church on earth,
With each one there, and with all good and truth
That enter into man and church, and make them;
Love, furthermore, regarded in itself,
Is nothing but the effort toward conjunction;
That this trait of Love's essence might be gained,
God did create man therefore in His image
And likeness, wherewith may be made conjunction:
That Love Divine continually intends
Conjunction can be clear from the Lord's words:
He wills they may be one, Himself in them
And they in Him, and that the Love of God
May be in them.

The third essential thing

Of God's Love, That it is to make them blessed
From Himself, this is clear from life eternal
For this is blessing, joy and happiness
Unending, that God gives them who receive
His love in them; for God, even as He is
Love's self, is likewise very blessedness,
For all love breathes out joy from its own self,
And Love Divine, the very blessed. joyful,
And happy evermore; God blesses thus
From Himself angels, after death too, men,
By means of His conjunction with them then.
That Love Divine is such is recognized
By its own sphere that fills the universe,
Affecting each according to his state;
It acts on parents chiefly, and they thence
Love tenderly their children, who are outside
Themselves, wish to be one with them, and will
To make them happy from themselves; this sphere
Of Love Divine affects not just the good,
But evil persons too, and not men only,
But also beasts and birds of every kind.
What mother thinks, when she has borne a child,
Of aught else but uniting herself with it,
And caring for its good? What bird, when she
Has hatched her young from eggs, does aught but cherish

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Them underneath her wings, and through their beaks
Put food into their throats? And it is known
That dragons, vipers likewise, love their offspring.
This universal sphere chiefly affects
Those who receive in them that love of God;
And they are those who do believe in God,
And love the neighbor; charity with them
Is that love's image. Friendship, with the evil,
Moreover simulates that love; each friend
At his own table gives the better things
Unto his friend, yea, kisses, fondles him,
Joins hands, and proffers useful services.

The sympathies of homogeneous
And like things, and their efforts toward conjunction,
Originate from this and nothing else.
That same Divine sphere likewise operates
Into inanimate things, as into trees
And herbage, but by means of the world sun,
And by its heat and light, for from outside
Heat enters them, conjoins itself with them,
And makes them sprout and blossom and bear fruit;
These take the place of blessedness in things
Called animate; that heat does this because
It corresponds to spiritual heat
Which is love. There are likewise picturings
Of this same love within the various subjects
Of mineral realm; things typical thereof
Are manifested in their exaltation
To uses, and thence things of valuation.

From the description of Divine Love's essence
It can be seen what is the quality
Essentially of diabolic level
This can be seen from contrariety:
For diabolic love is love of self,
And this is called love, but viewed in itself
Is hate, for it loves no one outside self,
Nor wills to be conjoined to other ones
To do them good, but only for itself;
From its Inmost it constantly desires
Rule over all; and also to possess
The goods of all, at length to be adored
As God, and therefore they who are in hell

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Do not acknowledge God, but call them gods
Who have power over others; thus they have
Lower and higher gods, lesser and greater,
According to extension of their power;
And as each there bears this in heart, he therefore
Blazes with hate against his god, and he
Against those who are subject to his rule,
And views them as vile slaves, with whom he yet
Speaks civilly, so long as they adore him;
But rages as from fire against the others
And likewise inwardly or in his heart
Against his underlings; for love of self
Is quite the same as mutual love of robbers
Who, while engaged in plunder, kiss each other,
But later burn with lust to kill each other,
That they may strip the other of his booty.
This love makes all cupidities thereof
In hell, where it prevails, appear from far
Like fierce wild beasts of divers kinds. some seem
Like foxes or like leopards, some like wolves
And tigers, and some seem like crocodiles
And poison snakes; and this love makes the deserts
Wherein they live consist of nothing else
But heaps of stones, or naked gravel beds,
Mixed up with marshes, wherein frogs are croaking;
Above their hovels doleful birds are flying
With harsh outcries; the ochim, tziim, ijim,
Named in the Word's prophetics, where it tells
Of selfish love of rule, are nothing else.

These features of Divine Love were the cause
Of the creation of the universe
And are the reason for its conservation.
These three essentials of Divine Love were
Creation's cause; this can be clearly seen
By survey and examining thereof;
That this first: to low others outside self
A cause was is clear from the universe
That it is outside God, just as the world is
Outside the sun; He can extend His love
Therein, exert it there, and thereby rest.
We read, too, that when God created heaven
And earth, He rested; thence the Sabbath day

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Was made. The second is to will to be
One with them that this was a cause is clear
From man's creation in image and likeness
Of God; by which is understood that man
Was made a form receiving love and wisdom;
And thus wherewith God might unite Himself,
And for his sake with all and single things
In the universe that are naught else but means;
Because conjunction with the final cause is
Conjunction with the mediate causes too;
That for man's sake all things have been created
Is likewise clear from the Book of Creation
Or Genesis.

The third, to make them blessed
From Himself: that it is a cause is clear
From the angelic heaven that has been
Provided for each man who does receive
God's love, wherein the blessedness of all
Is from the only God. These three essentials
Of God's love, they are furthermore the cause
Of conservation of the universe;
For conservation is perpetual
Creation, even as subsistence is
Perpetual existence; and the Love
Divine from evermore to evermore
Remains the same; thus such as it was in
Creating of the world, such is it ever
In that world when created, changing never.
From these, rightly perceived, it can be seen
The universe a work is that coheres
From first to last things, for it is a work
Containing ends, causes, effects, entwined
Indissolubly; and since in all love
There is an end, in all of wisdom is
Promotion of the end by mediate causes;
And through these, to effects, that are the uses,
It follows likewise that the universe
Is all a work containing Love Divine,
Wisdom Divine, and Uses; thus a work
Throughout cohering from first things to last.

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DECLARATION OR STATEMENT OF FAITH AND PURPOSE 1986

DECLARATION OR STATEMENT OF FAITH AND PURPOSE PRESCOTT A. ROGERS 1986

     (This declaration was made during inauguration into the priesthood on January 26, 1986.)

     I firmly believe that there is one God from whom all things exist. He is Jehovah-Jesus-Lord. He is love itself who continuously strives for man's happiness. That happiness is from the Lord, but it is received only when a person receives and returns the Lord's love.
     But to love the Lord, and so to be happy, a person first needs to know who and what his Lord is. For this reason our Savior has revealed to mankind His Divine truths by which He may be known and loved.
     In the Heavenly Doctrines we may see the Lord in His Divine Human, appealing to all mankind in the rational appearances of truth. These appearances belong to the spiritual sense of the Word, revealed for the first time in the natural language of the Heavenly Doctrines.
     The Heavenly Doctrines are the newness promised by the Lord in the book of Revelation. For in them the corrupt doctrines of the fallen churches are corrected and explained. In addition, many doctrines are revealed for the first time in history.
     To the New Church is given the fullness and clarity of Divine truth in genuine forms. so that mankind may know and understand these principal doctrines: the doctrine of the Lord, the doctrine of the Word, the doctrine of regeneration, the doctrine of life after death, and the doctrine of marriage. From that knowledge and understanding individuals can cooperate with the Lord to form a genuinely good life for themselves, for the sake of others.
     We of the New Church are privileged, for we have ready access to the genuine truths that belong to the spiritual sense of the Word. But with privilege comes responsibility and duty. We are to share our bounty with those who do not as yet have the same opportunities.
     It is my hope and my intention to share in that responsibility and duty as a priest of the New Church. I wish to search ever increasingly for the Lord's truth, and to share the results of that search with others: those in the church, those outside the church, and those born of New Church parents. I wish to help them to see the power of the Lord's truth and the beauty of His goodness in the Word and in their lives. In this can their joy he full.
     I earnestly pray that our Lord will find me a willing subject, and that He will develop me into a good and faithful servant, ready to do His will in all that He places before me.

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REVIEW 1986

REVIEW Marjorie Rose Soneson 1986

     Introductory Issue of Chrysalis-a special issue published in winter 1985 by the Swedenborg Foundation, 139 East 23rd Street, New York 10010; printed by Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.

     This is a Golden Age for publishing in the New Church. Today there is more variety, and in some instances better quality, than at any time in our organized history. A new periodical, Chrysalis, shows exciting potential in both areas-variety and quality. Its sample issue, now in circulation, lives up to the unusual name. American Heritage Dictionary gives as its second definition of the word chrysalis: "Anything still in the process of development (from Greek khrusallis, the golden pupa of a butterfly)." The word suggests vitality, energy, growth. This introductory copy implies that new directions will be explored in future editions. New developments should inevitably follow. And new audiences will surely be reached.
     The first issue of Chrysalis is composed of seventy-eight pages, bound in a glossy black, white and gold cover. A beautiful photograph of a shell on the front is matched by the elegance of the illustrations within (although one had been led to expect a butterfly rather than a shell on the cover). Inside, the publishers have thoughtfully provided this edifying statement: "Welcome to the pages of Chrysalis, a journal of ideas for readers interested in Swedenborgian perspectives on basic questions of our times. These pages are addressed to those who are looking for creative approaches to the spiritual dimensions of life as well as to those who want to know more about Emanuel Swedenborg's contributions. Chrysalis will draw upon the reflections of writers and artists of many faiths and on the treasure-trove of Swedenborgian archives and contemporary resources. We hope that the experience of perusing this magazine will aid in each reader's process of casting aside the cocoon of outworn thoughts and feelings. May Chrysalis enable you to continue on your own journey with wings of new insight and a rejuvenated spirit."
     Of course this refers to the first dictionary definition of the word Chrysalis," which is: "The third stage in the development of an insect, especially of a moth or butterfly, enclosed in a firm case or cocoon." A marvelous image. True Christian Religion 687:3 notes that "an image of regeneration is presented in the wonderful transformation of the silkworm and other worms into nymphs and butterflies." (See also Arcana Coelestia, 2758 and 3000; Heaven and Hell 108:2; Divine Love and Wisdom 354; and Conjugial Love 49 and 418.)

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It is an imaginative choice for the name of a publication. And it is an imaginative publication. Each issue is to have a theme, the first being "In Search of the Soul." The front cover title is embellished with a butterfly logo, and underscored with the words "Journal of the Swedenborg Foundation." This is an excellent idea, since one purpose is to introduce Swedenborg's name to many people. The booklet's back cover defines it as "A Journal for Seekers." "Explore spiritual dimensions." it urges; "travel the world through literary and artistic traditions." And referring to Future numbers, it adds: "Make important connections between cities and holiness, angels and today, women and wisdom, health and spirit, and much more in forthcoming issues. Practical. Profound. Joyful." The editors have set their sights high.
     These editors, under Carol S. Lawson and her assistant .lane S. Kennedy, have each assumed responsibility for specific departments: "image and Vision" by Robin Larsen, "Things Seen and Heard" by Donald L. Rose, "Vital Issues" by Stephen Larsen. "Patterns" by George F. Dole and "Fringe Benefits" by Marian Kirven. In the copy under review, the material relates to the central subject of the soul. Subheads in the table of contents are terse and inviting.

     - "Milestones in the psychological journey"
     - "A paradoxical quest"
     - "The process of becoming"

     Not all articles are produced by the editors themselves. For example, the popular author Wilson Van Dusen submitted one called "Now You See It, Now You Don't: The Soul." In ten pages it provides a learned yet lucid analysis of Swedenborg's search for the soul. H. W. Janson has written a fascinating answer to the question: "How has the human soul been represented in burial places?" Entitled "Psyche in Stone: Images of the Soul" and enriched with excellent photographs, the essay demonstrates Swedenborg's influence on tombstone art. Janson explains that "according to Swedenborg, the soul has a shape and the shape is simply that of the human body. Just as our earthly clothing conforms to the shape of the body underneath, so the body, being a garment of the soul, must conform to the shape of the soul" (see page 34).
     Chrysalis is carefully annotated, brimming with footnotes and biographical details, making it especially valuable for students and scholars. Yet its style will not daunt the avenge reader. Most of the writing is crisp and clear, while rich in content. It was courageous for the editors to have chosen one of the most profound and perplexing of topics-the human soul-for their first endeavor.

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     Some people may feel they have more reading matter to cope with in this Age of Information than they really want or need. But there is always justification and demand for productions of this caliber. By skipping the sports section of the Sunday paper, or shelving a current best seller, time can be found to read the spring, summer and fall issues promised in 1986. A subscription order form is tucked inside the back cover-three issues for twenty dollars-or simply send a request to The Swedenborg Foundation. 139 East 23rd Street. New York. New York 10010.
     Within two years New Church members will be celebrating the three hundredth anniversary of the birth of Emanuel Swedenborg. Chrysalis is a very nice birthday gift.
     There may still be copies of the sample issue available from the editor of NEW CHURCH LIFE.
     Marjorie Rose Soneson
NCL 100 YEARS AGO AND 50 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 100 YEARS AGO AND 50 YEARS AGO Editor 1986

In 1886 readers of NEW CHURCH LIFE did not have radio and television programs to absorb them, and the editors of that day used to run stories as serials from month to month. In April of that year they ran the fourth chapter in a series for children called "The Strange Adventures of Tom" and the twelfth and final installment of a series for older readers entitled "The True Story of One Girl's Life."
The April issue of 1936 has a three-page article by Mr. Stanley Wainscot entitled "The Doctrines and the World-An Impression of the Visible Effects of the Works of Swedenborg Upon the Thought of the World." In the same issue is an unusual item by Rev. F.W. Elphick. It is a sermon titled "The Passing of a King," which was delivered at a memorial service for King George V of England. We quote: "And in these times there has lived a king who, on the one hand, had no power, and on the other. great power, a king who was cognizant of the world changes taking place under conditions in which all nations can see together and hear together, and be simultaneously aware of every important event in modern life. In this remarkable age His Majesty King George V has lived. Today the Home Country, the Empire, and all nations mourn his death-his passing into that spiritual world to which all men and women go after their decease."

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     PETER THE GREAT, CHARLES XII, EMANUEL SWEDENBORG

     The book Peter the Great by Robert Massie was a Pulitzer prize-winning national bestseller. An NBC television mini-series on it was of particular interest to those who like to get an idea of events that took place during the life of Swedenborg. There are numerous references in the book to Charles the Twelfth of Sweden. There is a full description of one of the most amazing horseback rides ever described. Charles covered more than a thousand miles in a dramatic horseback return to his country galloping at a rate of more than a hundred miles a day. When he arrived, his boots had to be cut from his feet. In Sweden the news of his return was received with "indescribable joy" (page 621 of the paperback edition of Peter the Great).
     Emanuel Swedenborg composed an eloquent literary tribute to the king's return. The tribute comes to about eighteen pages in English translation. The original Latin piece, composed in 1714, was lost to the world for two centuries. Alfred H. Stroh discovered it in 1905. In The Swedenborg Epic Cyriel Sigstedt wonders why no copy of it was known "until two hundred years later when an American scholar discovered two copies in a Greifswalde library." Mrs. Sigstedt even asks whether Swedenborg himself may have destroyed most of the copies! (Epic, p. 28).
     What we have said thus far is a way of announcing the publication a few months ago of a remarkable book. The writer is the accomplished linguist Hans Helander, the study coming from the University of Uppsala. The book is almost entirely in English and includes a full English translation of Swedenborg's "Ode to the Return of Charles the Twelfth."
     The title is: Emanuel Swedenborg Festivus Applausus in Caroli XII in Pomeraniam Suam Adventum, edited, with introduction, translation and commentary.
     One of the reasons the book is of great interest and value is its analysis of Swedenborg's use of the Latin language. It is also interesting to see in the writer's preface that he chose to write of' Swedenborg's ode to Charles XII because it had to do with "two of the few Swedes that have won lasting renown outside Sweden."

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     Another item that has come to our attention is Swedenborg on France by Karl-Erik Sjoden. This one comes from the University of Stockholm. It is written in French, but our first look at it makes us think that it ought to appear in English translation.

     A RENDITION IN VERSE OF TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION

     Seeing the renderings of passages in the Writings in verse, a correspondent has asked us to seek out a prodigious piece of work by the late Dr. Clarence Hotson. Aided by Mr. David Glenn we found it preserved in the archives, just where our correspondent said it would be. We were astonished by the scope of this effort involving a tremendous amount of work by this talented man. Since it has lain for more than a dozen years untouched in the archives it seemed worthwhile to print a substantial example from it so that others who may wish to look at it can have a good idea of its nature.
     Readers will notice that whereas the free verse renderings we have been publishing have not been changed from the standard translations, Dr. Hotson's work involves a new English wording to fit into the form of verse.

     BILLY GRAHAM ON ANGELS

     Eleven years ago Billy Graham (sometimes called the world's most famous clergyman) wrote a book called Angels (Doubleday, 1975). There are a number of things in the book with which we agree and some with which we definitely would not. The Writings refer to an astonishing degree of ignorance about angels and the neglect within the church of the subject of life after death. Dr. Graham was surprised at how neglected the subject of angels has been. The preface begins as follows: "When I decided to preach a sermon on angels, I found practically nothing in my library. Upon investigation I soon discovered that little had been written on the subject in this century. This seemed a strange and ominous omission."
     The second chapter of the book is headed "Angels Are for Real." In it Dr. Graham asks, "Why have we ignored the great Biblical teachings about angels?" A subheading of the chapter is "Relief in Angels: A General Phenomenon." Here we read: "The history of virtually all nations and cultures reveals at least some belief in angelic beings."
     On page 44 the author writes. "Some Bible students insist that angels do not sing. This seems inconceivable . . . .

178

While it is partly speculative, believe that angels have the capacity to employ heavenly celestial music."
     The writer follows the interpretation of Isaiah 14 which would have it that at a certain point in history some angels rebelled and became enemies of God. This reading of the passage about "Lucifer" has been discounted by many orthodox Christians. As one Bible dictionary puts it: "The application of the name Lucifer to Satan . . . has existed since the third century, especially among poets. It is based on the erroneous supposition that Luke 10: 18 is an explanation of Isaiah 14:12."
     Dr. Graham identifies Lucifer and Satan and says, "The greatest catastrophe in the history of the universal creation was Lucifer's defiance of God and the consequent fall of perhaps one third of the angels who joined him in his wickedness. When did it happen? Sometime between the dawn of creation and the intrusion of Satan into the Garden of Eden. The poet Dante reckoned that the fall of the rebel angels took place within twenty seconds of their creation . . ." (p. 60).
     Although Dante and others are alluded to, there is no reference to the Writings of Swedenborg. Some months ago a member of the New Church wrote to Billy Graham to tell him about the Writings. The letter seems to have been discounted by a member of Graham's staff on the grounds that the New Church is a cult. (More on this another time.)
     As one might expect, a point that is emphasized is that angels are sexless and do not marry. How many people founder on that one incident in Scripture of the response to the Sadducees and are completely mistaken on the matter of angels? The chapter on marriages in heaven opens by stating that angels are of both sexes and that since from creation "woman is for man and man for woman" there are marriages in heaven as well as on the earth.

     WHEN DISASTROUS NEWS IMPACTS ON MILLIONS

     When the Lusitania was sunk with two thousand aboard, NEW CHURCH LIFE devoted two pages to "The Torpedoing of the Lusitania" (1915, p. 460). The shock and dismay affected millions.
     We note elsewhere in this issue that fifty years ago this month millions mourned the death of King George V of England. Back in 1936 people were adjusting to a speed of communications which meant that news could impact upon millions of people throughout the world at the same time. It took some getting used to that "all nations can see together and hear together, and be simultaneously aware of every important event in modern life" (NCL, 1936, p. 106).

179

     The space shuttle Challenger exploded while being watched by trillions who felt they knew those who perished. Time Magazine's Lance Morrow wrote: "The shuttle crew, spectacularly democratic (male, female, black, white. Japanese American, Catholic, Jewish, Protestant) was the best of us, Americans thought . . . . The mission seemed symbolically immaculate, the farthest reach of a perfectly American ambition to cross frontiers. And it simply vanished in the air."
     Peter Jennings, anchorman of ABC said, "We all shared in this experience in an instantaneous way because of television. I can't recall any time or crisis in history when television had had such an impact."
     The Writings teach that nothing is permitted except to the end that something of good may come of it (AC 6489, 6574). What good may come when millions are suddenly shocked by such an event? We may all reflect on this question and some suggested answers in an article in this issue, "The Uncertainty of Life."
     An excellent article by Rev. Erik Sandstrom on this subject has appeared in at least two society newsletters. Ed.
POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG 1986

POEMS FROM SWEDENBORG Mrs. Gabrielle (Mrs. Tom) Gladish 1986

     Communications
     Dear Editor,
     The Swedenborg poems are beautiful! Not only do they present the unencumbered essence of our doctrines in a form that is visually attractive, but they are also most pleasing on the tongue.
     I can imagine them in the form of a small book, the poems written in calligraphic style and the pages bordered with beautiful designs by William Morris.*
     *William Morris was married to the sister of Hiram Powers, a Famous New Church sculptor, so no doubt Morris was well acquainted with the Writings of Swedenborg.
     In a pamphlet form they might become a useful tool in evangelization, for they could be left in doctors' offices and other public places.
     In the car the poems could be read whilst caught in a traffic jam or waiting for that interminable train to pass. My husband and I have been wondering why nobody thought to do this before.
     Gabrielle (Mrs. Tom) Gladish,
          Cincinnati, Ohio

180

WRITINGS IN VERSE 1986

WRITINGS IN VERSE Warren F. David 1986

     Dear Editor,
     For your "poetry" section, here is one that I have been using as an inscription on gift copies of the Word. The capitals are my own.
     Warren F. David,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

     Like a Ruby and a Diamond

As, in its INMOST BOSOM,
     from its celestial sense,
          our Word is like a FLAME that ENKINDLES;

And as, in its MIDDLE BOSOM,
     from its spiritual sense,
          it is like a LIGHT that ENLIGHTENS;

It follows that in its ULTIMATE BOSOM,
     from its natural sense,
          which has within it
the two more interior senses,

The Word is like a RUBY and a DIAMOND;
     Like a RUBY from its CELESTIAL FLAME,
          And like a DIAMOND from its SPIRITUAL LIGHT.

                    Doctrine of the Sacred Scripture 42 SWEDENBORG'S SIGNATURE? 1986

SWEDENBORG'S SIGNATURE? Richard Linquist 1986

     Dear Editor,
     "Em. Swedenborg" is written in ink, in what appears to be his handwriting, on a lithograph which I have of him at age 80. With it is a letter from a Mr. Harold E. Trent, which states, "I obtained this from my family in England. My father was a member of a small gathering in North London." Could any of your readers provide me with information about the Trent family and the reason for which Swedenborg wrote his signature?
     I treasure the picture and also the letter which is confirmation of the value of writing letters as you have editorialized on in NEW CHURCH LIFE. Occasionally I write letters but usually to an editor of one of our church magazines. Since that seems to be a poor way to get a personal response, one day I decided to ask arte of my teenaged nieces if` she ever read anything which I wrote. She responded with a giggle, "Yes, but your writing is boring. It's old-fashioned," to which I responded seriously, "Why doth thou speak thus, fair lady?"

181

     [drawing of Em. Swedenborg with his signature beneath.]

     Anyway, while reading my 1847 copy of Documents Concerning Swedenborg I became interested in how he ended his personal letters. (Incidentally, I wonder if your readers would send to you, for possible publication, examples of how they end their letters. i.e. "Your friend in the New Church," "Spiritually.") Since mutual love seeks to serve the good in the person written to, perhaps it would not be uselessly old-fashioned, though fashioned of old, like the dry ink on my picture or on the letter written in 1770 by Swedenborg to General Tuxen, to emulate such words as, "I remain, in all affection, familiarity and friendship, Sir, your most obedient servant."
     I agree with your statement in the November, 1985 issue of NCL. "The characteristic of our church at this day is that it is small and widely scattered around the world. Communication, therefore, is important to us in our wish to encourage one another, to share and sharpen our doctrinal interest," and develop warm bonds of spiritual friendship, I would add.
     Richard Linquist,
          Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania

182

FAITH ALONE 1986

FAITH ALONE Annabel Junge 1986

     Dear Editor,
     The two letters in your January issue on the subject of "faith alone" from Charie Cole and Rev. Grant Schnarr are most relevant, and I'd like to share with you some other feedback I received from the original letter.
     In another letter Charie had said, "I think the problem is that many New Church people, including ministers, mistakenly believe the doctrine of faith alone gives Protestants the right to live any kind of life they want and still be saved." This is the crux of what bothers me about many New Churchmen; they apply that universally to all Old Church people.
     Feeling this way also becomes an obstacle in evangelization efforts. I have been reminded of this often recently in trying to explain to a young Lutheran man (now engaged to a New Church girl) why Swedenborg so berated Martin Luther in his Writings.
     The doctrines of our church are much more important to us in the New Church than doctrine is to most other Protestants, who perhaps have never even read their church's doctrines. Since Charie suggested checking with a Protestant minister, I have renewed an old friendship with a Lutheran minister. He says yes, their belief is still that salvation is achieved by unconditional surrender to God's faith and love, but if there is a living faith, then obviously there will be good works, quoting John 15: "He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit." In 23 pars of active Lutheran Church and Lutheran Student Work I don't recall a single person saying he relied on faith alone to get to heaven. Among those who told me they felt my speaking out on this subject was useful were a New Church minister and two strong New Church women who have lived all or most of their lives in isolation, so have many fulfilling friendships and contacts with other Protestants. One of them wrote "What many in our church don't seem to realize is that since the Lord has made His Second Coming as the Spirit of Truth there is light shining everywhere and one can even hear very enlightened sermons in the old Christian community!" Another who commented was an Old Church minister who has now joined the New Church.
     Those of us who have grown up and worked with other Protestants know better how they feel than the example given by Grant. How many New Church people and ministers have attended a service at a Protestant church to form an unbiased opinion? Many have not:
     My hope for New Church people is only to ask for a little deeper understanding and fewer "blanket statements" about the rest of the world and "faith alone."
     Annabel Junge,
          Glenview, Illinois

     P.S. I appreciated your publishing that quote from AE 233. Swedenborg has really said it all right there.

183

ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH ADMISSION POLICY 1986

     The Academy of the New Church is a religious institution dedicated to the establishment of the New Church by means of religious and secular instruction based upon principles drawn from the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.
     Since we believe that the most fruitful field of endeavor is with children of New Church parents, all students who have been baptized into the faith of the New Church are eligible for consideration. The reason for this is that we accept baptism as a sign of faith on the part of the parents, and therefore of their willingness to cooperate with the Academy in the instruction that is given in the Academy schools.
     We fully recognize, however, that there are others who, because of special circumstances of background and interest, are also deserving of consideration. In such cases the following requirements apply:

     a.      The parents or guardians must give satisfactory reasons why they wish to have their child enrolled in the Academy. If the applicants are eighteen years of age they may speak for themselves.
     b.      The applicant must be recommended by a minister of the General Church of the New Jerusalem.
     c.      The applicant must be approved by the President of the Academy.

     The reason for these requirements is not to exclude anyone who seriously desires a New Church education but to preserve the unique uses of the Academy and to protect the applicant from any misapprehension concerning the purposes of the institution.
     These requirements are in no way intended to be racially discriminatory, and the Academy will not discriminate against applicants and students on the basis of race, color, and national or ethnic origin.
MAPLE LEAF ACADEMY 1986

MAPLE LEAF ACADEMY 1986

"Festival of Friends" is the theme of Maple '86, from the 19th of June to the 27th, at Caribou Lodge north of Toronto. Rev. Terry Schnarr and Mr. Jeremy Rose are co-directors. Also on staff this pear will be Rev. Michael Cowley and his wife Gwenda, Kathi Miller, and Brian Lempky. Application forms may be available from your pastor. Or contact: Rev. Terry Schnarr, 279 Burnhamthorpe Road. Islington, Ontario. Canada M9B 126.

184

NEW CHURCH MUSIC FESTIVAL, June 8, 9, 10, 1984 1986

NEW CHURCH MUSIC FESTIVAL, June 8, 9, 10, 1984 Rev. Alfred Acton 1986

     WHY A NEW CHURCH MUSIC FESTIVAL

     After some discussion amongst the sponsors the following different purposes for a New Church Music Festival were developed:

     1.      A chance for people interested in music who have a common faith to get together and enjoy their mutual interest. In other words, just plain fun.
     2.      An opportunity to give people a chance to try out new music. We are thinking here of both secular and sacred music.
     3.      A chance for performance. Do you like to sing with others who enjoy it? Do you like to play an instrument with others similarly motivated?
     4.      A chance to understand what is going on in the development of the new Liturgy as well as to contribute to that development.
     5.      A chance for professional exchange. Obviously, this one doesn't apply to those who are amateurs. But hopefully all of us share an interest in what professionals in the field are doing.
      6.      A chance to develop in one's self an appreciation of music, and also an opportunity to aid others, both children and adults, in this development.
     7.      An opportunity for the instruction of the church at large in the new music which is being written for the church, and so the value of audience participation.
     8.      A forum for an exchange between members of the clergy and musicians of the church as regards the music of the church and its ritual.

     As you can see, these eight goals are various. Hopefully, some of these goals will meet your real interests, and you will want to participate.

     WHAT KIND OF A FESTIVAL HAS BEEN PLANNED TO MEET THESE GOALS?

     So far our program committee, which is chaired by Rev. Alfred Acton and includes Mrs. Douglas Taylor, Mr. lachlan Pitcairn, and Mr. Richard Show, have discussed the following format for our festival.
     The Academy graduation is scheduled for Saturday, June 7th. Our hope is that some who come to attend that graduation will stay over on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday for the festival. Others who want to attend the festival only will then be able to travel on Saturday and so not have two weeks of work split.

185

     The festival will begin on Sunday with two services of worship. We expect to direct the children's service and the adult service to the subject of music in the church. In addition, in the children's service, we hope to invite selected groups from the Bryn Athyn Elementary School to perform. The 11:00 a.m. Sunday service, hopefully, will feature a guest organist and the Bryn Athyn Church Choir, as well as a service touching on the role of music as it relates to worship.
     Following the 11:00 a.m. service, at 12:45 p.m., the festival itself will begin with lunch in Heilman Hall, and, time permitting, registration will begin as well as opening welcome remarks and a brief discussion of where we are in the new Liturgy as of that date.
     Sunday afternoon we hope to devote to performances by members of the Bryn Athyn Church Elementary School, the Academy Secondary Schools, and, if possible, other New Church elementary schools. If you are a teacher in an elementary school and receiving this memo, please keep this possibility in mind. Perhaps you have a group of performers who could make it to Bryn Athyn for that Sunday afternoon performance. We would love to invite you to perform. Sunday afternoon's performance should end no later than 4:00 p.m.
     At 8:00 p.m. we will again assemble, probably in Glencairn, for performances by the Academy College and the Bryn Athyn Church Choir. Others who wish to perform on this first evening are cordially invited to do so. Please advise us if you wish to participate so that we can schedule a really delightful Sunday evening concert. Publicity for events will be provided.
     At the conclusion of the Sunday evening concert, which should end by 9:30 p.m., there will be an opportunity for those interested to participate in a late night jam session. Our hope is that we will have a place on the campus where different groups can perform, both for dancing and pure pleasure. Here our hope is that these sessions will, of course, be open to everyone, but our thought is that they will be directed to the younger participants.
     The jam session will end at 11:30 p.m., and that will give us time to get a good night's sleep and be ready to go Monday morning at 8:15 a.m. with a service of worship in Heilman Hall.
     Following worship and announcements, at 8:30 a.m., we will begin workshops. Workshops will be scheduled both Monday and Tuesday from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. and 10:30 to 12:00 p.m. Two or three or four concurrent workshops can be run depending upon the number of registrants and the variety of interest. Presently we would like to schedule workshops that would be directed toward choral development; instrumental development; organists; teachers of church music; composers; those looking directly at the development of music as relating to ritual; a psalmody workshop; and a special workshop presenting a history of church music and the variety of instruments involved in church music from the beginning.

186

Mr. Lloyd Smith will give the workshop on presenting a history of church music, etc.
     Counting Monday and Tuesday we have an opportunity for four concurrent sessions of workshops. If there is a broader interest, we can also use Monday and/or Tuesday afternoon for workshops. However, as you will see, there are other things presently considered important for those time slots.
     Each morning we will have a break following the 8:30-10:00 a.m. workshop of a half hour for coffee and snack. Then we will return to workshops from 10:30-12:00 noon. After another half hour break, lunch will be served in Heilman Hall from 12:30-1:45 p.m. During the lunch period we will have a guest speaker discussing a topic which will be of general interest to all present.
     From 2:00-3:30 p.m., both Monday and Tuesday, we will provide an opportunity for performance by individuals who would like to try out what they are working on. We encourage a great variety of performance, both by amateurs and professionals, giving all an opportunity to "do their thing."
     Following the afternoon session there will be a break. The evening meal will not be provided.
     We will reassemble at 8:00 p.m. Monday when another concert will be scheduled. The performance should conclude at 9:30 p.m., giving us ample opportunity, for those who wish it, to go to the Cathedral where we will schedule a devotional service. Our hope for this service is to show how music can become a central part of worship rather than a support to it.
     Tuesday's schedule will follow the same format as Monday's. However, the evening performances from 8:00-9:30 p.m. will feature the Bryn Athyn Orchestra, and instead of a devotional service, a second 10:00-11:30 p.m. jam session will be scheduled.
     We hope to further perfect and enrich this program.
     Once again, let me urge you to consider attending the New Church Music Festival. Your presence with us will make this first ever event truly one long to be remembered.
     Rev. Alfred Acton,
          Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     Cost: $10.00 for registration, plus two luncheons at $2.50 each.

187

Title Unspecified 1986

[Photo of Rev. Peter Buss was taken during the clergy meetings in March at which he was nominated Assistant Bishop of the General Church.]

188

ORDINATION 1986

ORDINATION Editor 1986

Announcements
Rogers-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, January 26, 1986, Mr. Prescott Andrew Rogers into the first degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.
GLENVIEW OAKLEAF CAMP, AUG. 1-3 1986

GLENVIEW OAKLEAF CAMP, AUG. 1-3 1986

     We would like to extend a cordial invitation to all to attend Oak Leaf Family Camp to be held in the beautiful north woods on a lake near Oxford. Wisconsin. This year's camp begins Friday evening, August 1st, with a full day Saturday of presentations and discussion of interesting religious subjects-plus plenty of time for hiking, swimming, and just plain relaxing and enjoying both new and old friends. The church set-vice on August 3rd will be followed by our annual Sunday picnic. We hope many of you will join us. Further information and applications are available from any of the committee members at the following address:

     Oak Leaf Camp
     The Immanuel Church of the New Jerusalem
     74 Park Drive
     Glenview, IL 60025

     The committee consists of Nancy (Mrs. Raymond) Lee; Joel Smith; and Valerie (Mrs. H.) Truax.
AUSTRALIAN BOOK COMPETITION 1986

AUSTRALIAN BOOK COMPETITION 1986

The book competition is one of the excellent ideas that have emerged for commemorating Swedenborg's 300th birthday. We published the regulations of the competition in November of 1984 (p. 570). The deadline is June 30th of this year. The address is c/o Mr. N. C. Jarvis, 4 Shirley Rd., Roseville, N.S.W. Australia 2069.

190

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES Rev. LOUIS B. KING 1986

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
RIGHT REV. LOUIS B. KING, BISHOP
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, 19009, U. S. A.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES
Information on public worship and doctrinal classes provided either regularly or occasionally may be obtained at the locations listed below. For details use the local phone number of the contact person mentioned or communicate with the Secretary of the General Church, Rev. L. R. Soneson, Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, Phone (215) 947-4660.

     AUSTRALIA

     SYDNEY, N.S.W.
Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom, 22 Dudley Street, Penshurst, N.S.W. 2222. Phone: 57-1589.

     BRAZIL

     RIO DE JANEIRO
Rev. Cristovao Rabelo Nobre, Rua Xavier does Passaros 151, Apt. 101 Piedale, Rio de Janeiro, RK 20740. Phone: 021-289-4292.

     CANADA

     Alberta:

     CALGARY
Mr. Thomas R. Fountain, 1115 Southglen Drive S. W., Calgary 13, Alberta T2W 0X2. Phone: 403-255-7283.

     EDMONTON
Mr. Daniel L. Horigan, 10524 82nd St., Edmonton, Alberta T6A 3M8. Phone: 403-469-0078.

     British Columbia:

     DAWSON CREEK
Rev. William Clifford. 1536 94th Ave., Dawson Creek, V1G 1H1. Phone: (604) 782-3997.

     VANCOUVER
Mr. Douglas Crompton, 21-7055 Blake St., V5S 3V5. Phone: (604) 437-9136.

     Ontario:

     KITCHENER
Rev. Christopher Smith, 16 Bannockburn Rd., R.R. 2, N2G 3W5. Phone: (519) 893-7460.

     OTTAWA
Mr. and Mrs. Donald McMaster, 726 Edison Avenue, Apt. 33, Ottawa, Ontario K2C 3P8. Phone: (613) 729-6452.

     TORONTO
Rev. Geoffrey Childs, 2 Lorraine Gardens, Islington, Ontario M9B 424 Phone: (416) 231-4958.

     Quebec:

     MONTREAL
Mr. Denis de Chazal, 17 Baliantyne Ave. So., Montreal West, Quebec H4X 281. Phone: (514) 489-9861.

     DENMARK

     COPENHAGEN
Mr. Jorgen Hauptmann, Strandvejen 22, Jyllinge, 4000 Roskilde. Phone: 03-389968.

     ENGLAND

     COLCHESTER
Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh, 2 Christchurch Court, Colchester, Essex C03 3AU Phone: 0206-43712

     LETCHWORTH
Mr. and Mrs. R. Evans, 111 Howard Drive, Letchworth, Herts. Phone: Letchworth 4751.

     LONDON
Rev. Frederick Elphick, 21B Hayne Rd., Beckenham, Kent BR3 4JA. Phone: 01-658-6320.

     MANCHESTER
Mrs. Neil Rowcliffe, 135 Bury Old Road, Heywood, Lanes. Phone: Heywood 68189.

     FRANCE

     BOURGUINON-MEURSANGES
Rev. Alain Nicolier, 21200 Beaune, France. Phone: (80) 22.47.88.

     HOLLAND

     THE HAGUE
Mr. Ed Verschoor, Olmenlaan 7.3862 VG Nijkerk

     NEW ZEALAND

     AUCKLAND
Mrs. H. J. Keal, Secretary, 4 Derwent Crescent, Titirange, Auckland 7. Phone: 817-8203.

     NORWAY

     OSLO
Mr. Eyvind Boyesen, Vetlandsveien 82A, Oslo 6. Phone: 26-1159.

     SCOTLAND

     EDINBURGH
Mr. and Mrs. N. Laidlaw, 35 Swanspring Ave., Edinburgh EH 10-6NA. Phone: 0 31-445- 2377.

     GLASGOW
Mrs. J. Clarkson, Hillview, Balmore, Nr. Torrance, Glasgow. Phone: Balmore 262.

191

     SOUTH AFRICA

     Natal:

     DURBAN
Rev. Geoffrey Howard, 30 Perth Rd., Westville, Natal. 3630. Phone: 031-821 136.

     Transvaal:

     TRANSVAAL SOCIETY
Rev. Norman E. Riley, 8 Iris Lane, Irene, 1675 R. S. A., Phone: 012-632679.

Zululand:

     KENT MANOR
Mrs. D. G. Liversage, Box 7088, Empangeni Rail, 3910, Natal, South Africa. Phone: 0351-23241

     Mission in South Africa:
Superintendent-The Rev. Norman E. Riley (Address as above)

     SWEDEN

     STOCKHOLM
Contact Mr. Rolf Boley, Arvid Morners Vag 7, 161 59 Bromma. Phone: efter kl. 18.00, 08- 878280

     UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

     Alabama:

     BIRMINGHAM
Dr. R. Shepard, 4537 Dolly Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Phone:(205) 967-3442.

     Arizona:

     PHOENIX
Mr. Hubert Rydstrom, 3640 E. Piccadilly Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85018. Phone: (602) 955-2290.

     TUCSON
Rev. Frank S. Rose, 2536 N. Stewart Ave., Tucson, AZ 85716. Phone: (602) 327-2612.

     Arkansas:

     LITTLE ROCK
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Holmes, Rt. 6, Box 447, Batesville, AR 72501. (501) 251-2383

     California:

     LOS ANGELES
Rev. Michael Gladish, 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescenta, CA 91214. Phone: (213) 249-5031.

     SACRAMENTO
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ripley, 2310 N. Cirby Way, Roseville, CA 95678. Phone: (916) 782-7837

     SAN DIEGO
Rev. Cedric King, 7911 Canary Way, San Diego, CA 92123. Phone: (714) 268-0379.

     SAN FRANCISCO
Rev. Mark Carlson, 4638 Royal Garden Place, San Jose, CA 95136. Phone: (408) 224-8521.

     Colorado:

     COLORADO SPRINGS
Mr. and Mrs. William Reinstra, 708 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, CO 80829. Phone: (303) 685-9519.

     DENVER
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone (303) 429-1239

     Connecticut:

     HARTFORD

     SHELTON
Rev. Glenn Alden, 47 Jerusalem Hill Rd., Trumbull, CT 06611. Phone: (203) 877-1141.

     Delaware:

     WILMINGTON
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 417 Delaware Ave., McDaniel Crest, Wilmington, DE 19803. Phone: (302) 478-4213.

     District of Columbia see Mitchellville. Maryland.

     Florida:

     LAKE HELEN
Rev. John Odhner, 413 Summit Ave., Lake Helen, FL 32744. Phone: (904) 228-2337.

     MIAMI
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 15101 N. W. Fifth Ave., Miami, FL 33169. Phone: (305) 687-1337.

     Georgia:

     AMERICUS
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee St., Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.

     ATLANTA
Rev. Christopher Bown, 3375 Aztec Road #72, Doraville, GA 30340. Phone: (Home) (404) 457- 4726, (Office) (404) 452-0518

     Idaho:

     FRUITLAND
(Idaho-Oregon border) Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Dr., Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.

     Illinois:

     CHICAGO
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     DECATUR
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.

     GLENVIEW
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

192

     Indiana:

     Contact Rev. Stephen Cole in Cincinnati, Ohio, or Mr. James Wood, R. R. 1, Lapel, IN 46051. Phone (317) 534-3546

     Louisiana:

     BATON ROUGE
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 1652 Ormandy Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Phone: (504) 921-3089.

     Maine

     BATH
Rev. Allison L. Nicholson, 897 Middle St., Bath, ME 04530 Phone: (207) 433-6410

     Maryland:

     BALTIMORE
Rev. Donald Rogers, #12 Pawleys Ct., S. Belmont, Baltimore, MD 21236. Phone: (301) 882- 2640.

     MITCHELLVILLE

     Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Rd., Mitchellville, MD 20716. Phone: (301) 262-2349.

     Massachusetts:

     BOSTON
Rev. Grant Odhner, 4 Park Ave., Natick, MA 01760. Phone: (617) 651-1127.

     Michigan:

     DETROIT
Rev. Walter Orthwein, 132 Kirk La., Troy, MI 48084. Phone: (313) 689-6118.

     EAST LANSING
Mr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.

     Minnesota:

     ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS
Rev. Michael Cowley, 3153 McKight Road #340, White Bear Lake, MN 55110. (612) 770-9242

     Missouri:

     COLUMBIA
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 103 S. Greenwood, Columbia, MO 65201. Phone: (314) 442-3475.

     KANSAS CITY
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.

     New Jersey-New York:

     RIDGEWOOD. N.J.
Mrs. Fred E. Munich, 474 S. Maple Ave., Glen Rock, NJ 07452. Phone: (201) 445-1141.

     New Mexico:

     ALBUQUERQUE
Dr. Andrew Doering, 1298 Sagebrush Ct., Rio Rancho, NM 87124. Phone: (505) 897-3623.

     North Carolina:

     CHARLOTTE
Mr. Gordon Smith, 38 Newriver Trace, Clover, SC 29710. Phone: (803) 831-2355.

     Ohio:

     CINCINNATI
Rev. Stephen Cole, 6431 Mayflower Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45237. Phone: (513) 631-1210.

     CLEVELAND
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.

     COLUMBUS
Mr. Hubert Heinrichs, 8372 Todd Street Rd., Sunbury. OH 43074. Phone: (614) 524-2738.

     Oklahoma:

     TULSA
Mrs. Louise Tennis, 3546 S. Marion, Tulsa, OK 74135. Phone: (918) 742-8495.

     Oregon-Idaho Border.-Se Idaho, Fruitland.

     Pennsylvania:

     BRYN ATHYN
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-3665.

     ERIE
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Rd., Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.

     KEMPTON
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: (Home) (215) 756-4301; (Office) (215) 756-6140.

     PAUPACK
Mr. Richard Kintner, Box 172, Paupack, PA 18451. Phone: (717) 857-0688.

     PITTSBURGH
Rev. Ray Silverman, 299 Le Roi Road., Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: (Church) (412) 731-1061.

     South Carolina:- see North Carolina.

     South Dakota:

     ORAL-HOT SPRINGS
Rev. Erik Sandstrom, RR 1, Box 101M, Hot Springs, SD 57747. Phone: (605) 745-6714

     Texas:

     FORT WORTH
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 13410 Castleton, Dallas, TX 75234-5117. Phone: (214) 247-7775.

     Washington:

     SEATTLE
Rev. Kent Junge, 14812 N. E. 75th Street, Redmond, WA 98033. Phone: (206) 881-1955.

     Wisconsin:

     MADISON
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.

193

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI May, 1986 No. 5
NEW CHURCH LIFE

194

     "We find it so easy to tell the children to stop being angry at each other because the offenses were not intended" (p. 196). "There is not one of us who has gone through life without making mistakes, without causing hurts . . ." (p. 198). This eminently applicable sermon is by Rev. James P. Cooper who is now assistant pastor of the Durban Society and headmaster of the Kainon New Church School.
     Of special interest in this issue is the beginning of an exploration of the cult question. Rev. Grant Schnarr addressed the Council of the Clergy in March on the real possibilities at the present day of the New Church being mistaken for a cult. On page 210 of this issue he asks, "What would we say to the accusation that Swedenborg was a spiritist?" Readers, please take note that an excellent article relating to this appeared in the January issue of 1984. The article: "Swedenborg-Unlike Mediums" was by Rev. John L. Odhner, who this month is beginning a series on quite another subject.
     We are pleased to present, beginning in this issue, a number of articles under the title, "A Light Burden." They seem likely to be widely appreciated and genuinely helpful at the very heart of religious Life. And speaking of doctrine applying to life, the article by Rev. William Clifford on anger is an outstanding illustration that doctrine is by no means remote from the realities of everyday life.
     There is evidence of increased attention to the new translation of the Arcana Caelestia; and we expect that the review of the third volume (p. 213) will by no means go unread.
     Bishop Willard D. Pendleton states in a letter this month that an article we published in January is worthy of wider attention. The article last month on the uncertainty of life and the space shuttle has been copied and circulated by appreciative readers. And how did that article get those typographical mistakes in it? See below.
     Our proofreading team maintains a standard of excellence month after month. It might have seemed at first glance that in four pages of our last issue they fell below that high standard. Not so. In the corrected version that article was ready to print without a mistake. For a while we had a sign that said, "If something can go wrong, it will go wrong." Reading the sign makes one resolve that it will not. Well, something did go wrong last month, and four uncorrected pages did get printed instead of the corrected ones. This has not happened before, and it can never . . . .
     Let's say we intend that it shall not happen again.

195

AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US 1986

AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US Rev. JAMES P. COOPER 1986

     "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matt. 6:14-15).

     Our text is taken from the Sermon on the Mount, the verses that immediately follow the Lord's prayer. These words are extremely familiar to us as the responsive that follows the Lord's prayer in our worship services: "O Lord forgive us our trespasses." "As we forgive those who trespass against us."
     Forgiveness is an extremely important topic because we are all affected by it in so many aspects of our life. We look to our own lives, and see our failures, and we pray to the Lord for His forgiveness. We examine our relationships with our family or friends and see that we have done things that have angered or hurt them, and we long for their forgiveness. Perhaps we even look deeply enough to see the things that we deeply regret that we have done to ourselves or others against our better judgment, things that cause us to grieve, to say, "I'll never forgive myself for that." We need to be able to forgive ourselves so that we can be at peace with ourselves and get on with life.
     All these kinds of forgiveness-from the Lord, from others, and from ourselves-have one thing in common: that we have done something wrong that has caused offense to others and for which we need to make amends. This is the forgiveness that is given the most attention in the Heavenly Doctrines, for it specifically regards our relationship with the Lord.
     However, there is another side to forgiveness that is just as important to our spiritual welfare, and that is that we must be forgiving to others.
     As we are all too aware, we live in the natural world, a place that while governed by the Lord, is also subject to the effects of evil men exercising their freedoms, which means that things do not always happen as we believe they should. People try to say one thing and something else is heard, or communication fails entirely; a friendly remark made in passing strikes deeply into an unknown sore spot and causes extreme pain instead of the intended laughter. We could go on at some length compiling a list of the ways in which we can offend people without intending it, or even knowing that it has happened, but the picture should be clear by now. Giving and receiving offenses is a fact of life in the natural world.

196

These offenses lead us to feelings of anger, enmity, and hatred toward those with whom we live and work. Everyone can immediately see that feelings of anger, enmity and revenge make it impossible to act in charity toward the neighbor, and since the life of religion is to do good,-and is called Divine worship, these angry feelings actually withhold us from a life of religion. Forgiveness is the only salve for these wounds.
     The Heavenly Doctrines of the New Church tell us that in the other world, spirits-that is, those who have recently died in this world, but have not yet fully prepared themselves for choosing between heaven and hell and so still live in the world of spirits which stands between heaven and hell sometimes do or say what is wrong. Spirits who intend evil to another and then act on it are severely punished. However, good spirits, if they happen to speak something unkind or thoughtless, or do something that has been forbidden, are not punished, but pardoned and excused; for it was not their intention to do evil, and since such behavior is known to be excited in them by hell, so it is not judged to be their fault; their intention has been good, and this can be observed by others from the fact that the spirit resisted the act beforehand, and if he failed in his resistance, then he was obviously grieved after the fact. These are the signs that the angels use to judge a man's intent. We too can use these signs (resisting beforehand, and grief if we fail) ourselves in our daily relationships with other unregenerate human beings. (See AC 6559.)
     It has happened to all of us that an unkind word or an evil act has simply popped out before we could do anything about it. We should then be able to recognize in the abstract that this can happen to anyone, and when it does, it is not his fault. As long as we are not personally involved, we can stand aloof, be objective and try to calm the angry parties down. We frequently excuse one to the other by saying. "Yes, but he didn't mean for that to happen." This is even easier for us to imagine when we think of an adult trying to settle a silly argument between squabbling children. We find it so easy to tell the children to stop being angry at each other because the offenses were not intended. We insist that they stop being so silly, make up, and be friends. We assure each of them that there was no evil intention involved, that forgiveness should come naturally and easily.
     It is much more difficult to be calm and objective about a situation when it involves us personally, because our built-in defenses are immediately called into play. Laying the blame can become muck more important than what is the right or wrong thing to do. Finding out who's at fault becomes much more important than solving the problem. The Lord created each of us with a strong love of self which is to be used to help us defend, care for, and educate ourselves.

197

It was designed to be under the control of the rational adult mind and be fully subservient to the loves of the Lord and the neighbor. However, it is not yet fully I controlled in most of us, and so intrudes into our lives, blinding us to reasonable explanations, and making us feel vengeful.
     Our text tells us two essential truths about forgiveness. First it tells us that the Lord wills to forgive us for those things which we have done against His commandments, and secondly it tells us that in order to receive the Lord's forgiveness, we must first forgive those who have offended us. We may be able to see that we should forgive those who have offended us but do not know how. We might be able to say, "I forgive you," but find that still the anger bums within, the grudge is still carried. How can we forgive in such a way that we feel better for it ourselves? We must look to the Lord's example for our answer.
     The Lord tells us that He can forgive any sin-except one: blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven because it is in effect the denial that the Lord can save. If a man denies that the Lord can save him, or believes that he does not need to be saved, he will not then ask for forgiveness. Since we know that in all things the Lord seeks to protect a man's spiritual freedom above all else, it can be seen that the Lord will not forgive a man who does not wish to be forgiven, who will not ask for help. The Lord can forgive any sin, help man out of any trouble, if only the man sincerely asks Him for help. This is why blasphemy against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven: it is not the Lord who refuses to forgive, but the man who refuses the Lord. The Lord will not enter a man's life without his invitation.
     We should try to adopt the Lord's attitude, learn from His example. We need to cultivate a forgiving attitude in ourselves, be willing to forgive any offense. This is, of course, extremely difficult to do at first, since our emotions become stirred so quickly, but it might be helpful to remember squabbling children, and try to ask ourselves, when offended, if we really believe that the other person intended to offend us, and we believe that there was no intention of harm, what then were they trying to do? We may find that in most cases where we might take offense there never was any real offense to forgive!
     In our third lesson, we read about three degrees of hatred. The first, signified by being "angry without cause," is to have evil thoughts about another person, and could be exemplified by common gossip. The second degree of hatred, signified by saying "Raca" is to intend evil for another, and could be exemplified by slander. The third degree, signified by saying "Thou fool" is the evil will, which would lead to harmful action toward another.

198

     In forgiveness each of these three degrees of anger and hatred must be met by the appropriate degree of love and charity. We need to be prepared to counter evil thoughts with good thoughts, evil intentions with good intentions, and evil will with good will.
     As we saw in the parable of the unforgiving servant, and as can be seen in many other places in the New Testament, the Lord wants us to forgive others in the same way He will forgive us. And in the same way that the Lord fails when a man chooses to refuse His forgiveness and join others like himself in hell, we too will sometimes fail in our relationships with other people. We may be forgiving but they cannot bring themselves to ask for it. It is unfortunately true that there are people who, for one reason or another, act as if they either don't care about the feelings of others or else they actually enjoy hurting their feelings. There is not much we can do about them, for that is the path which they have freely chosen, except to hope that they may eventually see the light and change their lives.
     There is not one of us who has gone through life without making mistakes, without causing hurts which we did not intend. We need to try to look at the words and actions of others in the same way that the angels look down on the words and actions of the spirits new to the other life. We need to look for the signs of resistance or regret that would indicate the intention of others, and look to our own heart's desire for ourselves. We need to recognize that the feelings of anger, enmity, and hatred that we feel come from hell precisely because the devils know how these feelings destroy charity while appealing to our love of self, and so we must shun them as we would shun adultery or murder. We must even judge ourselves honestly according to the actual intentions we had at the time, and not according to facts that came to light only after the action had already been taken. The Lord judges only according to a man's intention, and forgives all who ask for mercy, provided that they themselves have practiced mercy and forgiveness. "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matt. 6:14-15). Amen.

     LESSONS: Matthew 18:21-35, Luke 6:20-38, AE 746 (portions)

199

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) 1986

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) Rev. JOHN L. ODHNER 1986

     Most of the people I talk to in this church seem to realize that shunning evils plays a very important part in one's spiritual growth. Of course, it is one of the fundamental doctrines of the church, and I guess we ministers tend to talk about it fairly often. Sometimes I hear people complain, "Why do we have to hear so much about shunning evils? Why not focus on more positive things?"
     This kind of complaint makes me reflective, and a little sad. I ask myself, "How could anyone be turned off by a concept that is so inspiring, hopeful, and excitingly powerful:," I wonder whether we possibly have paid too much attention to the bare fact that we ought to shun evils, and not enough attention to the encouraging instructions on how to shun evils.

     The hells make it hard

     Have you ever had that horrible feeling of guilt that comes when you see yourself committing the same hellish evils again and again? Repeatedly you say to yourself. "I can't let myself do this again!" . . . But you do it again. You worry about it, you pray about it. You beg the Lord for help . . . and you do it again. You tell Him, "I'm really trying." Then you wonder if you really are. You see how you are gradually destroying yourself, and perhaps destroying your family and friendships as well. "I don't want to hurt people." you plead, but it happens again. Your mind trembles with the question, "Will it ever end?"
     The only answer is silence, and echoing pieces of past conversations, saying almost mockingly, ". . . shun evils, that's all . . ." "There's no easy way out-you just have to compel yourself . . . ." "You just aren't trying hard enough . . . ."
     I suppose the hells would love to make the job of shunning evils as difficult and confusing as possible, and then sit back and taunt us and accuse us as we struggle to free ourselves from the evils that they have chained us to. I think of how people taunted the Lord when He was on the cross, "You're Christ, aren't You? Save Yourself!" They say the same things to us: "What's the matter? You're a New Church person, aren't you? You have no excuses! Why don't you save yourself?"
     Perhaps one of the ways the hells make things more difficult is by fooling us into thinking that it is supposed to be difficult, so that we will not look for an easier way (the Lord's way).

200

     Remember the story of Naaman? He came to the house of Elisha to be healed of his leprosy. He was expecting the great prophet to make a dramatic entrance, wave his hand over the leprosy, and perhaps ask Naaman to do some great deed in order to recover. Naaman was angry when he did not even see the prophet, and instead a servant came to tell him simply, "Wash in the Jordan seven times and your flesh will come clean." Merely washing was too simple for Naaman. He wanted something more exciting or challenging. Of course, washing is a symbol of repentance. We sometimes overlook a simple cleansing of the heart, thinking the way to heaven is supposed to be more difficult.

The Lord Wants It to Be Easier

     The Lord has no desire to put roadblocks on the path to heaven. He wants to make regeneration as easy as possible for us. His love is so great, and His desire to be close to us is so urgent, that He will go to any length to remove the barriers to our spiritual progress.
     He is constantly working against those who try to make life more difficult than it already is. When the Children of Israel were slaves in Egypt, the Lord said to them. "I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage" (Ex. 6:6). Years later, when the leaders of Israel in their turn became too oppressive, the Lord admonished them through Isaiah, "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?" (Isa. 58:6). He rebuked the Pharisees because "they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; gut they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers" (Matt 23:4; cf. Luke 11:46). He said, "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea" (Mark 10:42).
     Yes, the hells are trying to make things difficult for us, but the Lord promises to make the road easier for us if we will trust His way. He says, "I will cause them to walk . . . in a straight way in which they shall not stumble" (Jer. 31:9). "Prepare the way, take the stumbling block out of the way of My people" (Isa. 57:14). "His burden shall be taken away from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck" (Isa. 10:27). "Cast your burden upon the Lord and He shall sustain you" (Psalm 55:22). "He shall give His angels charge over- you, to keep you in all your ways. They shall bear you up in their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone" (Ps. 91:11, 12).
     This does not mean that getting to heaven is as easy as falling off a log. Getting to heaven (like getting to hell) will never be so easy that you can get there by mistake.

201

You cannot get to heaven without temptation, trial, combat, struggle, pain, grief, and despair. The Lord never offers us an alternative to shunning evils. By all means prepare yourself for a difficult fight.
     The purpose of this article is to dispel the feeling that "it's too difficult. It can't be done." The fact is that the way to heaven is not as difficult as people often suppose (see HH 528-535). The Lord is helping you. You do not have to be superhuman. You do not have to be someone special. The Lord makes the process of shunning evils so easy that anyone can do it (see TCR 580).
     "Come unto Me all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light"(Matt. 1:27).

What You Can Do About It

     Overcoming evil is easier for some people than it is for others (see TCR 561-563). A philosophical discussion of this statement might lead us in a dozen directions and leave us wondering whether life is really fair, and what it really means for something to be "difficult" or "easy." Being unable to answer those questions, I want to focus on the more practical side of the issue by pointing out that if you find the task of regeneration overwhelming, there are many positive steps you can take to make the process of shunning evils easier for you than it is now.
     Suppose you have been fixing a car, and your hands are covered with black grime. You take a dry rag and wipe off your hands, but much of the grime remains. That stuff is really hard to get off. You could rub your hands raw with that rag, and they would still be dirty. Fortunately, it is easier if you use a little water. Adding some soap helps, too. Better yet, the right kind of solvent, or a good hand cleaner designed for this kind of mess, will take the grime off like magic.
     Evil is hard to get rid of too. You can work at it and work at it and still feel you are failing. Fortunately, the Lord gives us principles designed for this kind of mess. Applying them to your mind and life will make the process much easier. In next month's article I will explain a few of those principles.

202

ANSWERING THE CULT QUESTION 1986

ANSWERING THE CULT QUESTION Rev. Grant R. SCHNARR 1986

     The Writings indicate that the New Church will be persecuted because of her beliefs. The woman clothed with the sun in the book of Revelation represents the church in the heavens and on the earth (AR 533). The dragon who is said to persecute the woman represents "those in the church of the Reformed who make God three and the Lord two, and who separate charity from faith" (AR 537). This dragon is said to exist in the spiritual world (AR chapter 12, Preface), but is also in conjunction with those who hold the same doctrines here on earth (Ibid., AR 552, 558). We are told that the dragon's standing over the woman ready to devour her child signifies "those who . . . are doing their utmost to extinguish the doctrine of the New Church at its first appearance" (AR 542). We are further told that the dragon, after being cast down from heaven, continues to persecute the woman (AR 560). Much of this persecution is verbal or in the form of "reasonings derived from plentiful untruths far the purpose of destroying the church" (AR 563). This is signified by the great flood issuing forth from the dragon's mouth (Ibid.). We are told that Michael and his angels who fight against the dragon represent "men of the New Church, by 'Michael' the wise ones there, and by 'his angels' the rest" (AR 564).
     If we look at the brief history of the New Church on the earth we can see some persecution of those who have upheld the Heavenly Doctrines We are familiar with the Gothenburg trial in 1769 and 1770. There was also the trial of Rev. Sven Schmidt in 1771, Kant's satire of Swedenborg in 1766 and Wesley's commentary in 1781.1 Although these were the more extreme incidents of persecution or ridicule, many of the same type of verbal attacks continued on an individual basis in isolated circumstances. Probably each one of us can recall either a story of another's bout with verbal persecution or even remember something that happened to us personally. Those ministers whose occupation it is to spread the church and make it known often hear criticism or ridicule of the church and her doctrines. These criticisms often take the form of accusation, one of these accusations being that the Church of the New Jerusalem is a cult.
     There are several examples of this from my personal experience and also from others' experience in recent times. When I attended the Schuller Institute in California two years ago most people politely nodded with a slightly puzzled look on their faces when I said I was from the New Church (Swedenborgian), but two ministers, upon hearing what church I was from, accused me of being a cult member.

203

I was so taken aback that I did not know how to respond. I remember my mouth dropped open and I began mumbling something about being Christian, but I really did not know what to say.
     Three of our newest members of the Chicago Group also have stories to tell of enduring ridicule and warnings from family about joining the New Church. The sister of one was upset because she had heard we are a cult. The brother of another new member firmly believed that the New Church was part of the anti-Christ and brought out the book Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martin to prove it. (Chapter 11 of the book is titled "The Church of the New Jerusalem-Swedenborgianism.") Still another new member's mother believed that the church performed animal sacrifices. We had a lot of fun with this one.

     There may have been a time when being called a cult meant nothing more than being called a church or a religious organization. Most dictionaries define the word "cult" as "a system of worship of a deity." Dr. Robert Gladish tells me that the word has always had the connotation of loyalty to a certain figure connected with a movement, possibly even an infatuation. But recently the word has been used in connection with the proliferation of many new small groups of people who have set themselves apart from the rest of society and their unconventional lifestyles have given the pejorative connotation of the word an added boost.
     Recently the word "cult" is being used to express something very negative. In the past fifteen years, with the emergence of the Unification Church, the Church of Scientology, and other unconventional religious movements, the word "cult" is fast becoming a derogatory term. To many it conjures up images of kidnaping and brainwashing, strange rituals and beliefs, the non-Christian, the non-Biblical. Does not the word "cult" today mean "an illegitimate religious organization, possibly dangerous?"
     With this in mind, one might ask, Why would anyone call us a cult? And there seem to be two different reasons for this. There are two different types of people who do the name calling. There are those who do so from ignorance and those who do so from their religious conviction.

In ignorance

     Those who call the New Church a cult from ignorance probably got the idea from those who have done it from religious conviction. They have not seen or heard anything firsthand to initiate the idea that the New Church is a cult.

204

It is just something they have heard. They know nothing about the true life of the church or teachings, but do know a bit about the organization and its origins. What little they know and what little they see confirms what they have heard. Cults are generally small; the New Church is small. Cults are secretive; the New Church (in many places) is a close-knit community. Cults follow a charismatic leader; Swedenborg (to the observer) appears to be that man. Cults often have extra-Biblical revelation; the New Church has the Writings. Cults are generally new organizations; the New Church is not new but is not well-known. This in itself causes suspicion. "How come I've never heard of it?" is a common question asked by those who are suspicious of the church organization.
     With the ignorant it is not so difficult to show them that the New Church is not a cult. These people, unlike those who act from religious conviction, are usually willing to listen to an explanation. They have only heard a few negative things but have no confirmed beliefs in their own minds.
     Although each individual will develop his own way of dealing with this issue, there are certain answers that could be given. What the ignorant accuser is looking for is credibility, a reason for the church's existence and the right to exist. The person is also interested in whether the church is a threat to him or not.
     With this in mind, one of the most important first statements should be that the New Church is Christian. Not only do the Writings indicate that this is a good place to start (TCR 791), but it also immediately establishes a certain credibility in the inquirer's mind. By being Christian we fit in somehow with Christian tradition and history. By being Christian we must believe in the Bible. To say we are Christian is to say to the person that he does not have to worry, we can fit into his idea of what a legitimate church should be.
     If credibility is what we must establish in these situations then let's not be afraid to talk about people and history. If the inquirer can link us up with someone or something he sees as legitimate, then it will help a great deal. With this in mind we have a tremendous list of renowned scholars, poets, political figures and the like who have been influenced by the Writings. By their knowing that Ben Franklin and Abraham Lincoln both read the Writings, that Johnny Appleseed was a New Church missionary, and Helen Keller a New Church woman, the church is made more legitimate in their minds. Who would accuse Abraham Lincoln of being associated with a cult? Is Helen Keller so frightening? There is a tremendous list of noteworthy people who have read and have confessed being influenced by Swedenborg.

205

We could help our credibility if we used these names more often in our dealing with inquirers.
     Then there is the question of Swedenborg's credibility. Since Swedenborg is not well-known, people who hear that we follow his teachings will automatically assume that he founded the church organization. If ignorance breeds contempt, then it is our duty to inform the inquirer to the best of our ability about who this man Swedenborg was, not only in doctrinal terms but historically as well. We might explain that Swedenborg made no attempt to start a church organization. In fact, he did not even attach his name to the majority of his published theological works. We know this well, but others do not, and it makes a great difference. Knowing this puts to rest the idea that the church was formed around a charismatic leader. There is a great difference between an organization which rallied around a magnetic personality with a vision or a cause and which continues on today in his name as opposed to a church based on a new theology and understanding of the Word. The latter is less threatening.
     One might ask, "if the church is not a cult, why is it so small and secluded?" There are many answers that one might give to this question. (See Rev. Douglas Taylor's doctrinal class, "Answering Objections to the New Church.") Briefly, there are several answers which have been found to be helpful.
     First of all, theologically, it was prophesied in the Writings that the church would be among a few in her beginnings. Apocalypse Revealed and Apocalypse Explained both state that the church would be among a few for a time until "provision was made for it to be among many" (see AE 764:2, AE 370, AR 246, AE 732, also AC 3898:3). We know that this is because the false ideas of the former Christian Church must be put away before the doctrines of the New Church can be accepted. Although this is almost an in-house argument, it gives a theological basis for our circumstances. We can rest assured that current circumstances are the way they are providentially, not because of accident. Instead of saying, "Gee, we are small. I guess there is something wrong with us," we can say, "Yes, numbers are few, but we knew they would be, because that is what our religion teaches us." It might also be pointed out that every church begins with a few and later grows to many.
     An additional answer to the smallness question is that our church organization has put great emphasis on education rather than the evangelical approach. This is not a negative statement. In fact, it can be quite positive. Our forefathers desired that institutions of learning be set up first. They recognized that setting up a basis for future doctrinal integrity was essential.

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They had to first figure out what these special teachings meant and how they should view them before they could begin an organized effort to openly make these teachings known to the world.
     Because of this we have achieved a great doctrinal strength and have done a good job of retaining our children within the church. We who are in the church may see retaining our young as a serious problem to be dealt with, but when compared to large Christian denominations, we have a far better record for retaining our young.
     It might be added at this point that there have always been individual missionary efforts within the church and that the church has continued to grow. And once again, this is more than one can say about many mainline churches today.
     Sometimes people point out the amazing growth that some other churches have had and ask why we haven't experienced the same sort of growth, especially if our church supposedly has so much to offer. The answer that I have used, which so far seems to work well, is that many of these fast-growth churches offer quick-fix solutions to life which look very appealing to people. Most of these churches are fads, or have some charismatic leader whom they follow, and when he dies or leaves, the congregation dissolves. What the Writings for the New Church offer are the facts, the facts about life, religion, good and evil, and many people are not interested in the facts, or in the idea that salvation or happiness takes work. They want both handed to them. Our circumstances here too deviate from the typical cult scenario. The church isn't a fad and offers no quick solutions to life. The church has not a long history, but a history nevertheless. The religion explains life but offers no palliative cure.
     The one fact that is often used to support the notion that the New Church is a cult is the fact that the church has extra-Biblical revelation. This accusation cannot be denied, but it can be answered in a rational and common sense way. And we must have an answer, because the most damaging thing we could do in this circumstance is acquiesce. The heart of the accusation is that the church is not legitimate because it has extra-Biblical revelation. By acquiescing we are not simply agreeing to the fact of extra-Biblical revelation, we are also silently affirming that we are not a legitimate church. That we have a new revelation cannot and should not be denied, but we can argue that it is very legitimate and in line with the Word that we have this revelation.
     It is written in the book of Revelation, "If any man shall add to these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book" (22:18). Many people use quotes from the Word like this one, without using their intelligence at the same time.

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They have been taught to simply spout off Scripture to prove or disprove certain doctrines and many times the Scriptural passage is quoted out of context or even misquoted. Nevertheless, Scriptural quotations have power, as we are well aware. With this in mind, we too must use Scripture in return, and with it, common sense.
     It is true that man should not add to the Word of God. But the quotation in Revelation specifically applies to the book of Revelation. Deuteronomy 4:2 has a similar warning. There we are told, "You shall not add to the Word which I command you, nor take anything from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God." Much has been added since Deuteronomy. What of this? Obviously no man shall add to the Word of God, but God can add to it and has. Since Deuteronomy, God spoke through many men-David, the prophets, Matthew, John-all men commissioned by the Lord. Isn't it possible that Swedenborg was one of these men so commissioned? The accuser does not have to accept this line of argument, but it is Biblically and rationally sound.
     Where is the Biblical proof that more revelation would come? It can be found in John, chapter 16. There we are told, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth." That is probably enough to quote, but the rest is fascinating when we compare this passage to the nature of the New Revelation. "For He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you" (John 16:12-14).
     What is the argument one could use to counter this? It would be, "Well, I don't interpret this passage that way," or, "That's a wrong interpretation of Scripture." But this is far better than saying, "You are directly opposed to the Word of God," or, "You have no basis in the Word of God." The wonderful thing is that the Writings do have their basis in the letter of the Word. The Writings are the Spirit of truth. Using the letter of the Word to show this and to uphold all New Church teachings is not only useful but essential.
     There are several other answers that could be given to the question of extra-Biblical revelation. One of these is the question of who determines the canon. If a fundamentalist Protestant accuses us of having extra-Biblical revelation, then we might point out that the Catholics also have more books in their canon than the Protestants. Is the Catholic Church a cult? There is much we could do to defuse the argument by dealing with the issue of canon. There is also the question, Do the Writings really add anything, or do they simply infill?

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     The person who is in basic ignorance about the church and who uses the word "cult" in relation to us because others have is really not so much of a threat. He or she may very will be open to receive an explanation. They are more inquiring than condemning, more in curiosity than in animosity. But there is another group which is firmly convinced that the Church of the New Jerusalem is a cult. This group, which we shall presently deal with, sees the New Church as a threat, not only to their people but to their teachings. This is the fundamentalist movement in the United States. The dragon? You can make your own decision.

     Kingdom of the Cults: Chapter 11, the Church of the New Jerusalem-Swedenborgianism

     Probably one of the most well-known books about cults which contains a chapter on the New Church is the book Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martin, first printed in 1965 and its 33rd printing in 1982. This book presents the typical theological arguments used to prove the New Church is a cult.
     Mr. Walter Martin is the professor of Comparative Religions and Apologetics at Melodyland School of Theology in Anaheim, California. He is also a Christian radio celebrity and lectures in hundreds of colleges, seminaries, universities, and churches throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia.
     On the whole, the book Kingdom of the Cults gives a fairly accurate account of the New Church doctrines. Martin also gives the church a bit more credit for influencing the world than we might. He says that the New Church "wields a considerable influence in the intellectual church circles," and that '"this particular cult has had a steady growth and today numbers more than a hundred thousand members throughout the world."2 He also acknowledges Swedenborg's great contributions to the world in all the different sciences. The problem is that he does not agree with the doctrines and obviously does not accept that Swedenborg was inspired by the Lord. His arguments are on a doctrinal level, most of which do not do a very convincing job of proving the Writings false, and he also deals a few low blows at Swedenborg's character. But the main chorus which is sung over and over again against the New Church is that Swedenborg "is directly opposed to the Word of God." As we look at some of the particular arguments we will see whether the use of such a statement is even remotely justified.
     After giving a short biography of Swedenborg, Martin's first statement is quite a powerful one. He says that Swedenborg's theology "in realms of non-Christian cultism," is unacceptable.

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He tells us, "His [Swedenborg's] concept of the Bible, the writings of the Apostle Paul and numerous other books of the Old and New Testaments places him well outside the pale of Christian theology. This is true not only concerning the Canon, but concerning such doctrines as the nature of God, the holy Trinity, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the doctrines of Salvation and Resurrection."3
     What would we say to this statement? The name calling (non-Christian cultism) is very distressing, and as of yet not proved. But we can fairly well agree with the rest of his statement here. Yes, the New Church's concept of the Bible, Paul and others, God, the trinity, the atonement, salvation and resurrection do place us outside of traditional Christianity. That is why it is called the New Church, It is a new Christianity based on a new understanding of the Word. Does this make the New Church a cult? It apparently does to Walter Martin. But what would he say about the Jews? What of the Moslems? What of all the great religions of the world which differ from traditional Christian doctrine? Are they all cults? Martin's argument breaks down unless he chooses to isolate fundamentalist Christianity from the rest of the world. In this case, to say that everyone is a cult but fundamentalist Christianity would be quite an arrogant position, and a little too openly condemning.

Personal Attacks

     Moving into a critique of the "Occult Theology of Swedenborg," Martin says, "Swedenborg considered himself, from 1745 until his death, the seer of a new revelation from God, which superseded the interpretational powers of the Apostles, church fathers and the reformers. This is a singular fact which emphasizes that modesty was not one of his strong points."4 We would probably emphasize the beginning of this statement even more strongly. The Writings are not an interpretation at all, but are indeed a new revelation from the Lord Himself. But the latter half of this statement is truly uncharitable and unfounded. Toward the end of the chapter Martin also warns New Churchmen about Swedenborg. He says, "In his council to the church at Colosse, the Apostle Paul uttered a warning which the followers of Swedenborg in particular might well take cognizance of: 'Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit'" (Col. 2:8).5
     Apparently Martin did not accomplish an in-depth study of Swedenborg or he would have known how concerned Swedenborg was about people admiring or venerating him. We are well aware that Swedenborg abhorred the idea. Is this not even more sad, that Swedenborg is being accused of something he seems to have abhorred the most-pride, self-merit?

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Swedenborg himself said, "I burst frequently into tears, not from sorrow but from inward rejoicing that our Lord had chosen to show so unworthy a sinner such grace" (JD 71). "Anyone accounting me a holy man and on this account offered me dignity-as indeed it happens among certain simple people that they not only venerate but even adore some supposedly holy man as a saint-I then found that in earnestness which then possessed me, I desired to do him all the ill I could to the highest degree, in order that nothing at all of the sin should stick to him, and that with earnest prayers I ought to appease our Lord, in order that I might never have any part of so damning a sin to stick to me" (JD 72). Is this the man who is so full of pride or vain deceit? Our critic's words are not only unfounded but seem to lack respect for an individual's personal dignity. It may be acceptable to disagree with one's doctrinal position but to judge another's spiritual character or motives seems to be contrary to the Lord's own words, "Judge not that you be not judged" (Matt. 7:1). It is also notable that the fact that Swedenborg did not put his name on the majority of his theological works is also curiously omitted here.

A Spiritual Medium

     Martin does not question Swedenborg's ability to see into the spiritual world. He does not take the stand that Swedenborg was insane or fabricating all his spiritual experiences. In fact, he quotes other authors on Swedenborg who say such things as, "No one can reasonably say that Swedenborg was insane," and also, "All this, although probably not hallucinatory, is at least perilous stuff."6
     Martin's focus of attack at this point comes in the accusation that Swedenborg did indeed contact spirits and is a spiritist. He says, "Swedenborg never denied such practices, and therefore, whether his followers wish to concede it or not, he was most certainly, in a large area of his theological and metaphysical practices and thought, a thorough-going spiritist."7
      This being the case, we are told that Swedenborg's practices are directly opposed to the "expressed commands of Scripture." He refers us to Leviticus 19:31 and also Leviticus 20:6, where it is written, "The person who turns after mediums and. familiar spirits, to prostitute himself with them. I will set My face against that person and cut him off from his people," and also, "Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them."
     What would we say to the accusation that Swedenborg was a spiritist? The most obvious answer is that Swedenborg never consciously tried to contact spirits but was led by the Lord to see into the other world so that he could tell us about it.

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Swedenborg was a revelator, in many ways like the prophets or apostles. With this in mind we might ask, "Was Isaiah a spiritist because he saw into the world of spirits? Were any of the prophets? Was John a spiritist because he had a vision on the Isle of Patmos? How about Paul who claimed to have had a vision of light? Even Luther who claimed to have seen the devil?
     This line of argument is not designed to convince Walter Martin or any fundamentalist who is determined to discredit the church. I doubt whether one could change this type of person's mind on such a subject. But there are always those who are on the sidelines, quietly listening. To these, we can appeal to reason. No, they do not have to accept on faith that Swedenborg was a revelator. But they can accept that there is that possibility. We should ask the question, "Is it not possible that Swedenborg was a revelator and not a spiritist?" When we ask this the question is placed back on the accuser. Do they believe that God has stopped speaking to man? They probably do, but now the argument is about revelation and is a question directed to them, and this is by far a. better field for us to do battle on. At the heart of all these accusations is the simple denial that Swedenborg could have been inspired. The sooner we can bring this out the better, for the underlying reason they have for calling us a cult is that they cannot accept the idea of new revelation.
     In some ways it is comical how the New Church can be accused of following a spiritist and of being a cult when often the very accusers believe and practice many things which are by far more spirit-oriented or cult-like than we've ever been. How many fundamentalist television preachers today claim to have had visions, the power of healing and casting out demons? How many regularly speak in tongues or send their parishioners into swoons by the touch of the hand, or claim to have seen a vision of Jesus or the Holy Spirit? There are also other areas-offering quick fix solutions to life, keeping close tabs on church members, using persuasive techniques in preaching, and many other things which they use in their definition of a cult when accusing others, but cannot see it in themselves. It is ironic.
     Swedenborg was not a spiritist, and he warns strongly against such practices. He says, "It is believed by many that man may be taught of the Lord by spirits speaking with him; but they who believe and desire this do not know that it is connected with danger to their souls" (AE 1182). "It is believed that man might be more wise if he should have immediate revelation through speech with spirits and with angels, but the reverse is the case" (De Verbo 29). Not only is talking with spirits dangerous, but useless if one wishes to learn spiritual truths. Therefore Swedenborg, in speaking of his own inspiration, affirms, "that from the first day of that call I have not received anything whatever pertaining to the doctrines of that church from any angel, but from the Lord alone while I have read the Word" (TCR 779).

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The Lord taught Swedenborg not through spirits or even angels, but through His own Word, the very thing he is accused of going against.
     Martin introduces the New Church theology to the reader by stating, "Such evidence of Swedenborg's communication with the spirit world . . . would be sufficient to make any thoughtful Christian suspicious of his theological system, even before examining it thoroughly. But happily, an exhaustive analysis of his voluminous works is not necessary to reveal the fact that Swedenborg was far from being a Christian, and certainly was not a Christian theologian."8
     Once again we see name calling but no evidence for such name calling as of yet. Martin goes on from here to quote the Writings on various doctrines, including the Divinity of Jesus Christ which contradicts his last statement. There are several lengthy passages from the Writings cited, about the Word. the trinity, vicarious atonement, life after death and more. At least here the Writings speak for themselves. The quotes are good ones, clearly stating New Church doctrine and the reasons for them. The doctrinal arguments the Writings present here seem very clear and sensible to me, but I confess I was brought up believing them. Nevertheless, it seems to me (and to those new members of our church who have come across the book) that the quotes do not help Mr. Martin's argument. They are strong and compelling as truth tends to be. Standing alone, the quotes themselves offer a powerful defense for the New Church.
     But after quoting at length. Martin undertakes to refute one teaching after another. We will demonstrate this in the next issue.

     FOOTNOTES

     1 Apparently Rev. Sven Schmidt was put on trial in 1771 before the Skara Consistory for promoting the Writings. He was eventually confined to an insane asylum at the request of the Consistory and died there in 1805.
     Kant's satire is Dreams of a Spirit Seer: Explained by Dreams of Metaphysics, 1766.
     Wesley's commentary may be found in an article called "Swedenborg and
Wesley." by Rev. Ormond Odhner. NEW CHIIRCH I.IFE, 1958:55.
     2 Kingdom of the Cults, Walter Martin, p. 241
     3 Ibid., p. 243
     4 Ibid., p. 245
     5 Ibid., p. 251
     6 Spiritualism, Its History, Phenomena and Doctrine, J. Arthur Hill, pp. 42-44
     7 Kingdom of the Cults, Walter Martin, p. 245
     8 Ibid., p. 246

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Translation of Arcana Caelestia, vol. 3, by Rev. John Elliott 1986

Translation of Arcana Caelestia, vol. 3, by Rev. John Elliott Prescott A. Rogers 1986

     REVIEW

     Translation of Arcana Caelestia, vol. 3, by Rev. John Elliott

     It is not my purpose here to give an extensive review of the most recently published volume of the new translation of the Arcana Caelestia by Rev. John Elliott for the Swedenborg Society. I gave such a review for the first volume (see the September, 1984 issue of NEW CHURCH LIFE, p. 438ff.). The purpose of this review is to evaluate the third volume of the Arcana Caelestia in its own right, and, perhaps more importantly, to emphasize those points made in my previous review which I believe were not communicated well. This has led to a misconception on the part of very many as to my opinion of Mr. Elliott's work. (For an example of this, see the letter in the January, 1986 issue of NEW CHURCH LIFE, p. 37.) The reason for this failure is the way in which I presented the review. Because I gave many examples of what I considered to be overly complicated sentences, and at the same time gave few examples of what I sincerely believe to be a solid and well written translation, many readers gained the impression that my response to the new translation was negative, or lukewarm at best. This is not true. My evaluation of Mr. Elliott's work was, and is, that he has given the English-speaking members of the New Church a very useful opportunity to understand the Lord's Divine truth, as it is revealed in the Arcana Caelestia, in a much better way.
     Mr. Elliott's translation continues to be accurate in its faithfulness to both the Latin and the English. The message of the Lord's truth presented by Swedenborg in Latin is transferred well into English. It is a difficult task, however, to translate that message from Latin, which uses very complex sentences, into English, which almost demands much less complexity. Whereas Latin loves multiple-clause sentences, English does not. It prefers two-clause sentences with several one-clause and three-clause sentences, along with an occasional multiple-clause sentence. The temptation for a translator is to follow Latin sentence structure when translating from Latin, because it is easier to do so than to break away from it. Although I still feel that Mr. Elliott too often uses overly complex sentence structure, he admirably resists the temptation to do so much of the time. The result of this is that his English style is smooth, and is even refreshing in contrast with the very heavily Latinized English this new translation will hopefully replace in a short time. I also believe that Mr. Elliott's style has improved in the three volumes presently available.
     For the most part Mr. Elliott has made wise decisions in his choice of English words for certain Latin terms.

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He uses words with common and clear meaning in place of Latinized words prevalent in previous translations (e.g., "mean" instead of "signify"). His phrases show a similar improvement. The better choice of words and phrases, along with the improved style, make the new translation a better vehicle for conveying the Lord's truth to mankind.
     The reader is here urged to get hold of a copy of the third volume of the Arcana Caelestia and do some comparisons. Randomly select passages from the new translation and compare them with an old translation. Also, read large sections from Mr. Elliott's work, and then read the same sections from previous translations. I am confident that you will readily notice a marked improvement. This is the procedure I used in the evaluation of the third volume for this review. Such a comparison of single passages is here presented to illustrate my points. And be assured, these passages were randomly selected, and no passage was rejected if it did not show improvement.

     2379. And brought Lot into the house to them. That this signifies that the Lord protects those who are in the good of charity is evident from the representation of Lot as being those who are in the good of charity (spoken of above); and from the signification of "bringing into the house to them" as being to protect. To be "brought into the house" denotes to be brought into good; and they who are brought into good are brought into heaven; and they who are brought into heaven are brought to the Lord; hence they are protected from all infestation as to their souls. That the man who is in good is as to his soul in society with angels, and while living in the body is nevertheless in heaven (although at the time he is not aware of this, and is not able to perceive angelic joy in consequence of being in corporeal things and in a state of preparation) may be seen above (n. 1277).-[From the standard edition of the Swedenborg Foundation, first published in 1854]

     2379 "And brought Lot into the house to them" means that the Lord affords protection to those with whom the good of charity is present. This is clear from the representation of "Lot" as those with whom the good of charity is present, dealt with above, and from the meaning of "bringing into the house to them" as affording protection. "Being brought into the house" means being brought into good; and those who are brought into good are brought into heaven; and those who are brought into heaven are brought to the Lord and are consequently protected against every assault on their souls. As to iris soul, anyone with whom good is present is in communion with angels; and so while living in the body he is nevertheless in heaven, though he is not directly conscious of it and is unable to perceive angelic joy because he is engrossed in bodily things and undergoing preparation [for heaven], see 1277. -[From the new translation, published by the Swedenborg Society]

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     2716. As regards the second arcanum, namely, that the obscurity with the spiritual is illuminated by the Lord's Divine Human, it is one which cannot be explained to the comprehension, for it is the influx of the Divine that would have to be described. But some idea of it may be obtained by considering that if the supreme Divine Itself were to flow into such a good as has been deseribed, defiled by so many evils and falsities, it could not be received; and if anything were received by the man who had such good, he would feel infernal torture and would thus perish. But the Lord's Divine Human can now in with such men and can illuminate such good as the sun shines into the dense clouds and transforms them in the early morning into the glories of the dawn; and yet the Lord cannot appear before them as the light of the sun, but as the light of the moon. Hence it is evident that the cause of the Lord's coming into the world was that the spiritual might be saved (see n. 2661).-[From the standard edition of the Swedenborg Foundation]

     2716. As for the second arcanum-that the obscurity with those who are spiritual is brightened by light from the Lord's Divine Human-it is an arcanum that cannot be explained intelligibly, for it is the influx of the Divine that would have to be described. But one may gain some idea of it simply from the consideration that if the supreme Divine Itself were to flow into the kind of good that has been described-good that has been defiled by so many evils and falsities -it could not be received; and if anything were received by someone possessing such good, he would experience hellish torment and so perish. But the Lord's Divine Human is able to enter into those persons and to brighten such good, much as the sun shining into thick clouds produces in the early morning lovely signs of the dawn breaking. Yet the Lord is unable to present Himself before them as the light of the sun, only as the light of the moon. From this it may be seen that the reason the Lord came into the world was to save those who are spiritual, see 2661.-[From the new translation]

     Most other passages compared show a similar improvement, and often a greater improvement than these randomly selected passages indicate. But this is not always the case. There are some overly complex sentences still, and occasionally there is an awkward sentence. This awkwardness is produced, I believe, from the complexity of the sentence. The following is an example: "The truth that all the travels of the people in the wilderness mean the state of the church militant, and its temptations, in which a person goes under but the Lord conquers on his behalf, and the truth that consequently they mean the Lord's own actual temptations and victories, will in the Lord's Divine mercy be shown elsewhere" (AC 2714:4). Even though Mr. Elliott's translation is a great Improvement over what is available, his work would be that much better if he would strive even more greatly for a more simplified English style.

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Such a style would not lose the message of the Lord's revealed truth, and would make it more accessible to most English-speaking people.
     At this point of the review it seems trivial to make the following note, and yet many buyers of the new translation have wondered why the Swedenborg Society has chosen to present the dust jacket in a color different from the color of the first two volumes (a pea green instead of a peach). Buyers of the Arcana Caelestia probably would prefer to indicate the unity of the work by the use of the same color for all its volumes. I would.
     But I do not want to end this review on two negative points. Instead I close with two expressions of gratitude. I thank NEW CHURCH LIFE for allowing me to emphasize points which were missed in my previous review. Mr. Elliott's translation is a welcomed improvement over aging translations. And I thank Mr. Elliott for his dedicated and successful work.
     Prescott A. Rogers
ANGER 1986

ANGER Rev. WILLIAM H. CLIFFORD 1986

Anger is a very common emotion. If we are honest with ourselves, we must admit that we spend a lot of our life being angry. We get angry when things don't go right-when something doesn't work the way it is supposed to, or it breaks down, when our best laid plans don't work out as we expected. We get angry at our spouses, our children, our friends and relatives. We get angry at our bosses and at our employees. We get angry when people do things, and when they don't.
The fact that we spend much of our life being angry is testified to by the Lord in the Word. For we take with us into the world of spirits our earthly character. So the world of spirits is of the same character as the people of whom it consists. And anger, being so much a part of our own lives, is also an essential characteristic of the world of spirits, as the Lord tells us.

The world of spirits is of such a character that when any relaxation is granted [the spirits there], . . . they are immediately filled with indignation and anger. It has been granted to me to perceive how indignation and anger rule in the world of spirits.

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[Namely], that it prevails in the [smallest] things of the senses and perception, so that not . . . the least thing can be given [which does not become the object of] common indignation and anger. . . and turned into evil. The reason is that when hatred rules, there also rules a common sphere of indignation and anger against all that is true and good. I speak from living experience. Wherefore, unless such spheres of turning, or turnings into evil as I may call them, were restrained by the Lord, man could not help destroying at once all that was still true and good in him (SD 2310; emphasis added).

     Anger is a very natural emotion. All of us get angry. And we have mixed feelings about it. We know that we sometimes get angry without sufficient reason. And then we regret our anger. Sometimes, we will even apologize to the person we have been wrongly angry with. And we should. At other times, though, when we feel that we have been wrongly treated, we get angry and we don't feel bad about it. We feel justified in our anger. Our distinction between being justly and unjustly angry seems to be supported by the Lord's words in Matthew: "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder,' and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment" (Matt. 5:21, 22). This passage is a comfort to us. It seems to sap that if we have a just cause to be angry with another person, it is not a sin. It is only evil to be angry without just cause. This reaffirms the way we usually treat anger in our own lives.
     The difficulty is that while the Lord really does distinguish between anger with and without a just cause, it is not the same distinction that we usually make. Most of us try very hard not to be angry without just cause, but when someone has intentionally wronged us, we delight in our feelings of anger. If we take a moment to stop and think about our feelings of anger, we can see why the Lord would forbid anger: when we are angry, we feel hatred. We think unkind thoughts about the person we are angry with. Our mood becomes ugly and mean, and adversely affects even those we least wish to harm. And further, anger does much more damage to ourselves than it does to those whom we are angry at-which is why the Lord inspired Swedenborg to write in the passage we quoted earlier: "unless such spheres of turning, or turnings into evil as I may call them, were restrained by the Lord, man could not help destroying at once all that was still true and good in him" (SD 2310).
     The distinction we often make between just and unjust anger is simply about why we feel anger. The emotion we feel remains the same. The distinction the Lord makes involves not just why we feel anger but also the emotion we feel. To make this distinction clearer, the Lord uses two different words in the Writings: anger and zeal.

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For example, we are told by the Lord in regard to indignation and anger, that

whoever does not know what the affection of charity is, in consequence of not being in it, can have no other idea [of indignation than what a person] has when anything evil is done to him, which is the indignation of anger. 'The angels, however, have no such indignation, but an indignation altogether different, which is not that of anger, but of zeal, in which there is nothing of evil, and which is as far removed from hatred or revenge, or from the spirit of returning evil for evil, as heaven from hell; for it springs from good (AC 3839:3).

The distinction between anger and zeal is worth pursuing. Anger, we are told, "is the general emotion that results from anything which gets in the way of self-love and its desires" (AC 357). This means that zeal is the general emotion that results from anything which gets in the way of love: of the Lord or love of the neighbor and their desires. Again, we are told that "'Anger' means [a turning away], because so long as a person is angry with anyone, he [turns] his mind [away] from that person. For anger arises or is excited when anyone or anything opposes [a person's] love, by which he is attached to anyone or anything. When this attachment is broken, the person becomes angry or wrathful, as if something were lost from the enjoyment of his life, and consequently from his life. This sadness is turned into grief, and the grief into anger" (AC 5034). The difference between anger and zeal is in the love which is opposed. If a person's evils are opposed, he becomes sad at the attack on his love, and grieves at the loss of attachment to his evil, and becomes angry; whereas a person becomes sad if the good he loves is attacked, grieves at the loss of his attachment to that good, and becomes zealous in his defense of that good.
For the most part, in externals, anger and zeal appear very much alike. The real difference between anger and zeal can only be seen in their internals. Within anger lies hatred and revenge, while in zeal lies love and friendship (see CL 365). These internal affections give rise to some external indications of their presence in a person's behavior. Anger, for example, tends to take the offensive and attack its opponent, while zeal is defensive not just of its own good, but of the good of its opponent. The Lord likens this difference to a man caught in a fire and burning. An evil man from anger will rush upon the man, grab him, and push him; but his push will only force the man deeper into the fire. Zeal, on the other hand, will also rush upon the burning man, grab him, and push him; but away from the flames (see CL 365). Anger not only seeks to remove those who injure it, but also seeks to persecute them (AC 8598:2).

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Anger tends to be unforgiving, persisting in its effort to destroy its opponent, long after the opponent has ceased its attack (CL 365, AE 693). Zeal, on the other hand, has no hatred in it. It seeks to "remove those who are in what is evil and false lest they should injure those who are in good and truth" (AC 8598:2). Zeal ceases its outward harshness as soon as those whom it kindles itself against repent and turn away from their evils (AE 693). The reason for this is that "the internal of him who is in the love of good is in itself mild, bland, friendly, and kindly. Therefore, while, for the purpose of defending itself, his external is rough, bristles up, and erects itself and so acts with severity, yet it is tempered by means of the good in which is his internal. Not so with the evil. With them the internal is hostile, fierce, breathing hatred and revenge, and it feeds itself on the delights of these passions. Even when there is reconciliation, these passions are still hidden within, like fire in the embers beneath the ashes; and these fires break out, if not in this world, yet after death" (CL 365).
From these things we can see how anger differs from zeal. The Lord summarizes these differences briefly in the Arcana Coelestia: "Anger differs from zeal in there being evil in anger, but good in zeal. Also in the fact that he who is in anger intends evil to the one against whom he is angry, whereas he who is in zeal intends good to one toward whom he feels zeal. For this reason he who is in zeal can be good instantly, and when in the very act [of zeal] can be good toward others; but not he who is in anger" (AC 4164).
From these teachings it becomes obvious that, with or without cause, we should never become angry. If we have cause, we can and should become zealous. And while zeal is not a state of mind that good people enjoy, it is a state of mind that is necessary for the survival of what is good. Zeal is love striving to protect what is good and useful. Zeal is a state of mind that is imposed upon good loves by evil. Zeal fights to protect what is good, and the means by which it fights are fair. Anger on the other hand will use any means. And this is still another way in which we can distinguish between anger and zeal. Anger, because it springs from hatred, will use any means to fight against those who oppose its delights-murder, lying, cheating, stealing. Anything which anger feels that it can get away with, it will use to destroy its opposition. But zeal is different. No matter what means anger uses to destroy good, good will never resort to unfair means. The end never justifies the means. The Lord never uses evil means to accomplish good, and neither should we. Evil will do everything within its power to make you angry, hateful, and fill you with thoughts of revenge. Evil will insult you, treat you unfairly, and hurt you, all in an effort to get you to be angry. For it is only when you are filled with anger that evil succeeds in destroying you. The Lord explains the destructive force of anger this way:

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The loves that are with a person are the fires of his life. Evil loves, which are the loves of self and the world, are consuming fires, for they consume the goods and truths which belong to the very life. These fires constitute the life of a person's will, and the light from these fires constitute the life of his understanding. So long as the fires of evil are kept shut up in the will, the understanding is in light [of heaven], and from there able to perceive good and truth. But when these fires send their light into the understanding, the light [of heaven] is scattered, and the man is immersed into darkness . . . . When [evil] loves are attacked, then the fire from the will bursts into the understanding, and lights a flame there. This name is what is called anger. Hence a person is said to become heated, to take fire, and to be inflamed when he is angry. This name attacks the truths and goods which are in the understanding, and not only hides them, but also consumes them. And what has [up until now] been unknown, when this evil from the will bursts into the understanding, the understanding is then closed above and opened below. That is, it is now closed where it looks to heaven, and opened where it looks to hell. Hence it is that when an evil person becomes heated into anger, evils and falsities flow in, which are lit into flames (AC 9144; modified by WHC).

We must always oppose evil, but we dare not allow evil to destroy what is good and true in us. When we give in to our own selfish and worldly desires by becoming angry and seeking retaliation-an eye for an eye-we destroy not our opponents but only the Lord's goods and truths in us. We must always oppose evil from charity by fair and just means. The Lord has told us that he defends from evil everyone who is in good, according to the good the person has, and that He cannot defend those who are good if on account of the evil done to them they burn with hatred and revenge (AE 556:8). Anger turns away the Lord's protection.
We must always deal with others fairly from charity even when we must zealously defend ourselves from their evil attacks. We must always do to others as we would have them do to us, even when they do not treat us so well. So we must use what the Lord tells us about anger and zeal to examine our states so that we can shun anger as we would murder. It may seem like an impossible job because anger is so much a part of our lives. But if we strive for the Lord's mercy, the Lord will remove the anger from our hearts, and fill our hearts with zeal for His good. The Lord likens this change from anger to zeal to the rainbow that appeared after the darkness and flood waters of evil and falsity gave way to light of sun (SD 2346-2351). Anger and revenge may seem sweet, but how does a person profit if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?

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THE BETROTHAL RITE AS INTRODUCTION TO THE BETROTHAL STATE 1986

THE BETROTHAL RITE AS INTRODUCTION TO THE BETROTHAL STATE Rev. ERIK SANDSTROM 1986

     In this brief paper I want to make three points:

     - The betrothal rite is Introductory by nature.
     - It is tied to consent.
     - It is designed to lift toward an internal marriage, which is the betrothal state.

The betrothal rite is introductory

     Both the sacraments and all the rites of the church are Introductory by design and by nature. Their use is to introduce.
     Let me illustrate this point by a look at each of them.
     With regard to the two sacraments there is the following direct teaching: "That baptism is an introduction into the church has been shown in the chapter on baptism; but that the holy supper is an introduction into heaven is evident from what is said above, and to perception" (TCR 721).
     Baptism. There is a general introduction and a particular introduction. The Writings refer to this distinction, though not in those terms. In the TCR chapter on baptism we read: "Not only are infants baptized, but also all foreign proselytes converted to the Christian religion . . . and this before they have been instructed, from mere confession of their wish to embrace Christianity, into which they are inaugurated by baptism" (TCR 677). Here we have first a general introduction into Christianity, for they have in a general way "been converted to the Christian religion, and this before they have been instructed," that is to say, they have heard and seen enough of Christianity to know that "they wish to embrace it." Then they ask for baptism, and after the sacrament they are offered instruction in the particulars of the Christian doctrine and faith. There is therefore a particular or specific introduction into Christianity after baptism, for it is by baptism that they are "inaugurated" into the Christianity that they have come to wish to embrace, and into which they had been introduced in a general way.
     The Holy Supper. This sacrament is called "an introduction into heaven." It is so designated because "the Lord is present and heaven to those who approach the holy supper worthily . . . [and] they approach it worthily who have faith in the Lord and are in charity toward the neighbor, thus who are regenerate" (TCR 719, 722).

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     Regeneration, as we know, is an ongoing process, continuing also after death to eternity, though with the difference that before a person enters heaven as his final home there are with him states of combat, while afterwards there are states of peace. Heaven, therefore, can be compared to a perpetual help supper. On earth, on the other hand, the sacrament should be taken many times, and each time the communicant is reminded of his need to cleanse the inside of his cup and platter, so that these may be fit to be again replenished with the wine of Divine truth and the bread of Divine good. Each time a week of labor has gone before, and each time there is a lifting up into the sabbath of peace, a sabbath in which the food of heaven is once again tasted. So there is a recurring cycle of preparation and introduction.
     We come now to the rites of the church, of which three-betrothal, wedding, and inauguration/ordination-are directly commanded, and the others fall into the category of "the other parts of worship according to the ordinances of the church" (NJHD 124, AC 8253). I believe all the rites derive their holiness and power from the two sacraments, in that they echo, or somewhat parallel, one or the other of them. I forego an analysis of this point at this time, except to note that the first rite listed in our Liturgy is clearly an offshoot of baptism, namely,
     Confession of Faith or Confirmation. In the rubric itself the word "confirmation" is expanded to say "confirmation of baptism," which of course is what this rite is intended to be. It is a young adult's free-will acceptance of his infant baptism. That it is introductory then follows from what is said about baptism; but this is also recognized in the Liturgy in the postscript at the end of the ritual for this rite: "The rite of confession of faith does not bestow membership in any ecclesiastical body, but implies a readiness to enter into the life of the church" (p. 89).
     Marriage. We skip the rite of betrothal for the moment, and note with regard to the wedding ceremony that it very obviously serves to usher in a new state; but we note also that the foregoing state, namely that of betrothal, beginning from the time of consent (which is the essential of marriage), was in a more general way an introduction to the full marital state.
     Inauguration and Ordination. That this holy act is introductory is self-evident. It is also self-evident that the preparatory years of theological and pastoral training are introductory in a more general way. (See TCR 106.)
     Memorial Service. Even this rite, though less obviously than the others, is in the sphere of introduction-not that the church serves to introduce the deceased person, but heaven does, and the memorial service brings out this fact.

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     Home (and Church) Dedication. The home has been bought or rented, and the family has moved in. The parents-the children too, if they have been instructed and prepared-want their home to be one in which the Lord also can dwell. A home dedication is like opening a door and inviting the Lord to come in. The same, and in an even fuller sense, of course applies in the case of a church dedication.
     The Rite of Betrothal. As my above observations will have indicated, I do not believe the rite of betrothal to be a lone exception from the rule that the holy acts of the church are introductory. I readily recognize that in a broad sense consent introduces the state that precedes marriage, for it is a consent to marry. But let us be realistic and recognize too that the human mind and the flesh do not by themselves rise heavenward, and do not by themselves seek an internal marriage, or a marriage of the spirits. No man can rise up; he can only by willing cooperation be lifted up. At the time of consent a young man and a young woman are not conjoined internally, except potentially; but such conjunction is to take place through the state of betrothal as intitiated and guided by the now revealed teachings concerning that state. The human mind needs to be disciplined and formed by those teachings.
     The Writings are introducing something new in the world. A truly Christian marriage is among the things-in fact, I think we agree, among the very first things-included in the Lord's proclamation: "I make all things new." The following words are true: "After His advent conjugial love will be raised up anew by the Lord, such as it was with the ancients; for this love is from the Lord alone and is with those who are made spiritual by Him through the Word" (CL 81e; emphasis added).
     This, therefore, is the real reason why a solemn betrothal is now commanded. "Consent is to be strengthened and confirmed (firmandus et constabiliendus est) by a solemn betrothal" (CL 301; emphasis added). The Writings are re-introducing an essential ceremony which is otherwise largely if not wholly lost in the world; and they are re-introducing the ceremony because they are re-introducing and teaching the corresponding state.
     Thus while consent introduces a state-a general state of some sort-that precedes marriage, the church in the name of her Lord is to teach what that state ought to be, and by that teaching, the partners being willing, lifts up their minds toward that inner marriage that they will not, and cannot, experience without the new teachings of the Word. I am not forgetting here that our young men and women can know those teachings before they speak to each other about marriage; but neither am I forgetting that young people are not regenerate, although they may want to be.

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And the betrothal state, if guided by the Word, will help them as nothing else has beforetime. That is what is taught in the following: "There is no love which labors for [more interior openings of the minds] more intensely, or which opens the interiors of their minds more powerfully and easily, than conjugial love, inasmuch as the soul of each intends it" (CL 302).
     If the solemn ceremony, now prescribed for the church, is not to represent and usher in the true betrothal state, then I ask in puzzlement: What is it for?
     It is designed to be introductory. According to the law of representations and correspondences it is introductory, and has power, just as all the holy acts of the church derive their power from the state they represent and to which they correspond, and which they are ordained to herald. They are one and all for remembrance of what is to follow.

The betrothal rite is tied to consent

     It is for the sake of "strengthening and confirming consent" that a solemn betrothal has been ordained, and has been adopted by the General Church. It is tied to consent in concept; and if in concept, then as to timing also. It is not as to timing tied to the wedding.

     When in the past "early betrothals" have been advocated (by Rev. Gilbert Smith, Rev. Ormond Odhner, and by myself and others) this, regrettably, has been translated to mean "rushed betrothals." But rushed betrothals are not intended. There may be circumstances that call for delay, in exceptional cases even a long delay-as for instance in the case of a prolonged illness, or in the case of the man being sent abroad on a military assignment, etc. The heart and mind of each partner may still look to the confirmation before the Lord of their mutual consent to marry. The betrothal rite is tied to consent.

The betrothal rite is designed to lift toward an internal marriage, which is the betrothal state.
     We have already in part discussed this point. The rite is designed to lift the minds into the betrothal state, because it represents that state.
     However, I wish to add the following. First, that the description of the betrothal state follows immediately on the heels of the teaching that there is to be a betrothal ceremony, and this in one and the same paragraph. We read that "The reasons for betrothals are as follows:
     1. That after them the two souls may mutually incline to each other. . . ." where "after them._ obviously refers to betrothal rites. This by its own context implies the introduction of the state through the holy act of the rite.
     Second, that the teachings concerning the betrothal state serve to protect against misjudgments and disorders.

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Some have apparently felt that there is a danger of too much intimacy after the rite of betrothal, and that on that account it should come fairly close to the wedding. But the danger of too much intimacy is inherent in the natural minds of the partners; it is not inherent in the holy act of the church. Quite the contrary: Through the betrothal rite the partners are reminded that the state they are to foster is one of the marriage of their minds, so that "a marriage of the spirit may take place before that of the body . . ." (CL 303; emphasis added). The betrothal state is for protection, not for undue excitement.
I wish our young people would be clearly taught by all our ministers that conjugial love is meant to ascend all through the period prior to the wedding, that is, "from its first heat," which is enkindled at the time of consent, to the "nuptial flame" at the time of the wedding; for the descent of conjugial love into the body is of the same nature as it is "in the height to which it has ascended" (CL 302); and I wish we would all remember that "the lower parts of the mind are unchaste, but its higher parts chaste; for the lower parts of the mind cleave to the body, while its higher parts separate themselves from the lower . . ." (ibid.). And remembering this, should we not help our young people in their ascent by placing the teachings concerning it before them, through a holy act of the church, at the time when they need them the most, that is, near the beginning of their betrothal state?
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

     (Continued from p. 233)

     The Reverend Nathan D. Gladish has been called to serve as pastor of the San Diego Society of the General Church, effective July 1, 1986.
     The Reverend Cedric King has been called to serve as pastor of the Carmel Church in Caryndale, Ontario. Canada, effective July 1, 1986.
     The Reverend Paul E. Schorran has been appointed by the Bishop to serve as pastor to the Northeastern District, with residence in the Shelton, Connecticut area, effective July 1, 1986.
     The Reverend Christopher R. J. Smith has been called to serve as instructor of religion in the Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools, effective July 1, 1986.
NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

The May issue of the LIFE in 1936 mentioned a special service in Kensington, London, in which members of the various London societies witnessed the dedication of a memorial to James Frederick Buss "in affectionate and enduring remembrance of the blessings which he vouchsafed unto the New Church . . . ." That accomplished gentleman was the great grandfather of Rev. Peter M. Buss.

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     PAUL MISUNDERSTOOD

     Some have thought that whereas James taught charity, Paul emphasized faith, but that is a misunderstanding. Paul rejected faith without good works "equally with James" (AR 4 17). The doctrine of faith alone is not based upon a fair reading of Paul. It is actually based on a line from Paul that is quite misconstrued, or as the Writings say, "on a single saying of Paul falsely understood" (AR 825; see 750). Paul's emphasis on charity of love should be clear. He said that if there were the greatest faith and not love, that faith would be nothing (SD 5975). The reference is to I Corinthians 13, that powerful celebration of charity which speaks in the final verse of three things, faith, hope and charity, "but the greatest of these is charity." "Paul says that he who loves the neighbor obeys the commandments of the Decalogue" (Charity 210).
     That one line of Paul that is misunderstood comes from the third chapter of the letter to the Romans, the 28th verse. This says that man is justified by faith "apart from the works of the law," but attention to Paul's usage of "law" here shows that he is talking about details of Jewish ritual. (This is illustrated in AR 417.)

Those who have confirmed themselves by this saying in faith separate from charity, from gazing at this passage as at the sun, fail to see where Paul enumerates the laws of faith as being the very works of charity; and what is faith without its laws? Nor do they notice where he enumerates evil works, and declares that those who do them cannot enter into heaven. This shows clearly how great is the blindness that has been induced by a wrong understanding of this single passage (Divine Providence 115).

     In the book The Kingdom of the Cults, cited elsewhere in this issue, an "authority" on Swedenborg is represented as saying that Swedenborg disagreed "violently" with Paul (pages 242, 243). We have not so far been able to find an example anywhere in the Writings where Swedenborg explicitly disagrees with Paul violently or even mildly. We do not find it said that Paul was mistaken or wrong. (More on this another time.)

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     THE AMAZING QUALITY OF ANGELS

     "When People Are Like Angels" was the title of a February editorial in which we quoted the teaching that "the angels of heaven are not superior to men, but are their equals and are therefore equally the Lord's servants as men are" (AR 818). Let's look at some of the teachings that seem to exalt angels as wonderful.
     We have mentioned in a March editorial a bout the gestures of angels, "how choice and delightful their talk must be, affecting not only the ears but also the interiors of the mind of those who listen to it" (HH 238). Following this statement in Heaven and Hell is the teaching that "their speech is so full of wisdom that they can express in a single word what man cannot express in a thousand words" and that their ideas include such things as man "cannot grasp, still less express." The chapter of this work on the wisdom of the angels begins by saying that angelic wisdom can scarcely be described because it "too greatly transcends human wisdom to be compared with it." And one of the themes of that chapter is how great the wisdom of angels is "Their wisdom in comparison with human wisdom is as a myriad to one, or as the moving forces of the whole body, which are numberless, to the activities from them which appear to human sense as a single thing, or as the thousand particulars of an object seen under a perfect microscope to the one obscure thing seen by the naked eye" (WH 269). The greatness of their wisdom results in the amazing beauty of their faces.

The Impact of an Angel's Face

     The angel of the Easter story had a face "like lightning" and the keepers who beheld him shook from its impact (see Matt. 28:24). An Old Testament account of an angel's face shows that it was "very awesome" or "very terrible" (Judges 13:6). The faces of angels as described in the Writings are not just attractive, they are overwhelmingly and astonishingly beautiful. "Some who beheld this were struck with amazement." In Dr. Dole's translation this is, "Some people have seen them, and have been stunned" (HH 414). There is a relationship between truth and beauty. "Beauty is truth, truth beauty," said Keats. And when there is wisdom immensely surpassing human wisdom, there is also amazing beauty. It is the affection of truth that pervades an angel's face, the Writings say, and "from this it is that the angels appear in ineffable beauty" (AC 5199).
     "It is to be known that everyone's human form after death is the more beautiful in proportion as he has more interiorly loved Divine truths and lived according to them . . . . I have seen angelic faces of the third heaven of such radiance that no painter with all his art could possibly give any such light to his colors as to equal a thousandth part of the brightness and life that shone forth from their countenances" (HH 459).

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"It has been granted me to see an angel of the inmost heaven. He had a more radiant and resplendent face than the angels of the lower heavens" (HH 75). In such an instance Swedenborg saw that the angel's face was inmostly radiant and outwardly glowing. "Thus his whole face was one of resplendent comeliness" (CL 42). When he then looked at the angel wife he was overcome with what he saw-a beauty which left him "stupefied with amazement." Love not only shines forth from angels but actually pours forth "so that you would say that from head to foot they are nothing else but loves" (AC 6872).
Where does that leave us plain mortals? More on this another time.
TRUE LIBERATOR OF MODERN WOMEN 1986

TRUE LIBERATOR OF MODERN WOMEN Rev. Willard D. Pendleton 1986

Dear Editor:
     One of the most sensitive and perceptive articles I have ever read appeared in the pages of the January issue of NEW CHURCH LIFE (pp 16-19). I refer to the article by Marianne Sharpe entitled, "The New Church-A True Liberator of Modern Women."
     In the space of a few pages Miss Sharpe conveys to the reader the inner spirit of the work Conjugial Love. In all my experience I have rarely encountered a more moving and penetrating analysis of what is involved in the ideal that the Writings establish as the ultimate goal of the life of the New Church.
     In this cynical and permissive age in which the relation between the sexes has been reduced to a search for what is commonly referred to as a meaningful experience, it is uplifting to be reminded that the only meaningful relationship between the sexes is the ideal that is clearly presented in the work Conjugial Love.
     It is regrettable that Miss Sharpe's message is so far confined to the pages of the NEW CHURCH LIFE. In saying this I have in mind that the readership of NEW CHURCH LIFE is, for the most part, limited to those who are over thirty years of age. Yet the message, although important to all ages, is directly addressed to the youth of the church. My question here is, how can this statement of faith in the Lord's Divine Providence find its way into the minds of those who need it the most? One suggestion is to run it as a reprint in the Theta Alpha Journal.

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There it may find an even wider audience. Another suggestion is that it be put into pamphlet form by the General Church Publication Committee and distributed gratis to the young people of the church. In any event it deserves a wider distribution than is provided by the pages of NEW CHURCH LIFE.
     In making these suggestions I am mindful of the relevancy of Miss Sharpe's reflections on the confused and persuasive illusions regarding the relationship between the two sexes which are prevalent at this day. Coming as they do from a young woman, rather than from priests or parents, it may well be that they will have a special impact. It is good to know that among our young people there are those who think clearly from the Writings and are capable of applying the doctrines to the critical problems confronting the church at this day.
     (Rt. Rev.) Willard D. Pendleton,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania
NEWCOMER'S VIEWPOINT 1986

NEWCOMER'S VIEWPOINT Bethany M. Gruber 1986

Dear New Church Men and Women:
     It has been almost a year since I was baptized, and over one-and-a-half years since my first introduction to the Bay Area Circle of New Church men and women. I discovered Swedenborg through Helen Keller's book, My Religion. I finally found something that makes sense, that I can believe in and, more importantly, that I can live. I love the church and my new friends, yet I experience the frustration of a circle still young, still growing-a circle of families, husbands and wives, parents and children. It is a circle that I have a difficult time feeling part of sometimes.
     I am single, 31 years old and have adopted New Church values and ideals, yet find very few single men or women to share them with. I am missing the empathy and support New Church singles can provide each other in today's confusing, promiscuous society, so much of which invites me to compromise my beliefs for the short-term pleasure it promises. I am praying for the strength not to give in, not to compromise. I wish to shun these invitations as sins against the Lord, whom I love with all my heart and all my soul.

     I need your support. I would like your friendship. Please write.
     In love and fellowship,
          Bethany M. Gruber,
               1371 Pedro Street, Apt. 26, San Jose, CA 95131

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CAN I KNOW IF I'M GOING TO HEAVEN? 1986

CAN I KNOW IF I'M GOING TO HEAVEN? Kent O. Doering 1986

Dear Editor:
     Thanks to both Reverends Keith and Goodenough for their stimulating discussions, "Can I Know if I'm Going to Heaven?"
     I appreciated Rev. Goodenough's contradicting his own last name in the January issue and his stressing that not only can we not know, but we shouldn't even make the attempt.
     It has been my experience to learn that despite the remission of any disorder, the basic disorder itself continues to latently progress in its degeneration. Any confidence that we are somehow past it usually leads to a reactivation of that particular disorder, not at the point where we left off, but at a point as if we had never even stopped and it continued progressing. That is, even in a state where we are actively repenting of a disorder and the Lord is remitting the sin in question, the degeneration latently continues.
     In one sense, it seems pretty hopeless.
     That is why there is hope.
     The hope is this: If we pray to Jesus Christ as to His Human Person in whom is the Divine Essence, and from whom proceeds the use of redemption, we may humbly obtain a remission of progressive degeneration a day at a time. The key here is daily repentance, admitting we suffer from sin and indeed are sin, without any fear of punishment or hope of reward, and daily asking the visible, physical Person of Jesus Christ to maintain a remission of sin where we ourselves are totally powerless to do so.
     The miracle is that He does it one day at a time.
     This simple lifestyle of repentance of sin and asking Jesus Christ for the remission of sin a day at a time makes any self knowledge as to which degree of heaven we may or may not be going to totally irrelevant to the life of religion at the moment.
     The only thing that really counts in life in the here and now is calmly accepting the evils we are permitted to see in ourselves for what they are, admitting they are there, and simply asking Jesus Christ to remit them. He can and will as long as we ask Him to do it.
     I myself have rejected my past attitudes that the life of religion is some sort of spiritual extension of the corporate rat race, that all I have to do is "be good enough" in order to receive regular promotions to the point of being some sort of angelic tycoon. Yuppie-ism no longer holds any validity or relevance in my life. I don't care about eventually "owning real estate in the celestial heaven," and thus knowledge of my states which would let me imagine the realization of such ambitions is totally irrelevant.

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     What happens to me after I die and where I go is irrelevant to the moment. What is relevant is that I am a sinner with latently degenerating disorders, and that the Person of Jesus Christ maintains their remission. What is relevant is that I accept my sins, ask Jesus Christ to remit them, and thank Him when He does.
     Our Lord Himself addressed the problem of our wanting to know if we are going to heaven in His Sermon on the Mount-Matthew 7:25-34 is very forceful in telling us not to worry about going to heaven, getting on with the business of repenting in the here and now.
     "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."
     Kent O. Doering,
          Munich, Germany
ARCANA REVIEW 1986

ARCANA REVIEW George Dole 1986

     Dear Editor:
     This letter concerns the distress of "a Reader" (NCL, January 1986, p. 37) over the Messenger review of Volume I of John Elliott's translation of Arcana Caelestia. The review of Volume II, which was not cited, was more critical, and will probably therefore occasion greater distress. It is particularly difficult to respond to that distress since I do not know what it is about the new translations that the reader enjoys.
     It was not my intent in either review to point out "technical flaws." Mr. Elliott's technical command of Swedenborg's Latin is in many respects greater than my own. I am rather convinced that he himself "misses the forest for the trees."
     By way of illustration, I would note Reader's statement that "It's a long, long way from musty Latin to modern English." As long as one believes that Swedenborg did in fact write "musty Latin," musty translations will be regarded as faithful, and the translator will be endowed with a kind of mystique. Once it is realized that Swedenborg wrote urgently, fluently, and simply, there will be less tolerance of translations that do not reflect those values It is not nearly such a long, long way from Swedenborg's Latin to modern English as Reader supposes.
     Mr. Elliott and the Swedenborg Society are certainly to be commended for their dedication. The average reader has little idea of the amount of work involved or of the difficulty, particularly for the translator, of sustaining concentration over so many years.

232

My sorrow is that, from my point of view, this immense labor is proceeding on quite inadequate criteria of fidelity, criteria which, as the review noted, are certainly open to question on doctrinal grounds.
     Reader may be interested to know that the Advisory and Revision Board of the Swedenborg Society has noted the Messenger reviews and has concluded that they do not warrant changes in translation policy.
     "even Rev. Dole"
          (See January issue, p. 37)
          Sharon, Massachusetts
MINISTERIAL CHANGES 1986

MINISTERIAL CHANGES 1986

     Announcements

     The Reverend Glenn G. Alden has been called by the Dawson Creek Circle to serve as resident pastor in Dawson Creek, B.C., and visiting pastor to Crooked Creek, Calgary, Oyen, Red Deer and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, effective July 1, 1986.
     The Reverend William H. Burke has been appointed by the Bishop to serve as visiting pastor in the Southeastern District, resident in Atlanta, Georgia, effective July 1, 1986.
     The Reverend Peter M. Buss has been nominated by the Council of the Clergy to serve as Assistant Bishop of the General Church. Mr. Buss's name will come before the General Assembly for affirmation in June of 1987.
     The Reverend Robin W. Childs has been appointed assistant to the pastor of the Hurstville Society in Australia, but will be resident in Auckland, New Zealand, where he will serve as minister to the New Zealand Circle.
     The Reverend William H. Clifford has been appointed by the Bishop to serve as an assistant to the pastor of the Immanuel Church, resident in Glenview, effective July 1, 1986.

     (Continued on p. 225)

234

GENERAL CHURCH PUBLICATION COMMITTEE REPORT 1986

GENERAL CHURCH PUBLICATION COMMITTEE REPORT Lorentz R. Soneson 1986

     1985

     As promised in our report last year, special funds made it possible to reprint The Moral Life by Rev. Hugo Lj. Odhner; The Glorification by Rt. Rev. N. D. Pendleton; and Selected Papers by Rt. Rev. N. D. Pendleton. It is reassuring to have these classics now available for the next generation. Bishop de Charms' Tabernacle of Israel was also reprinted with minor revisions, and is at the binder at the time of this writing.
     Another fine addition to our collateral works is a dictionary of terms that are somewhat obscure appearing in the Writings. Rev. Frank Rose compiled a list of these and provided clearer explanations of their meaning. This was published by our committee through the General Church Press in 1985 and will be available to the public next month.
     Two other manuscripts were accepted this past year for publication-Learning About the Opposite Sex is a much needed manual on the sense of touch for our young people and was prepared by Rev. Martin Pryke. Final revisions have been made and the manuscript is being prepared for reproduction. Another manuscript, by Rev. Geoffrey Childs, entitled The Golden Thread-Spiritual and Mental Health has been approved by the Publication Committee and is currently undergoing final revisions prior to publication.
     Funds have also been received to reproduce one of the children's books currently out of print (The Golden Heart or In the King's Service by Amena Pendleton Haines).
     Manuscripts to be considered for publication should be forwarded to the chairman in care of Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, 19009.
     Lorentz R. Soneson,
          Chairman

     The title of the forthcoming book by Mr. Pryke (mentioned above) has been changed to You and the Opposite Sex.

235

ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCHTHEOLOGICAL SCHOOL, COLLEGE AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS CALENDARONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTH SCHOOL, YEAR 1986-1987 1986

     1986

Sept. 2     Tue.     8:00 a.m. -Academy Faculty opening service and address followed by registration of Secondary Schools local students
                5:30 p.m.-Barbecue for dorm students and parents
                Dormitory students arrive (Secondary School students by 8:00 p.m.)
     3      Wed.     Registration of Secondary Schools dormitory students
               8.00 a.m.-12:00 noon Registration of all Theological School and College students
                11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. --College orientation for all new students
                7:30 p.m. -Cathedral worship service for students, faculty, Parents
     4      Thu.      8:00 a.m.-Opening exercises for Secondary Schools followed by classes
                8:05 a.m.-College classes begin
                11:00 a.m.-College and Theological School convocation
Oct.     10     Fri.      Charter Day.
                    8:00 a.m.-Annual meeting of ANC Corp. (Pitcairn Hall)
                    11:00 a.m. Worship service (Cathedral)
     11      Sat.      6:30 p.m. Banquet (Society Building)
               9:15 p.m. Dance (Society Building)
Nov.     12-14 Wed.-Fri      College registration for winter term
     20      Thu.      Fall term ends for College after exams and scheduled student work*
     25      Tue.      3:32 p.m. Secondary Schools fall term ends and Thanksgiving recess begins
     30      Sun      College and Secondary Schools dormitory students return by 8:00 p.m.
Dec.     1      Mon.      Winter term begins in all schools
     19      Fri.      Christmas recess begins for all schools after regularly scheduled classes and student work*

     1987

Jan.     4      Sun.      Dormitory students return (Secondary Schools by 8:00 p.m.)
     5      Mon.      Classes resume in all schools
Feb.     16      Mon.      Presidents' Birthday observance
     25-27 Wed.-Fri.      College registration for spring term
Mar.      5      Thu.      College winter term ends*
     6      Fri.      Secondary Schools winter term ends. Spring recess begins for Secondary Schools after scheduled exams and student work*
     15      Sun.      Dormitory students return (Secondary Schools by 8:00 p.m.)
     16      Mon.      Spring term begins in all schools
Apr.      1      Wed.      Deadline for College applications
     17      Fri.      Good Friday holiday for all schools
     20      Mon.      Easter Monday holiday for Secondary Schools
May      8      Fri.      7:45 p.m. Joint meeting of Faculty and Corp. (Heilman Hall)
     9      Sat.      Semi-annual meeting of Academy Corporation (Pitcairn Hall)
     25      Mon.      Memorial Day holiday
June      2      Tue.      Spring term ends
                8:30 p.m. Graduation dance (Field House)
     3      Wed.      9:30 a.m.-Commencement (Field House)

     * See Catalog or Handbook for holiday regulations.

236

FOOTPRINTS OF THE SAVIOUR 1986

     Devotional Studies in the Life and Nature of Our Lord from the
Christ Child, through His Temptations, and His Sacrifice, to His
Eternal Presence.

     AND

     HOLY NAMES
An interpretation of the Wonderful, the Counsellor, the Mighty
God, the Everlasting Father, the mince of Peace; the Virgin Birth
and the Redemption

     by Julian K. Smyth
(Originally published in 1886 and 1891)
1984 Reprint

     NEW CHURCH COLLATERAL PUBLISHING
P.O. BOX 45
WOOLLOONGABBA, QUEENSLAND 4102
AUSTRALIA

     Hardcover, two-in-one edition          postage paid $12.95

     General Church Book Center               Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
Box 278                              or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                Phone: (215) 947-3910

237

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI June, 1986 No. 6
NEW CHURCH LIFE

238

     What sweeter aspect of our New Church Day celebration can there be than the revelation from the mouths of angels concerning conjugial love? We begin this issue with part of one of those incredibly beautiful stories. Another favorite for many people is No. 137 of Conjugial Love. For a wedding anniversary Rev. Erik Sandstrom composed a poem based on that lovely scene (see page 285).
     Lisa H. Cooper continues to do a series of similar translations in New Church Home. She is the wife of Kent Cooper whose review of a dictionary appears on page 277.
     The church we love is founded on the faith that the Lord speaks with greater authority in the Writings of the New Church than ever before" (p. 240). Rev. Bjorn Boyesen (who is in the photo on p. 291) reminds us in his sermon "that the church is built not only by abstract intellectual discussion but on concrete examples of living according to the principles which we surely believe."
     Rev. Christopher Bown presents the 19th of June as a time to rediscover, "a time to be inspired with excitement and energy . . . ."
     The March issue of Lifeline announces that the Swedenborg movement has been "expelled" from a Christian resources exhibition in London "despite its listing in the official handbook." We expect to hear more about this, which seems to be related to the continuing discussion of "The Cult Question" (p. 250) and to Verson Graeser's "Defending Our Church" (p. 257). There is a need to counter unfortunate charges, and, as Rev. Douglas Taylor emphasizes, to proclaim the new revelation, because the Lord in His love and wisdom has revealed it (p. 273).
     Rev. Geoffrey Childs in his report concerning the General Church in Canada speaks of "a massive media campaign for 1988" and plans and dreams for future growth (p. 268).
     In what sense do we believe in salvation by faith? An important contribution to this discussion comes to us from Japan in a letter from Mr. Tatsuya Nagashima who expresses the hope that "the revealed truths of the Heavenly Doctrine will be more revealed before us through our endeavors: discussion, objections, and corrections" (p. 284).

     Please note that there are four more ministerial changes announced on page 286 and a date change and further particulars concerning the Glenview Family camp first announced in the April issue. Also note on page 291 a new approach to the listing of information on places of worship.

239

WHAT DO YOU WANT US TO TELL YOU ABOUT IT? 1986

WHAT DO YOU WANT US TO TELL YOU ABOUT IT? Lisa H. Cooper 1986

     A translation by Lisa H. Cooper of part of CL 156e

     One morning the sweetest song woke me up. I heard it coming from above me at some distance. The first moments after waking are deeper, more peaceful, and sweeter than any later time of day. So in these moments after hearing the song, I could be kept in the spirit for a while, almost outside my body. In this way I could pay close attention to the feeling of love expressed in the song.
     Song in heaven is just a particular feeling of love of the mind coming out of the mouth in different pitches. For when a person talks, there is a sound separate from the speech, which comes from a feeling of love. The feeling of love gives life to the speech.
     In this state of being just awake I could identify what I was listening to. It was love for the delights of marriage love, made musical by some wives in heaven. I realized this from the sound of the song. In it the delights of marriage love could be heard in wonderful changing forms.
     After this I got up and looked out into the spiritual world. And there in the east was a wonderful sight. A sort of golden shower appeared under the sun there. It was the morning dew, falling so densely that it looked to me like golden rain when the sun's rays hit it.
     Wakened still more fully by the sight of the rain, I walked out in the spirit and happened to meet an angel. I asked him whether he had seen the golden rain falling from the sun. He answered that he saw it every time he thought deeply about marriage love. Then he looked in that direction and said, "The rain is falling on a palace where three husbands live with their wives, in the middle of a park in the east. The reason this kind of rain seems to fall from the sun on that palace, is that the wisdom of marriage love and its delights has a home with those people. The husbands are wise about marriage love, and the wives are wise about its delights.
     "But I see you're thinking deeply about the delights of marriage love. So I'll lead you to the building and introduce you."
     He led me through parks and gardens to some houses built of olive wood, with two cedar columns in front of the door. Introducing me to the husbands, he asked them to let me talk with their wives in front of them. They agreed and called their wives.
     The wives searched my eyes carefully, and I asked, "Why are you doing that?"
     They said, "We can see in detail what your attitude and feeling is about love of the opposite sex, and from this what your thinking is. We can see you are thinking about it intently but still cleanly." So they asked, "What do you want us to tell you about it?"

240

AUTHORITY AND REBELLION 1986

AUTHORITY AND REBELLION Rev. BJORN A. H. BOYESEN 1986

     "Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?" (Ex. 17:2).

     We live today in a world which seems to challenge all authority. And we who belong to the New Church have perhaps more cogent reason than others to be concerned. For the church we love is founded on the faith that the Lord speaks with greater authority in the Writings of the New Church than ever before. And we believe that they are the crown of revelations which completes the Word of the Lord. By membership in the New Church the adult members of the church have committed themselves to try to live up to its doctrines and to lead their children in the same way. That is the meaning of New Church baptism. But this baptism also implies that every man must sooner or later be allowed to accept or reject the doctrine as of himself, that is, in complete freedom. And it is not easy to lead the young or for that matter even adults-to accept any authority in freedom.
     It may help to realize that this is not a problem which has afflicted only our age and our church. The fact is that the possibility of rebellion is implicit in the very faculties of freedom and reason which compose the human soul. The Lord has indeed given us these two faculties to the intent that we shall receive His guiding truth in our understanding and accept it by our own free will in thought and life. But these faculties can also be abused to reject the Lord and exalt one's own ideas and desires. When this was done by our early parents in the Garden of Eden, the inmost faculties of the soul became surrounded and modified in their activity by inclinations toward an evil life, which had their origin in the loves of self and the world. And so the spirit of rebellion raised its ugly head. It is that old serpent which deceives the whole world. And all men today must choose between him and the Lord. And it has been so ever since the Fall.
     Still, the possibility of abuse does not take away use. All men-young and old alike-can never develop apart from their faculties of freedom and reason. But nor can they do it without wrestling with those hereditary tendencies which modify our freedom and reason ever since evil arose. Yet, there is a difference between young people and grown-up people in this respect. The adult person had already employed his native endowments on his own responsibility, and for the most part taken on a rather definite character either for good or evil.

241

He has usually formed certain definite opinions and largely determined the quality of his will, and although he can, of course, change his opinions and character so long as he lives in the world, these changes are usually made only with great difficulty and are seldom very deep.
On the other hand, the primitive forms of a child's mind have not as yet undergone any internal development under the child's own direction. The child is only in preparatory stages of development under the guidance of others and greatly dependent on them. Some of the people that guide the child are always others than the parents, and if they have very different ideals and opinions, it can cause serious breaches between parents and children-and between the children and the church. It becomes especially so in adolescence, when influences from sources outside the family make an ever greater impact. Moreover, as the years of childhood pass, with their trust in the authority of parents and teachers, the adult years draw ever nearer with their feeling of need for personal opinions and an equally personal philosophy of life. The young person's own soul begins to demand that the different opinions he hears and the various philosophies he learns about be tested in actual life situations. Otherwise he feels that he can never know the truth with any personal conviction. But at the same time the old hereditary serpent of excessive confidence in self begins to whisper seductive ideas. It is therefore a period of endless discussions and troubling experiences, which try the patience not only of parents and teachers, and sometimes of the police authorities, but also of the young people themselves. And this is not an easy situation to be in, either for the adults or the young people. Still it is useful to realize that this has always been so, because both young and old have existed as long as mankind, and the oppositions arising from their differences in development have therefore always been part and parcel of mankind's problems. Moreover, this is not only normal, but in some respects in order, for without such differences we cannot learn to help each other. It is not that any or all rebellion is good, but some testing of our standards is necessary, for otherwise the evil and the false can never be exposed. And if it is not exposed, it cannot be resisted and removed. Young people must learn to judge for themselves, and the older people must learn to understand why the young at times or even often rebel-and what they rebel against! Is it perhaps the older generations' own false standards they rebel against? Or do they really "contend against Moses and tempt the Lord?"
This question implies first of all that all rebellion is not necessarily evil. It depends so much on what man rebels against. The desire of every human soul is not for absence of all authority. It is rather a hope for an authority that man can accept with his own understanding and gradually learn to embrace in free will with his own love.

242

What looks like rebellion with the young is therefore not necessarily a revolt against all law and order as such, but perhaps only against such ordinances and regulations as they have not as yet personally learned to understand and approve. What they sometimes reject is no doubt the hypocrisy and humbug which sadly enough all too often is associated with the rules and habits of adult society. And sometimes grown-up people themselves reject the rules of their forebears or even their contemporaries. What is sad is that this rejection unfortunately often occurs before they have any well-founded standards and values of their own to put in their place. The result is a moral and spiritual vacuum, which often leads to greater confusion and trouble than the regulations they have rejected. For without restrictions the mind is left to the mercy of man's inclinations toward evil and self-indulgence, which is everyone's heredity and always fomented by others in the same state.
Those who are the young people's parents and friends can therefore never help them by leaving them at the mercy of others whose emotional and intellectual attitude is as undeveloped and uncertain as their own. Nor do they help them by exposing them without resistance to all the current opinions and philosophies which flow back and forth in every society. No human mind can find solid ground to stand on while it lives on an emotional and intellectual quagmire. But this truth applies equally to grown-up people themselves. Every human being must find a law and order of higher origin than his own caprice-a truth whose validity and authority he can understand and acknowledge. Within and above man's hereditary selfishness and lawlessness his soul has an inmost desire for firm standards-a longing for truth which stems from the faculties of freedom and reason, wherewith the Lord has endowed every man. It is these faculties which invest every man with an almost irresistible longing for something that he can believe in and render his loyalty, which he can base his life on and which gives meaning and value to his existence.
Obviously this longing can never be satisfied if man's reason does not find something to ponder and his free will something to accept or reject. All men, and especially the young, need therefore always something to engage the mind with-something to fight against as well as something to fight for. And, the one is as important as the other, for otherwise man cannot develop any judgment, nor make any choice. There is need for contrasts, and young people need to swing back and forth even between extremes for a while-although not too early in life, and under secure, loving supervision. At times they are as much in need of fighting against their parents or the established order of society, within reasonable limits, as they at other times need to stand up for them and loyally defend their principles.

243

This is the meaning which lies behind the restlessness and insecurity of youth-behind all their questions and arguments, their temporary seeming lawlessness and rebellious spirit, which simply show that their minds are functioning as they should. And it is also the meaning behind those higher feelings which govern the mind in more loyal moments. But it means also that the older generation can never truly help the young by being vacillating and wavering in its own principles and beliefs, for it is the responsibility of mature age to supply the young with the leadership in truth, without which no human being can acquire the loyalty and affection needed to oppose his heredity. To give in to the rebellion of youth-or to one's own desire to take the path of least resistance-is therefore to deprive the young of the necessary firmness and the necessary trials which their own souls require. It is also to betray the truth and miss the opportunity to strengthen one's own faith, and therefore to incur their just contempt. For in doing so, the older people become the symbols of exactly that hypocrisy and deceit which the souls of the young rightly revolt against. They have, in fact, failed in one of the major issues of their own life.
To be firm in principle, in life as well as in thought, is therefore one of the foremost needs of every parent or guardian-or for that matter of every human being. But note carefully that such firmness is never possible unless it is founded on a clear and rational Divine Revelation. We who belong to the New Church are therefore exceptionally fortunate, for in the Writings the Lord speaks to us with great power and exactly the kind of rational authority which both we and our children so urgently need. We must constantly improve our own knowledge and understanding of these Writings and learn to apply in the life the truths which they proclaim. And we should note that obeying them is, for the old as well as for the young, equally important as knowing them and understanding them. For no one can be moral only by learning about morality, but only by living a moral life. Nor can anyone be prepared for spiritual and heavenly life without trying to live it. And nothing of this can ever be done without undergoing temptation. In trying to fulfill our responsibilities as parents and teachers, we must therefore be willing to meet not only the revolt of the young against the truth but also the faintness and rebellion of our own hearts. And we must not fail to search out and resist our own prejudiced ideas and wrong habits. For no progress was ever made without dedicated struggle. All genuine love involves the willingness to stand up for-and if need be to fight for-that which we hold dear, and against all falsehood and evil which threaten it. Peace is not gained by shouting "Peace, peace" where there is no peace, but by taking up one's sword and fighting the battle for truth. It is not those who are peaceful at any price who reach heaven, but the peacemakers.

244

And these are they who fight and win in temptation. Not that we should seek temptation, but when temptations come we must not cowardly run away, for we too have much to fight for and much to fight against. The rod of God is not to be used to chasten only our children, but to strengthen the determination of our own love and faith. It must be used first of all as a rod of self-discipline with which to strike repeatedly and insistently on the rock of the Word, that it may open up to us and yield those living waters of inner truth which cleanse the life. We must remember that the church is built not only by abstract intellectual discussion but on concrete examples of living according to the principles which we surely believe. For it is good habits which create an affirmative attitude to the doctrine and open the mind to its real meaning. And while such habits should be acquired already in youth, they can be confirmed only in adult life. We can require them only of adults. Unless the old lead the young in these habits, they cannot truly help them, but will undermine both their own and the young people's faith in any Divine authority. And this must never happen. We must not fail, but strike upon the rock which is the Word, that it may yield to ourselves and our children those living waters which alone have power to save. Amen.

     LESSONS: Exodus 17:1-7, AC 8581 (selections), 8582

     PRAYER

     We pray You, O Lord, to help us overcome the hardness of our hearts and our stubborn reliance on our own ideas. Teach us to listen affirmatively to other people, and to care about their comfort in this world and their eternal welfare in Your heavenly kingdom. Open our minds to behold the wonders of Your Word and to submit in freedom and with reason to Your Divine authority in Your New Revelation given to the New Church. Help us to exercise self-discipline and learn to love You and our neighbor with a full heart. Instill in us a spirit of true humility without weakness. Give us strength without arrogance, and loyalty to You and Your church without self-righteousness. So shall Your kingdom be established with us and abide forever. Amen.

245

19TH OF JUNE 1986

19TH OF JUNE Rev. CHRISTOPHER BOWN 1986

     A Talk for Young People, Parents, and Others

     The 19th of June is a very special day for us. It is the day we celebrate the birthday of the Lord's New Church!
     The first celebration on the 19th of June happened over 200 years ago. We read about it in the book The True Christian Religion:

     After this book was finished, the Lord called together His twelve disciples who followed Him in the world; and the next day He sent them forth into the whole spiritual world to preach the gospel that the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ever and ever . . . . This took place on the 19th day of June, in the year 1770 (TCR 791).

     The Lord sent the twelve disciples to tell everyone in the spiritual world the good news that He is the one living God who rules the universe, and His kingdom will last for ever and ever.

     The Lord's Disciples

     The disciples had known the Lord here on earth. They spent several years traveling with Him in Galilee and Judea. They had listened to His teaching. They had seen His miracles.
     Remember the night when Jesus calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee with just a few words? The disciples were filled with wonder and surprise. All they could ask was, "What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the waves obey Him?"
     In such miracles, they slowly came to see that Jesus was in touch with the infinite power that created the universe. And so at the small mountain village of Caesarea Philippi, Peter confessed that they believed Jesus was the Son of the living God.
     In a simple way, the disciples understood who Jesus was. Yet it is as if there were clouds in their minds too. And after the resurrection on Easter morning, they could hardly understand that He had become the one living God Himself!
     One day, shortly after the resurrection, Jesus appeared to them on a mountain in Galilee. Some of them worshiped Him; others doubted. He told them that He was now the one God of heaven and earth, the Creator of the universe: "All power has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

246

And He charged them: "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
     The twelve disciples took up the work the Lord asked them to do. At first they were a bit muddled, and they had lots of questions. But they and others began the work of taking the gospel of good news about the Lord and His kingdom to all nations of the earth.
     It took hundreds and hundreds of years before the gospel was preached in all the world. Finally it reached the Indians here in our country. It was taken to China and Japan too, as well as to many tribal groups in Africa.

     The "End of the Age"

     In the meantime, however, the simple idea of the Lord that the disciples had became more and more clouded over and muddled up. It was lost altogether when people stopped obeying the Lord's commandments, when they stopped living the life of daily repentance. And the rest of the world could see that many Europeans were only pretending to be Christians.
     An age had come to an end. The spiritual age ushered in by the Lord's own ministry and the work of the disciples had come to a close. It was the "end of the age" that the Lord had predicted.
     As He had promised the disciples, the Lord was still present with people in the Christian world-He is always present with everyone in the universe. But people in the Christian world had lost touch with Him-the one, living, infinite God.
     So over 1700 years after He was here on earth, the Lord needed to make a new, or second, coming. He had promised to come again. And He has come just in the way He promised.
     All of His promises are about revealing Himself: that is, showing Himself clearly and fully-with power and with glory. To do this He does not need to come in a physical body-in fact, since the resurrection, He no longer has a physical body.
     But He is present with us in His Word, and He has revealed Himself or made Himself visible in His Word. He has opened up His Word so we can be in touch with Him-so we can come to really know Him and love Him.
     As the Lord revealed Himself, tremendous changes took place in the spiritual world. These changes fulfilled the various prophecies of what would take place at the "end of the age." For example, a "last" or final judgment took place in the year 1757.

247

In that year it came out in the open, in the other world, who was just pretending to be a Christian and who was truly a Christian. Those who were just pretending cast themselves into hell.
     Those who really were Christians, on the other hand, were gradually prepared for a "new heaven." And this new heaven, the Christian heaven, became the center of the Lord's kingdom.
     The new heaven is made up of all the Christian men and women, since the time the Lord had lived here on earth, who as adults have lived according to His commandments and who are able to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as the one living God. Also, all those from the Christian world who have died in infancy and childhood are also gathered into the new heaven. There must have been hundreds of thousands, even millions, of people who found homes in the new heaven by the year 1770!

     The Gospel Preached Anew

     Among them were the twelve disciples-the twelve men who knew the Lord personally when He was here on earth. As the Lord revealed Himself anew, all their memories of life with Him must have been reawakened. And all their cloudy and muddled ideas must have been dispelled.
     What better witnesses that it was the Lord Himself! that it was Jesus Christ who was revealing or showing Himself to be the one living God!
     These twelve simple, good men were called together by the Lord and sent out to preach the gospel anew. Remember that over 1700 years earlier they had been sent by the Lord to preach the gospel in this world, beginning a work that reached out to all peoples and nations around the earth. Now they were sent forth into the whole spiritual world-to everyone!
     Imagine them going to all the many heavens-not only the heavens with people from our planet, but also to the heavens with people from planets throughout the universe! Probably the disciples also went to preach to everyone in all the hells.
     The Lord charged them with going forth into the whole spiritual world. And each one of them took up the Lord's command, in his own way, with energy and excitement!
     Remember the simple words of the gospel they began to preach on the 19th of June in the year 1770. They proclaimed that "The Lord God Jesus Christ reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ever and ever!"

     A New Church, Truly Christian

     The Lord's kingdom that "shall be for ever and ever" is not only in the heavens; it is also here on earth. As the Lord was revealing Himself anew, He was also forming His kingdom anew.

248

First He formed the new heaven, or the Christian heaven, and this heaven became the center of all the heavens.
Then, once His kingdom in the heavens was formed, the Lord began to work to establish His kingdom here on earth. His kingdom on earth is called the church. And just as He had formed a new heaven that was truly Christian, so He has worked to form a new church on earth that is truly Christian.
     The new heaven was formed by the Lord as men and women in the other world responded to the new revelation. Likewise, the New Church is formed by the Lord as men and women in this world respond to the new revelation.
     Sometimes we call the new revelation the Heavenly Doctrines, that is, the doctrines or teachings of the new heaven. And sometimes we call it the doctrines of the New Church. It is the same revelation. It is the one living God, the Lord Jesus Christ, revealing or showing Himself anew.
     This new revelation is fully present with us in the books that are the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. The "Writings" contain the doctrines revealed for the new heaven. They also contain the doctrines revealed for establishing a new church that is truly Christian, here on earth.
     For example, in the year 1770 Swedenborg wrote the book The True Christian Religion. On the title page of that book, Swedenborg describes himself as a "servant of the Lord Jesus Christ." He does so because he was the Lord's servant in writing down and publishing the doctrines that the Lord has revealed.
     On the first page of the True Christian Religion, it says that it contains "the universal theology of the new heaven and the New Church." In fact that phrase, "the universal theology of the new heaven and the New Church," appears across the top of every spread of pages of the text in the first Latin edition.
     It means that that book contains all the doctrines or teachings for the new heaven and the New Church that concern the one living God revealing Himself anew. And this is the good news-the gospel itself!

     "New Church Day"

     Right after the book The True Christian Religion was finished being written, the Lord called together the twelve disciples. The very next day, the 19th of June, they began to preach the gospel anew, with excitement and with energy, to everyone in the spiritual world.
     That day also marks a spiritual turning point for all of us here on earth.

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It marks the very first day that the gospel of the Lord's new advent could be known here on earth, fully and clearly! For that gospel was the very spirit and life within the just completed manuscript of The True Christian Religion. And as a result, the 19th of June in the year 1770 marks for us the very first day that a new church, truly Christian, could really begin here on earth!
     Of course, the Lord is continually endeavoring to reveal or show Himself to all those who are willing to open their hearts and minds to Him-no matter where they live on earth and no matter what religion they practice. His kingdom here on earth includes everyone who is trying to be in touch with the one living God and to live according to His precepts.
     Yet just as the new heaven, that is the Christian heaven, is the spiritual center of the Lord's kingdom in the heavens, so the Lord's New Church on earth is to be the spiritual center-the spiritual heart and lungs-of His kingdom on earth.
     And the Lord's New Church can grow, in fullness and in freedom, only with those men and women who respond consciously and affirmatively to the gospel of the Lord's new coming-that is, the message of the book The True Christian Religion-as well as all the rest of the doctrines of the New Church found in The True Christian Religion and the rest of the Writings.
     Every year we celebrate New Church Day. It is a time to rediscover-perhaps even discover for the first time-our response to the one living God and His new revelation. It is a time to be inspired with the excitement and energy- the holy fire, the spirit of the Lord-that filled the twelve disciples as they went forth to preach the gospel anew. It is a time to rededicate our hearts, our minds and the work of our hands to help our Lord, Jesus Christ, in establishing His kingdom on earth-a new church, truly Christian.
     And may we learn to help proclaim the gospel-each of us, in his own special way-that the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ever and ever.

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ANSWERING THE CULT QUESTION 1986

ANSWERING THE CULT QUESTION Rev. Grant R. SCHNARR 1986

     (Concluded from the May issue)

     The book by Walter Martin entitled Kingdom of the Cults takes one New Church teaching at a time and undertakes to refute it.

Removing Books from the Word

     The first of these teachings which is discussed and refuted is that of canon, the specific argument being that Swedenborg removes Paul from the books of the Word. Martin says, "Swedenborg is consistently and energetically refuted by the epistle of Paul, particularly the book of Romans, chapters five through eight, which Swedenborg detested with abject horror . . . . He was apparently well aware of the fact that Pauline theology, if accepted at face value, would vitiate almost in total his own. So he began with the basic assumption that he was right, and that the Apostle Paul was wrong!"9

     The first question that comes to mind is, Does Paul really conflict with the Writings? In the Writings there are well over two hundred references to different passages in Paul's epistles, most of which are used to confirm New Church teachings. From what brief study I have done, it seems that Paul, when taken in context, is in harmony with the Writings as to the doctrine of life. Paul, in supporting faith rather than the law, for example, is speaking against insincerely following the law, that the law is meaningless without love and faith. It is what one loves, not what he does which judges him. He says, "Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not!-On the contrary, we establish it" (Romans 3:31).
     Thus Swedenborg calls his works, "useful books for the church" (AE 815:2). This in itself places Mr. Martin in a curious position. How could Swedenborg detest the epistles of Paul and yet call them "useful books for the church" and quote them as confirming passages in the Writings?
     On the overall question of canon, we cannot deny the fact that our Word or Bible contains fewer books than the Catholic or Protestant Bibles. The reason for this is clear to us. The Word, as defined by the Writings, is those books which contain a spiritual sense which allows the reader to communicate with the heavens and the Lord while he reads (AC 10,325). If a non-New Church friend were to inquire about this we might explain our position in these terms. But there is a stronger defense for this that could be used.

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     It would be interesting to be able to ask Mr. Martin why he is so sure that his Bible is the true Bible. Who chose the books for his Bible? The fact is that men did. At least we believe that the Lord through Swedenborg has defined our canon. Also, it would be interesting to ask Mr. Martin why his Protestant church has fewer books in their Bible than the Catholic church. Has his church also cut books out of God's Word? The point is, who can say which books belong to the canon and which do not? Many different churches have different canons-Catholics, Protestants, Jews. At least we have a reason for using the books we do. It is not merely tradition handed down through the centuries.

Man's Destiny

     Martin quotes a large paragraph from the Writings which explains that man's resurrection does not take place on some final judgment day but happens immediately and individually. Each man has his own judgment.
     Martin handles this one rather quickly. First of all, he says, "One factor must never be forgotten, and that is the statement that the New Testament is the criterion for measuring all subsequent revelations, and whatever is found to be contrary to it, must be and always has been, rejected by the Christian church."10 Where he got this I do not know. But he goes on to say, "The book of Revelation, of which he [Swedenborg] is so fond, refutes his position entirely by teaching the very thing Swedenborg denied, namely, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust (Revelation 20: 1-14), an event declared to be in conjunction with 'the appearing of the glory of the great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ'" (Titus 2:13).11
     Here we see something which occurs quite regularly in Martin's critique. He claims that the Writings speak in opposition to the Word of God, when actually the Writings are speaking in opposition to his interpretation of the Word of God. Revelation 20:1-14 says nothing about the end of the world or even a final judgment to take place on earth. That is the typical Christian interpretation. The Writings are not in opposition to the Word of God here. In fact, Martin is in error stating that Swedenborg denies the resurrection of the just and unjust. There most definitely is a resurrection; the dead are judged, both the evil and the good, but not in the way traditional Christianity has interpreted this judgment. It is an individual resurrection, with individuals judging themselves. Of course there is also the internal sense which gives a whole new meaning to the book of Revelation.
     If we look up Titus 2:13 to which Martin just referred, we see that it does not declare itself to be in conjunction with Revelation 20. In fact, the passage could be used to confirm New Church teachings about preparing for the life of heaven.

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Titus 2:11-13 says, "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ." Could not this glorious appearing take place on an individual level immediately after death, when as it is commonly said, we go to meet our Maker? Does it mean that the Lord will appear in this world or that we will see the Lord in the next?
     Who is declaring that Titus and Revelation are in conjunction with each other? Martin is, not the Word itself. If we wished to use Martin's line of argument we could say that Revelation 20 is declared to be in conjunction with Luke 23:43 where the Lord says to the criminal being crucified with Him, "Today you will be with Me in paradise," confirming that the resurrection is immediate. But to claim that "it has been declared to be in conjunction with" when the author is doing the declaring does not seem to be very honest or scholarly. Therefore we would simply say that there are passages which confirm the New Church doctrine of the resurrection. The verses which Martin quotes do not refute New Church doctrine and may even be used to confirm it.

Vicarious Atonement

     Here Mr. Martin quotes one of the stronger statements in the Writings about the erroneous doctrine of the vicarious atonement found in the former Christian Church. Here the Writings ask, "Who does not know that God is essential compassion and mercy . . . and who does not hereby see that it is a contradiction to assert that mercy itself or goodness itself can heal man from anger, become his enemy, turn Himself away from him and determine on his damnation, and still continue to be the same Divine Being or God? . . . The notion that God can impute the righteousness and merits of His Son to an unjust man who supplicates it from faith alone is also a mere human invention." (This is from Brief Exposition 61, which is quoted in full, along with Brief Exposition 62, 65 and several other brief quotes from the Writings.)
     Martin replies to this by saying. "Swedenborg's denial of the vicarious nature of the Atonement needs no serious refutation in the light of such passages as Isaiah 53, Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45 and I Peter 2:24."12
     If we look at the passages referred to by Mr. Martin we can see what he is talking about, namely, where he would confirm the traditional Christian doctrine of the atonement. The Isaiah passage serves as an illustration. Some of it reads. "Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.

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But He was wounded for our transgressions . . . and by His stripes we are healed . . . and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:4-6). It even says here, "it pleased the Lord to bruise Him" (Isaiah 53:10), and also "He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:12).
     With most of this passage I fail to see where the New Church doctrines are in disagreement with the sense of the letter of the Word. Surely, we believe the Lord bore our griefs and carried our sorrows, that He bore our iniquities, and because of what He accomplished on earth, we were redeemed, even brought back, as it were, from the slavery of hell. The Writings teach that the Lord carried all the hereditary evil of mankind, that He fought against all of the hells and suffered through the worst of temptations. He saved us in a very real way. Thus, the Writings and Isaiah 53 (and for that matter, the other passages cited by Mr. Martin) are in harmony.
     Again, we say to Mr. Martin, instead of being opposed to the Word of God, the New Church doctrines are opposed to traditional Christian interpretation of the Word of God. Man was indeed redeemed from the slavery of the hells but not from God's wrath. Man was indeed saved from certain destruction, but man today isn't saved by simply acknowledging and believing in an historical event which took place almost two thousand years ago.
     There is the question, however, of why Jehovah appears to be angry in the Old Testament, and sometimes asks for recompense. We know very well that this is the case. We also know that this is an appearance. And if one would use his common sense he could see that this is simply an appearance, and that there must be a deeper meaning or explanation. If confronted with this question we should appeal to common sense. Again, those who are confirmed in their beliefs will not listen to common sense (see AR 564), but there are always those on the sidelines who will listen.
     The real question to be asked is, Can God be angry? Even as the Writings ask, Can love itself hate or desire that another suffer? One of the new members of the Chicago Group (who came from a fundamentalist background) put it like this, "A God who would take pleasure in the sacrifice of His own Son is no God of mine. If that is God I think I'd rather be in hell." In our world today people are sincerely looking for rational, common sense teachings about religion. People are tired of being told that God is angry and God condemns. Thus, using and confirming passages from the Word is an effective means of not only defending the Heavenly Doctrines but also teaching them to inquirers.

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The Trinity

     The most vigorous attack upon the teachings of the New Church is that upon the trinity. And is this not in accord with what is taught in the Writings about those represented by the dragon being "against the two essentials of the New Church" (AR 537), because they "make God three and the Lord two" (Ibid.)? Of course this doctrine would undergo the most vehement attack.

     Martin writes, "True to the pattern of most non-Christian cults and cult leaders, Swedenborg vigorously attacked the Christian doctrine of the trinity. Apparently he was unaware of the fact that he was involved in contradictions when he asserted that Jesus Christ was Jehovah, while at the same time he denied the tri-unity of Jehovah, so clearly taught in both the Old and New Testaments'' (see Gen. 1:26; Is. 6:8; Zech. 12:10; Luke 1:35; Matt. 3:16, 17; Matt. 28:19, etc.).13
     The Genesis and Isaiah passages use the plural personal pronoun in speaking of God. The Writings explain that this is in accord with the internal sense, signifying the ministry of the angels (AC 50), although it is doubtful telling Martin this would be of much value. Zechariah, to my mind, says that Jehovah and Jesus are one and the same. Matthew and Luke simply speak of a Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As you have probably figured out by now, it is Martin's interpretation of these passages with which the Writings disagree, not the passages themselves. There is no need to take up each of these passages individually and explain the New Church position. The initial point is clear; the Writings are in accord with the Word of God and this can be proven.
     It might also be added that there are passages in the Sacred Scriptures which are directly opposed to the idea of a "tri-unity" of Jehovah. The most powerful of these is found in Isaiah, "You are My witnesses, says the Lord, and My servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after Me. I, even I, am the Lord, and besides Me there is no savior." (Is. 43:10-11). There is also the well-known passage, "Hear O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one!"(Deut. 6:4, Mark 12:29). Beyond these, there are many passages which confirm the oneness of Jehovah and Jesus which we are very familiar with and may be used to support New Church teachings.
     The attack against the New Church doctrine of the trinity does not cease with the citation of a few passages. Martin says, "Swedenborg's denial of the person of the Holy Spirit, as previously mentioned, places him and his followers not only outside historic Christian theology, but in diametric opposition to the express declaration of the Word of God."14 He goes on to say that Peter "most explicitly declared that the Holy Spirit was a person to whom men could lie."15

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He refers us to Acts 5:4,5. I believe he actually meant to refer us to verses 3 and 4 where it says, "But Peter said, 'Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit . . . . You have not lied to men but to God.'"
     Our answer to this is given right in the passage Mr. Martin would like us to read. If you lie to the Holy Spirit you are indeed lying to God because they are one and the same. This does not "most explicitly declare that the Holy Spirit is a person" any more than it explicitly declares that the Holy Spirit and God are one and the same. Therefore, the Writings and the followers of the Writings are not in "diametric opposition to the express declaration of the Word of God." And are we not tired of hearing that, especially since the evidence put forth to back up such a statement fails to do so and in some cases actually confirms New Church teachings?
     Martin sums up his arguments and concludes with the following. "The great tragedy of Emanuel Swedenborg is that he would not submit himself and his great mind to the discipline of the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures, and because of this, and because of his deliberate preoccupation with spiritism and the occult, in direct disobedience to the express teachings of God, he was despoiled . . . . He was deceived by dreams and visions and the machinations of him whom the Scriptures describe as the 'spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.'"16
     Even though we have seen that these accusations can be altogether refuted, one cannot help but feel a bit bewildered after reading this chapter. The accusations are unfounded, the conclusions false, yet the book continues to be sold in bookstores today. And with every new Person who reads this book, whether it be in a group reading or in the privacy of home, the New Church and her doctrines are treated unfairly and are persecuted.
     We cannot do much to prevent this. But as time goes on and the church grows in numbers and in visibility to the world, these arguments are going to be used openly and in public. When the New Church becomes firmly established and known, it will be perceived by some as a force to be reckoned with. As we have seen, Martin viewed the New Church as a serious threat. This feeling will certainly grow among some, and we have already seen this happening today.
     This being the case, we should be ready to answer any questions put before the church or even accusations against the New Church and her doctrines. Although we should never be preoccupied with the fear of persecution, we should recognize the potential for such persecution, and with this in mind, be prepared for it. The Lord has assured us that the New Church will be protected from the dragon and will prosper.

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But does this not happen in accordance with our actions here on earth? After all, Michael and his angels are said to represent "the men of the New Church, by 'Michael' the wise ones there, and by 'his angels' the rest" (AR 564).
     It is hoped that this paper will create a greater awareness of the persecution that goes on in isolated circumstances today, especially in the form of being called a cult, and also consider that this could possibly grow. It is also hoped that by giving at least one minister's view on how to deal with this subject, others will benefit, form their own answers, and thus better deal with this question themselves. And thus we might possibly have stronger and better equipped "Michaels" among us.

     FOOTNOTES

9 Kingdom of the Cults, Walter Martin, p. 249      13 Ibid., p. 249
10 Ibid., p. 249                               14 Ibid., p. 250
11 Ibid., p. 250                               15 Ibid. . p. 250
12 Ibid., p. 251                               16 Ibid., p. 251
SWEDENBORG SOCIETY MAGAZINE 1986

SWEDENBORG SOCIETY MAGAZINE 1986

We congratulate the Swedenborg Society on the publication of the first issue of a new magazine, which is to be reviewed in a forthcoming issue. The address of the Society is 20-21 Bloomsbury Way, London, WC1A 2th, England.
FREEPORT SOCIETY 1986

FREEPORT SOCIETY 1986

We are delighted to announce that a building is already being erected in this new society near Pittsburgh (see the address on page 290). More information coming soon.

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DEFENDING OUR CHURCH 1986

DEFENDING OUR CHURCH VERNON GRAESER 1986

     Many times when the Writings are claimed to be a revelation from God, those who deny this quote Revelation 22:18 and 19 to warn that all who attempt to add to or remove Scripture risk the loss of eternal life.
     Verses 18 and 19 of the 22nd chapter of the Apocalypse from which they draw this conclusion read thus: "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
     Since the Writings were written 1800 years after verses 18 and 19 of the 22nd chapter of Revelation, all those who claim it to be a part of Scripture are (according to these people) guilty of adding something to Scripture and so have lost their right to heaven; so say many who adhere to the teachings of the old Christian Church.
     Because we of the New Church recognize and accept the Apocalypse as part of the inspired Word of God, this misunderstanding of these two verses deserves clarification since we desire all men to know the truth that they too may be blessed.
     If one holds the view quoted above in the second paragraph, then he or she should be informed of other books that were added to the Bible after the book of Revelation was declared part of the canon of Scripture.
     After the book of Revelation was added to the canon of the New Testament, around 180 A.D., the following books were later added to the canon of the New Testament: James, John I, John 2, John 3, Jude, and 1st and 2nd Peter. Finally around 400 A.D. all 27 books of the New Testament were considered canonical by the old Christian Church.
     Since seven of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament were added after the book of Revelation, one who holds the above view would have to consider some of the apostles who fellow shipped with the Lord while He walked the earth to have had their names removed from the book of life. Thus, James, John, Jude and Peter were taken out of the book of life and perished, because they added additional Scripture.
     As proof that these seven books were added to Scripture after the Apocalypse I quote from Funk and Wagnalls New Encyclopedia, Vol. III, page 394 and 395, which reads: "The full New Testament canon of twenty-seven books was not fixed until the fourth century A.D., although an almost complete collection was in use in Rome by about 180 A.D.

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These Christian additions to the Old Testament comprised the four gospels; the Acts of the Apostles; the Letters, or Epistles, attributed to Paul, fourteen in all (although several are of doubtful authenticity); and the Revelation or Apocalypse, considered to be by John."
     "Toward the end of the 1st century A.D. the Pauline letters were collected and others, including Hebrews, were added to them. The four gospels were combined to form the "Four-fold Gospel" (that is, the four gospels considered as a spiritual unity) about 140-150 A.D., with the Acts of the Apostles having been separated from Luke and located at the head of the "Catholic," or Apostolic, Epistles). Shortly afterward the Revelation [of John] was added, although the . . ."
     From "A Commentary, Criticaland Explanatory of the Old and New Testaments" by Rev. Messrs. Robert Jamieson, D.D., A. R. Fausset, A. M., and David Brown, D. D., we obtain the dates that the Apocalypse and the seven books were considered canonical.


                                             Information
Book(s)      Date Pronounced Canonical           from Page
Revelation           before 70 A.D.               547, 548
James           around 380 A.D.               482
I and II Peter      around 360 A.D.               515
John 1-3           around 325 A.D.               524, 538
Jude               around 200 A.D.               541, 542, 543

     How can anyone reject the Writings because of verses 18 and 19 of the 22nd chapter of the Apocalypse and justify James, 1st and 2nd Peter, 1st, 2nd and 3rd John, and the book of Jude? All these books were accepted as canonical after the book of Revelation. Although these books have only a literal meaning, do they not contain good Christian instruction and are they not profitable reading? Certainly James and Jude, who were reportedly the brothers of the Lord, were not removed from the book of life because their epistles were added to the Bible after the book of Revelation.
     In the book Apocalypse Revealed the 18th and 19th verses of chapter 22 are covered in detail from paragraph 957 to 959. It is summed up nicely in the last few sentences of paragraph 959 which reads: "These things are mentioned to show that 'not adding or subtracting' anything from what is written in the Apocalypse means, in heaven, that nothing is to be added or subtracted from the truths of doctrine about the Lord and about faith in Him. For it is this inner sense, including the truth about living according to His Commandments, from which the sense of the letter is derived."

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LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) 1986

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) JOHN L. ODHNER 1986

     In last month's article I noted that there are a number of factors which can make the fight against evil easy or difficult. In this and the following articles I will outline some of those factors. I will tell you many changes you can make or actions you can take to make shunning evils easier than it might otherwise be. I have divided those into five general articles:

     1.      Building your relationship with the Lord
     2.      Building up your new will
     3.      Building up your new understanding
     4.      Building a receptive base in the natural man
     5.      Cutting evils down to size.

     Many of these ideas are ones you have heard of again and again. Rather than explain each one in detail, I simply hope to clarify how these familiar ideas are closely tied to the process of shunning evils and can help you win your spiritual battles. You will probably find that some of the suggestions below are more helpful than others. Not all will apply to your particular stage of life. I would be interested to know which of them you find are most helpful.
     An important teaching in our church is that the first part of charity is to shun evils as sins against the Lord, and the second is to do the work of one's calling faithfully and honestly. We might paraphrase this as "You must stop doing evil before you can do what is good." The Writings observe that this is one reason why most of the ten commandments are in a negative form: "Thou shalt not . . . !" (See TCR 329.)
     Often when I am critical or negative, it is because I am cross and want to make things difficult for someone else. But the Lord gives us those negatives in order to lighten our burden, rather than to make things more difficult. I found out early in life that having a bad case of poison ivy can make life very difficult. When my parents showed me how to avoid poison ivy, it made life easier. Evil is like that: if you avoid it, life is much easier.
     The trouble is, of course, that evil is much more habit-forming than poison ivy is. When my parents told me not to touch poison ivy, I was eager to comply. Evil, on the other hand, can be hard to resist because part of us sees it as delightful and good. So working on your motivation to fight evils is an important key to the whole process.

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     Perhaps the most important theme in this series of articles is that shunning evils becomes easier when you have a positive goal and take positive action towards that goal. Imagine a person swimming in an ocean of evil, wondering which way to swim in order to reach land. If he simply swims away from his present position he may happen to reach land, or he may swim further out. He knows that he does not want to be where he is, yet he doesn't know where it is that he does want to be. His chances of reaching shore are much greater if he can see the land and head in that direction.

     This brings us to the first (and most important) group of positive steps you can take to make the fight against evils easier:

Building Your Relationship with the Lord

1. Let the Lord give You a Positive Motivation.

     Sometimes people fail in the battle against evil because while they are trying to get away from negative behavior or state of mind, they do not know or see clearly the kind of positive behavior or state that they are striving for. Avoiding evil for negative reasons-because we are afraid of the consequences to ourselves-is basically selfish. Selfishness cannot overcome selfishness; Satan cannot cast out Satan. On the other hand, when we shun evils because the Lord wants us to, we have an unselfish motivation. When we have an understanding of the Lord's way for us, we can move in a positive direction as we resist evil.
     The Writings frequently point out that shunning evils will not get anyone to heaven unless the person also looks to the Lord and acts from a religious motive. [Emphasis has been added to some of the numbers quoted.]

The means of salvation have relation to these two points, that evils are to be shunned because they are contrary to the Divine laws of the Decalogue, and that it is to be acknowledged that there is a God. This can be done by anyone. . . . But still no one can do the one unless at the same time he does the other (DP 329; cf. Life 21, 22).

A person cannot be purified from evils if he only looks and prays to the Lord . . . . Nor are evils removed by only shunning them; for in this way the man looks to himself, and thereby confirms the origin of evil (Char. 204).

There are many who . . . from custom and habit learn to shun evils as detrimental to their honour and their wealth. But if they do not shun evils from a principle of religion, because they are sins and against God, then the desires for evil with their delights still remain in them, like impure waters stopped up, or stagnant (DP 117).

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Let it be known that man must do these commandments from religion, because they are commanded by the Lord; and if he does them from any other consideration whatever, for instance, from regard merely to the civil law or the moral law, he remains natural, and does not become spiritual (AE 902:3; cf. AE 972:2).

If he shuns them from any other motive than because they are sins, he does not shun them. but only prevents them from appearing in the sight of the world (TCR 330).

All who do good from religion avoid actual evils (TCR 535; cf. TCR 536, 537).

2. Know Him, Understand Him.

     The first step in building any relationship is getting to know a person. The more we know about the Lord, the stronger our relationship with Him will be, and the more easily we will be able to shun evil.

Ignorance [about God] does indeed excuse, but it does not remove confirmed falsity, for this falsity coheres with evil (DLW 351).

No one has the Lord present with him unless he knows His quality (Inv. 41).

God flows in with every person . . . into the knowledges concerning Himself (TCR 457:2).

No one as a man can ever be conjoined with the Lord except by means of knowledges (AC 1616:3).

3. Acknowledge Him.

     The Writings often speak of "acknowledging" the Lord. The Latin word is a agnoscere, which a Latin dictionary* describes: "to know a person or thing well, as having known it before, to recognize: agnosrere always denotes a subjective knowledge or recognition."
     * A Latin Dictionary, Lewis and Short, Oxford, 1879.
     This is not the only meaning for that word, yet it serves to show that acknowledgment is more than a lip confession that God exists. Reflect, if you will, on these two translations:

They who do not acknowledge the Lord cannot but be in evils and the falsities of evil.

They who do not know the Lord well cannot but be in evils and falsities of evil.

     Other meanings that might be associated with acknowledgment are recognition, thanks, and praise. When a friend gives you a needed word of encouragement, do you recognize the Lord?

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When you pass by a beautiful field of flowers, do you thank the Lord? When the Lord replaces your negative thoughts with wholesome ones, do you praise Him? How might you paraphrase the word "acknowledgment" in these passages?

The acknowledgment of the Lord, and the acknowledgment that all that is good and true is from Him, causes a person to be reformed and regenerated (DP 91).

Acknowledgment and adoration of the Lord's Divine Human is the life of religion (AC 4733).

The acknowledgment of God effects the conjunction of God with man and of man with God . . . and the denial of Him separates. The effect of conjunction is that the Lord turns a person's face to Himself and then leads him; and the effect of separation is that hell turns the person's face to itself and leads him (DP 326).

4. Pray to the Lord.

     The Writings often point out that prayer alone will not solve all our spiritual problems. Yet prayer certainly can change the impossible into the possible, especially in the fight against evil.

In order to refrain from sins and shun and turn away from them, a person must pray to the Lord for help (AE 803:2).

He is able if he implores the Lord's help (DP 278, 281:2).

When a person shuns evils as sins he fights against them because they are contrary to the Lord and against His Divine laws, and then he prays to the Lord for help and for power to resist them. When he prays for this power, it is never denied (Char. 204).

5. Listen to the Lord.

     When praying to the Lord, remember to listen to Him. The Lord speaks to us while we are reading His Word. Yet He also speaks at other times. In fact, He is always speaking to us.

The Lord speaks with every man, for whatever a man wills and thinks that is good and true is from the Lord . . . . Everything good and true inspired by the angels is of the Lord; thus the Lord is continually speaking with man, but quite differently with one man than with another (AC 904).

     The Lord's inner speech with a person is his conscience (AC 371, 1308, 1822, 2215). The Writings tell us that the battle against evil is carried on by means of this conscience or dictate from the Lord. "The Lord is continually putting evils and falsities to flight, but He does this through conscience" (AC 1835:2).

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This conscience or inner speech from the Lord is the only means which conjoins the Lord with man.
     A genuine conscience can be formed only from the Word, and so it is only through the Word that the Lord can speak to us. Obviously, it is not only when we are actually reading the Word that our conscience is active. The truths through which the Lord works in temptations are ones which have been woven into the fabric of our lives over a long period of time. Often we will not be aware of the source of the inner dictate. Although it is from the Lord, we may suppose that it is "implanted in us and flows from the connection of things" (AC 5121:3). It will not come as a detailed list of instructions, but more as a general feeling of the direction to head in.

To every falsity that the hells inject there is an answer from the Divine . . . . But the answer from the Divine flows into the internal or spiritual man . . . . It scarcely comes to the perception otherwise than as hope and the consequent consolation (AC 8159:3).

     The Lord is constantly telling us things that will make our battles easier.

6. Remember That He Is Fighting for You.

     Many passages tell us to remember that the Lord is fighting our battles for us, even though we must fight as if we were on our own.

It is to be carefully remembered that the Lord alone fights . . . (Life 96).

The time of combat is the time of the Lord's operation (AC 63).

During low point of temptation in the midst of despair, the inmost is held by the Lord in combat against the falsity . . . the Lord flows in from within, and fights for him; which also man may know from this; that when he is in temptations, he inwardly resists (AC 8567).

     The point I would especially like to make here is that when we forget that the Lord has been doing the fighting and that we deserve no credit, then the battle gets harder.

Temptations do no good if man does not believe that the Lord has fought and conquered for him (HD 200).

I would even say that a person is not saved on account of temptations if he places anything of merit in them; for if he does this, it is from the love of self . . . the temptations in which a person overcomes are attended with a belief that all others are more worthy than himself, and that he is hellish rather than heavenly . . . therefore when after temptations he comes into thoughts contrary to these, it is an indication that he has not overcome . . . if the latter cannot be bent to the former, the person has either yielded in the temptation, or he again comes into similar ones, and sometimes into more grievous ones, until he has been reduced to such sanity that he believes he has merited nothing (AC 2272:3).

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     When the Lord fights for man, man conquers in everything (AC 8159:3, 5).

7. Trust Him.

     Another way to lighten our burdens is with a trust in the Lord's leading. In the New Testament the Lord often tells us that impossible things become possible if we will only believe. "All things are possible to one who believes" (Mark 9:23). The Writings tell us that the essence of this faith is trust (see AC 3868, F 36, TCR 344). A favorite passage from the Writings (AC 8478-80) indicates that a person who trusts the Lord can handle trouble more easily than one who does not.

     People who do not trust the Lord:
are always worried about the future.
are not content.
grieve when they do not get what they want.
have no consolation.
feel angry with the Lord.
curse themselves.
continually draw evil upon themselves.

     People who trust the Lord:
are not worried or anxious about the future.
are unruffled, content, peaceful not dejected.
do not grieve over losses.
are not made sad by poverty.
are always advancing towards a happy state.
are in the stream of Providence.
continually receive good from the Lord.

     The Lord can help you. He has promised to help you. When you trust that He will help you, you will be in the stream of His Providence.

8. Look For Evidence of His Love, Power, and Wisdom.

     You can find signs of the Lord's love everywhere. There is no lack of evidence to prove that God is working through everything in this world. The Writings often use the word "confirm" which means "strengthen." You can choose to confirm your belief in God, or confirm yourself against Him. Confirming oneself as an atheist makes fighting evil impossible.

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People who have confirmed themselves in favor of nature to the virtual separation of Divinity from it regard nothing as sin . . . . After death, when they become spirits, they are bound to hell (DLW 351).

     Looking for evidence of God at work can strengthen our relationship with the Lord, which in turn would strengthen us against evil.

Those who believe in a Divine operation in all the details of nature are able to confirm themselves in favor of the Divine by very many things which they see in nature (DLW 351).

The man who has become spiritual by the acknowledgment of God, and wise by the rejection of his proprium, sees the Divine Providence in the whole world, and in all and each of the things belonging to it. If he looks at natural things, he sees it; if he looks at civil matters, he sees it; if he looks at spiritual things, he sees it; . . . he sees it . . . in ends, in causes, in effects, in uses, in forms, in things great and small; especially in the salvation of men . . . . From spiritual light in natural light the man sees these things, and more besides, and the Divine Providence in them (DP 189).

     Look for signs of His love in His Word. Look for signs of His love in nature. Look for signs of His love in your own progress. "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits!" (Psalm 103:2)

9. Obey Him.

     Of course, the most important way to strengthen your relationship with the Lord is to keep His commandments. "He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me" (John 14:21). And the first step in keeping His commandments is to shun evils. Thus we have a full circle. Shunning evils strengthens your love for the Lord, and a stronger love for the Lord helps us shun evils more easily.

Other Ways to Build a Relationship

     Our relationships with others are complex-the relationships have spiritual aspects, emotional aspects, mental, physical, financial, moral, and social aspects. Our relationships are affected by the words we speak, the jokes we tell, the clothes we wear, our jobs, education, houses, religion, manners, face, build, political ideas, personality, morals, skills, intelligence, hobbies, interests, recreation, and the kinds of family, friends, and associates we have.
     Think about how people knew the Lord when He was on earth. The disciples lived with the Lord. He was part of their everyday lives. It was not just a spiritual relationship, but one that was affected by Jesus' manners, morals, associates, speech, gestures, actions, clothing, eating, appearance, education, poverty, and so on.

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     Our relationship with the Lord is no less complex, and just as much intertwined in everyday affairs, so there are many different things that can build our relationship with Him. Any relationship will deepen as a result of

spending time together,
sharing,
honesty,
openness,
acceptance,
giving.

     All these could deepen your relationship with the Lord, as they do with other people.
     The coming articles will outline more ways to make shunning evils easier. Next month the focus will be on the power that love has against evil.

     (This article was transmitted electronically to the General Church Press from Lake Helen, Florida, by Rev. John Odhner.)
PAST AND THE FUTURE 1986

PAST AND THE FUTURE Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs 1986

     General Church of the New Jerusalem in Canada

     Report of the Bishop's Representative, April, 1986

     "Then together let us stand,
     Priests and laymen hand in hand,
     Brothers in the Church we love,
     Servants of our King above."

     The General Church in Canada was incorporated in 1971, and since that time it has established and fostered a number of country-wide uses. The first priority has been pastoral services, and ministers have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles to isolated families, to small groups, circles and societies. "Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt. 18:20). Thus there have been services, classes, late-night discussions in such varied places as Vancouver and Crooked Creek, Red Deer and Calgary, Roblin and Winnipeg, Toronto, Muskoka and Caryndale, Ottawa and Montreal, Dawson Creek and Edmonton-and many others! Canadian national assemblies have been called every three or four years, with programs looking to worship of the Lord in His Divine Human, to instruction in the beauties of the trinal Word, and to the cameraderie of social life. In the early 1980s there was a "Gathering" in Dawson Creek of western New Church Canadians-a reunion and strengthening in church loves and uses.

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It was old home week, and a great time!
     New Church elementary education in Caryndale and Toronto has seen a strengthening in its curriculum and development, and a team leadership of pastors and lay principals, and of dedicated and imaginative teachers, that has been exciting to watch and experience. There is an aliveness in our elementary schools, and a deeper looking to the Lord in His Word that is touching. And beyond this, there have been the summer Maple Leaf camps for high school age. What a wonderful use these camps have served in freely and openly leading young people to the Lord. Many a young person's life has been strongly affected and changed, leading some, for example, to attending the ANC schools when otherwise this would not have happened. The GCIC has been happy to have the privilege of supporting this use. Also, there has been the preliminary work in founding a New Church Canadian high school. For about five years in the late 1970s and early 1980s a small committee of educators met to study this high school project, and to work on a distinctive curriculum and format. The final brief of this committee called COSEIC (the Committee on Secondary Education in Canada) is one of the most exciting New Church educational proposals I have seen, a plan that would take advantage of the initial smallness of the school, and would include unique New Church study programs and liaison with public schools nearby. Funding for this high school is beginning to build, and is now over $10,000, plus a portion of the land value of the 380 acres south of Caryndale. All that await are the numbers and the vision! We have heard of New Church young people very interested in teaching in this school.
     Under GCIC leadership, evangelization has taken a whole new thrust and vision in the past five years. Public lectures on Swedenborg have been given in major cities throughout Canada, with a total attendance of about one thousand. There has been follow-up on these lectures, with mailing lists established and phone calls and visits. Caryndale has had an active evangelization program for the Carmel Church, and Toronto has established the Information Swedenborg Book Store, and has its own full advertising and evangelization program. Outreach efforts have been made in other places in Canada, in Crooked Creek for instance, and elsewhere.
     Once people have been on mailing lists for two or three years, receiving sermons and books of the Writings, efforts have been made to contact them, and to establish inquirers' classes.

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There are four or five such classes now In progress in Ontario with newcomers from these classes beginning to attend church services. We welcome them, and are so touched by their presence.
     Much has been done also organizationally since 1971, again with delightful teamwork of priests and laymen. The President's Council of New Church women and men has been an invaluable asset in counseling concerning uses and growth. The board of directors has conscientiously and creatively worked to develop church uses. From relatively small beginnings, capital assets have grown significantly, especially with the gift of 380 acres from the Carmel Church to the General Church in Canada, under the leadership of Bishop King and the original land donors. This gift by the society in Kitchener, though not an easy one to make, should have major consequences down the road not only for the development of Caryndale land uses, but for secondary education and perhaps far later university New Church education.
     There have also been many particular supporting uses that enrich the whole: episcopal visits, the "New Church Canadian," Canadian ministers' meetings, teachers' meetings, the Doering Trust Fund, travel funds for attending ANC, high school weekends and gatherings, long-range planning.
     But what of the future? This is in the Lord's hands, under His Providence. And often it is the unforeseen that occurs to open new visions and uses. But the Lord helps those who serve Him by endeavoring to take initiative from His Word (see AC 1937), so recently we spent most of a President's Council dreaming of future growth, and discussing some suggested plans. The GCIC evangelization steering committee has also worked on future planning, and so has the recently active Long-Range Planning Committee.
     Here are some future hopes and dreams:

     Evangelization: a massive media campaign for 1988, the tricentennial anniversary of Swedenborg's birth. Jo Davis' documentary film of Caryndale as a New Church community is one example of imaginative thinking, an "entry point" message to awaken interest in New Church values and ideals. Also in 1988, major New Church exhibits and strongly advertised lectures and commercial TV films. The object in 1988 is to take a major step forward in awakening public awareness to the New Church. And beyond 1988? A major library and media center for the New Church in one or both of our large societies in locations that are highly invitational to the general public. Also, we hope the time comes that there are "daughter churches" of our societies, small growth churches near Toronto and Kitchener, small in the beginning, but becoming growth centers; and in the west, growth societies in centers where the church has received fine response to its lecture programs, and where there are small core groups of General Church people.

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     New Church education: that as newcomer families participate in the New Church, our pupil enrollments increase in the church elementary schools, calling for larger faculties. It would be great to see elementary schools in Toronto and Caryndale the size of the Bryn Athyn elementary school. With successful evangelization and steady society growth, why isn't this possible by the year 2000? The Lord can do wonderful things if we have courage and aren't afraid. Such elementary schools would be natural feeding grounds for our New Church high school-eventually a four- or five-year high school with full curriculum sports teams, and its own school songs and spirit!
     General Church in Canada organization: eventually there would be a central headquarters for GCIC uses, a leadership center for pastoral services, evangelization and other programs. This would lead of its own accord to a diocese, with priestly and lay leadership working together for the greatest uses on earth.
     To dream and hope, even to plan, is easy. But beyond these things, there is a gift offered to us precious beyond words. This is the gift of the "holy city New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband" (Rev. 21:1). The Heavenly Doctrines, the New Church-these are what so moved our earlier generations in the New Church. The church pioneers in eastern and western Canada saw a vision so beautiful that it changed their lives. It offers the same to us: the promise of eternal conjugial love, of conjunction with our Divinely Human Lord Jesus Christ, of spiritual uses that deeply serve others. These gifts we would like to share with our fellow countrymen. We pray the Lord will help us.
     Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs
PRAYER FOR THE COMING OF THE NEW CHURCH 1986

PRAYER FOR THE COMING OF THE NEW CHURCH 1986

He who knows anything of the Lord's coming, and of the New Heaven and New Church, thus of the Lord's kingdom, should pray that it may come, and he who desires truths should pray that the Lord may come with light (AR 956).

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WHY AND THE HOW OF EVANGELIZATION 1986

WHY AND THE HOW OF EVANGELIZATION Rev. DOUGLAS TAYLOR 1986

     An Address to the British Assembly

     Introduction

     As announced, the subject before us is the why and how of evangelization. The "why" focuses our attention on the aim, end, goal, purpose; the "how" looks at the methods of achieving the goal. But first we must see what evangelization is and what it is not.

     What Evangelization Is

     A well-known definition of evangelization is to be found in this passage from AC 9925:2: "Evangelization is annunciation concerning the Lord, His advent, and concerning the things that are from Him which belong to salvation and eternal life."
     Something similar is said in the Apocalypse Revealed: "'To evangelize' is to announce the advent of the Lord and to announce His Kingdom" (AR 478).
     Notice the emphasis on announcing-proclaiming good news, advertising, informing, instruction. Evangelization is specifically identified with instruction toward the end of the Arcana number just quoted, where we read: "Because the priests presided over the worship, and likewise taught, therefore by their 'ministry' were signified worship and evangelization" (AC 9925:2). This indeed is the essential idea in evangelization-making known news about the Lord.
     It is important to stress that persuasion has no part in evangelizing. There are still those who associate evangelization with "conversion," with hard-sell pressure and compulsion, excusing themselves from involvement on the grounds that they are not the "pushy" type, that they simply could not ram anything down people's throats-as if that were the essence of evangelization. They think of it as "selling," and of evangelists as "salesmen." But a great deal depends on the connotation of those words. Unfortunately, the picture that usually arises in our minds when we think of "selling" is that of the "hard-sell" approach with persuasion and overpowering influence as the dominant means. Too often we think of the salesman as one who unloads his goods upon those who do not really need them or want them. We think of him as needing to have the power of at least temporary hypnotism in order to be a success. This is so contrary to the whole New Church approach that the very mention of "selling the church" or even "marketing the doctrine" is apt to produce indignation in the church. It is good that this is so.

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It shows a healthy respect for freedom and rationality. But let us always remember that a salesman can be a man of charity as well, that he can have the customer's welfare and the common good in mind as a primary orientation. We need not feel that we have to be either a New Churchman or a salesman.
     In connection with this, it is well to remind ourselves of what we already know: that we cannot convert anyone. It is the Lord who really converts people. We may perhaps persuade people. But "convert" means to turn the mind. It is the Divine that turns the mind to the things of the Divine. We can have only a part in this. We only cooperate with the Lord, who really converts people.
     That is why we in the New Church do not like the term "convert." We do not like talking about "conversion" and "converts" and "converting people." That is what the Lord does. All we can do is to present the teachings and allow them to be seen in the greatest light of which we are capable. Obviously, this makes for a much more relaxed conversation with an inquirer-a perfectly normal conversation. We do not then have a feeling of urgency; we do not become heated; we do not feel that we have to ram anything down the other person's throat. But when we talk from self with the idea of convincing or persuading someone, then everything becomes very tense, and neither side enjoys it.
     There are many warnings in the Writings against persuasion. One of the most impressive is to be found in the Arcana explanation of the reason that the Egyptian magicians were at first able to duplicate the miracles of Moses and Aaron. Concerning this we read: "Be it further known that it is according to the laws of order that no one ought to be persuaded about truth in a moment, that is to say, that truth should be so confirmed in a moment as to leave no doubt whatever about it; because the truth which is so impressed becomes persuasive truth, and is devoid of any extension, and also of any yielding quality. Such truth is represented in the other life as hard, and as such that it does not admit good into it so as to become applicable. Hence it is that in the other life as soon as any truth is presented before good spirits by a manifest experience, there is soon afterward presented something opposite which causes doubt. In this way it is given them to think about it, and to consider whether it be so, and to collect reasons, and thus to bring that truth into their minds rationally. By this there is brought about an extension of the spiritual sight in respect to that truth, even to its opposites; and from this it sees and perceives in the understanding all the quality of the truth, and from that can admit influx from heaven according to the states of the objects, for truths receive various forms according to the circumstances.

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This is the reason why the magicians were allowed to do as Aaron did; for thereby doubt was excited among the sons of Israel about the miracle, whether it was Divine; and thus an opportunity was given them of thinking and considering whether it was Divine, and finally confirming themselves that it was so" (AC 7298:2).
     Evangelization, then, does not mean persuasion, but rather giving information about the Lord, and cooperating with Him in spreading His kingdom. This can be done on several levels such as: instructing our children of all ages; instructing our young people; instructing our adult members-in which instruction there are also several levels: instructing our future priests; the mutual instruction of our scholars, such as takes place when the clergy meet together; and finally, instructing people outside the church organization. Here too there are various levels of reception, and various stages of reception with each individual. Evangelization does not apply only to this latter level. There are many ways in which we are truly preaching the gospel, preaching the good news about the Lord-from kindergarten through adult doctrinal classes to theological school. We are evangelizing in the kindergarten or even at home whenever we tell children about the Lord and His kingdom, for this is what evangelization is. All forms of instruction in the church, in church Sunday schools and day schools are forms of evangelization. But it is the more public announcing or form of instruction sometimes called external evangelization-that we are focusing upon at the moment. This does not mean, however, that it is to be considered more important than the other. In fact, these forms of evangelization are equally important. To neglect one of them is to neglect something essential in the work of the church, and thus something of our responsibilities to the Lord and His kingdom.

     Why Evangelization?

     Having seen what evangelization is and what it is not, let us now consider why we should evangelize.
     The short answer is, "Because God wills it." The Lord has definitely commanded evangelization in all the previous dispensations or eras. For example, with regard to the Jewish Church the Old Testament records that Jonah was sent to the Assyrians to turn them from their evils (Jonah 1:2, 3:2). In Isaiah we read: "Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations" (2:3, 4). In Habbakkuk: "For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (2:14). In Deuteronomy there is a strong plea to consider the welfare of the stranger: "[The Lord your God] doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving food and raiment. Love ye therefore the stranger; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt" (10:18, 19; emphasis added).

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     In the gospels there are abundant passages exhorting to evangelization for the sake of setting up the first Christian Church, as, for example: "Freely ye have received, freely give" (Matt. 10:8). "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matt. 28:18, 20). "Say not ye, there are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? Behold I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields, for they are white already to harvest" (John 4:35).
     Evangelization is equally commanded in the Writings for the sake of establishing the New Church. For example (emphasis has been added): "He shall send His angels with a trumpet and a great voice . . . . By the trumpet and the great voice . . . is signified evangelization. 'And they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from the end of the heavens even to the end thereof,' signifies the setting up of a new church. The 'elect' are those who are in the good of love and of faith; the 'four winds from which they shall be gathered together' are all states of good and truth" (AC 4060:8, 9). "'And I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the eternal gospel to proclaim unto them that dwell on the earth' signifies the annunciation of the Lord's Advent, and of the New Church about to come down out of heaven from Him . . . . By 'the eternal gospel' is signified the annunciation of the Lord and His kingdom. By 'them that dwell on the earth' is signified the men of the church to whom the annunciation will be made. The reason why it also means to announce that the New Church is about to descend out of heaven from Him is that the Lord's Coming involves two things, the last judgment and after it the New Church . . . . It is to be announced to all who from religion are in good things, and from doctrine in true things . . . . For these and no others receive the gospel" (AC 626). There is also a passage in the Canons of the New Church which begins: "This is the gospel which the Lord commanded to be preached to the whole world." The passage then lists the main teachings of the New Church-the teachings that are to be proclaimed.
     We should have a conscience about proclaiming the new revelation because the fact that the Lard has, in His love and wisdom, revealed it, and because we know about it, imposes on us a responsibility to make it known. This we can conclude from many passages in the Writings, notably this early number in the little work on Influx: "Because it has been granted me [Swedenborg] to be in the spiritual world and in the natural world at the same time, and thus to see each world and each sun, I am obliged by my conscience to manifest these things; for what is the use of knowing unless what is known to one is also known to others?

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Without this, what is knowing but collecting and storing up riches in a casket, and only looking at them occasionally and counting them over, without any thought of use from them? Spiritual avarice is nothing else" (no. 18; emphasis added).
     It is also pointed out in the work The Divine Providence that "no man gets his religion from himself, but through another who has learned it directly from the Word, or by a transmission from others who have learned it" (254).
     In addition, there is the explicit command to the disciples in the spiritual world to go forth and proclaim the gospel that the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ages of ages, and that blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb-the "marriage supper of the lamb" meaning the New Church (TCR 791). We can hardly think that the Lord would want that gospel proclaimed throughout the whole spiritual world but kept secret in the natural world!
     Another reason we should have a conscience about this is that external evangelization is properly a work of charity and an image of the Divine love of saving the human race from hell. This is clearly brought out in the Apocalypse Explained 617:19 in its explanation of the Lord's saying in Matthew 25:34 that He hungered and thirsted. "It is said here," we read, "that the Lord hungered and thirsted, because from His Divine love He desires the salvation of all; and it is said that men gave Him to eat and to drink; which is done when from affection they receive and perceive good and truth from the Lord, and by means of life appropriate them to themselves. Something similar may be said of a man who from his heart loves to instruct man and desires his salvation; therefore it is charity or the spiritual affection of truth, that is described by these words [in Matthew]" (AE 617:19).
     We are also told that in the Ancient Church "one instructed another [in the truths of faith], and this was among their works of charity; nor were they indignant if one did not accede to the opinion of another, knowing that everyone receives truth in proportion as he is in good" (AC 6628). That evangelization is just another form or manifestation of charity toward the neighbor. another form of goodwill, of wishing well to others outside our own circle is likewise brought out in this passage from the Arcana: "When [a person] feels that he has pity for anyone who is in trouble, and still more for anyone who is in error in respect to the doctrine of faith, then he may know that he dwells in the tents of Shem, that is, that he has internal things in him through which the Lord is working" (AC 1102:3).

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     If there is still any doubt as to external evangelization's being part-an essential part-of the work of the church, let us add this teaching, which puts it beyond doubt: "Through the church . . . those are saved who are out of the church . . . . The church is like the heart and lungs; while those outside the church correspond to the parts of the body which are supported and live from the heart and lungs. Hence it is manifest that without a church somewhere on earth the human race could not subsist, as the body could not without the heart and lungs" (AC 2853).
     The general aim and the proper attitude with regard to external evangelization has now clearly emerged, namely, to cooperate with the Lord in spreading His kingdom. As He said: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you" (Matt. 6:33). The Lord's kingdom is the realm where the Lord is King-the state of mind in which the Lord is the Ruler and Organizer of the mind. It is this kingdom, this ruledom, which the Lord wishes to extend, both widely and deeply. The church's part is to be as a servant serving the king in the maintenance and spread of His kingdom.
     This being the end in view, the means to achieving that end will be skill in presenting the Lord's truth in an interesting, helpful way-in a way that is of benefit to the neighbor. The effect of this will automatically and undoubtedly be an increase in membership. This is what will be added if the Lord's kingdom is our aim. But note: increased membership is only the result or effect of the end and the means combined. It is not an end in itself. It is not what we are primarily aiming at. What we are primarily to aim at is the spread of the Lord's kingdom.
     This means that sometimes we will offer instruction, counsel, and help even when there seems little likelihood that the person concerned will join the church. Our love of the Lord's kingdom will prompt us to do so. We will be delighted if someone we speak to moves a little more deeply into the Lord's kingdom. Of course, this principle can be abused by being taken to extremes. Judgment is needed. But let us never sink into the attitude of helping only those who will help us by joining the church. It will be easy or difficult for us to have the proper attitude to the extent that we really see ourselves as servants of the Lord trying to cooperate with Him.
     Consider the opposite. Any natural man could promote a membership drive in any merely natural organization. The Lord would not then enter into it at all. We could, in fact, have an enormous increase in membership, and yet lose our own soul-lose sight of the Lord's kingdom. The church could become just another kingdom of this world.

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Let us never forget the Lord's warning addressed to the individual member of the church but equally applicable to the church collectively: "What is a man profited if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matt. 16:26).
     If we allowed the natural man to take over, the end would become the enlargement of the organization, or, in popular language, "getting more members." The means to this end would be any method at all of persuading to membership that would achieve that end. In that case, whether we believed the teachings or not would not be important at all. Whether those who joined the organization believed them or were interested in them would not then be important either. All that would matter would be an increase in numbers. The effect would then be that the Lord's kingdom was overlooked and trampled underfoot.
     It is always the end or goal that imparts the quality to an action or an enterprise. In everything that we do in the church the aim is to seek first the Lord's kingdom and His righteousness, not our own. This applies to all forms of evangelization.
     We have lingered so long on the question of motivation, the question of why or to what purpose, because of its paramount Importance. What we do and say is certainly important, but even more important is why we do or say something. Let us recall the teaching given in True Christian Religion and in the Doctrine of Charity concerning the motivation for obeying those of the ten commandments that relate to charity toward the neighbor. It is pointed out that every nation knows that there must be laws prohibiting murder, adultery, stealing, and false witness. Without the enforcement of such laws no nation could survive. The question is then asked, Why did the Israelitish nation need to have these laws revealed from heaven? The answer is, So that they would become laws of religion. This means that when they become laws of religion, there is a spiritual motivation, a spiritual quality, in our obedience. We shun these evils because the Lord has commanded that we should. We are looking to Him; we are considering His welfare and His wishes.
     This must be our motivation in the work of evangelization. Otherwise, we are not inviting the Lord to be present; we are not inviting Him to provide the motivation. After all, "What is charity but the good that man does from the Lord? And what is faith but the truth that man believes from the Lord?" (TCR 712). "Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it; except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He giveth sleep to His beloved ones" (Psalm 127:1, 2).

     (To be concluded)

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Words in Swedenborg and Their Meanings in Modern English 1986

Words in Swedenborg and Their Meanings in Modern English Kent Cooper 1986

     REVIEW

Words in Swedenborg and Their Meanings in Modern English, by Rev. Frank S. Rose, General Church Publication Committee, 1985, $3.20 (postpaid)

     As I worked on this dictionary I found myself longing to see the day when the Writings of Swedenborg would be available in English as beautiful and simple as the Latin. I pray that this will offer some help until that day comes, in allowing more and more people to see past the clouds to the glory and sublime beauty within.
     These words from the introduction to this little dictionary summarize the purpose and the great value of such a long overdue compilation. The people of the church have known for many years that our older English translations contain many words which are largely forgotten or which have actually changed in meaning since the time of the translations. Those of us who have grown up with these peculiarities may not feel too much concern about them, but it is difficult for us to comprehend the confusion, frustration and misconception that most newcomers to the Writings (including our own children) must experience.
     While we do have more recent and more comprehensible translations of some of the books of the Writings, progress at present is slow in bringing the rest up to date. Books which are available in newer translations are also still available (and still purchased) in older ones. And, of course, many homes have long been supplied with older translations, to which children will doubtless refer, and in which even seasoned New Church people will often encounter words which are meaningless or even misleading.
     For all these reasons. we can be grateful that a dictionary exists in which we can look these words up and discover what is meant by them. For two reasons it is important to have such a book specifically compiled for Swedenborg's Writings, rather than to use an ordinary English dictionary. First, many of the words contained here would not be found in English dictionaries, except perhaps very old, very large, or specialized ones. Second, many words that would be found in an English dictionary would not be defined in the same way that Swedenborg means them. Nothing short of years of studying the Writings, or reading fluent Latin, can overcome these difficulties as well as Words in Swedenborg.
     The book is arranged very simply. A listing (without definitions) of some words which are new or misleading in the Writings precedes the alphabetical listing, and might be a good thing to look over before getting very far into any of Swedenborg's books.

278

(A newcomer might not even think to look up Swedenborg's meaning for "charity" unless forewarned in this listing that it may not mean what he expects.) The bulk of the book is the alphabetical listing of words with definitions.
     This is followed by some simple, clear descriptions and diagrams illustrating such things as the arrangement of the spiritual word and the levels of meaning in the Word. A brief paragraph on Swedenborg follows, with a list of his theological works (distinguishing between published and unpublished). The book ends with a list of sources from which the works can be purchased.
     The definitions are as simple as they can be to convey essentials of the meaning. This may seem like oversimplification in some places, but is probably better suited to the purpose of the book. (This is not the place to lay out the fine points of debatable meanings.) They occasionally contain extra features that clarify meanings beyond simple definitions. We are told what words do not mean ("chastity" does not mean celibacy), and what words have opposite or contrasting meanings. (For example, under "generals" we find "opp. of particulars.") And words that are translated variously are noted. For example, under "scientifics" we find "also transl. Knowledges and memory-knowledges." Other kinds of notes clarify certain definitions. (Under "angel" a note points out that "all angels are people who have lived in the natural world.")
     We are given particular explanatory examples in some cases. These range from single examples ("in good" means "in a state of goodness") to long lists of phrases including the heading word. For example, "Divine" is followed by fifteen such definitions, and "conjugial" lists twenty-six. These are particularly useful where a phrase is more than the sum of its parts (see, for example, "conjugial sphere").
     The book is not without its minor defects. Some are perhaps only technicalities-at least two entries on the misleading-words list are not in the body of the dictionary, and I chanced on one word out of alphabetical order. And despite a claim to the contrary in the introduction, many anatomical words are included.
     There are also many words which may not belong here, since they can be found in any collegiate dictionary, and their definitions here seem no different than the usual (e.g. a prior/a posteriori, catechism, somnabulist). It is of course impossible to include every word occurring in English translations of Swedenborg which someone might not recognize, and if the line has to be drawn somewhere, it is better to include too many words than too few.

279

     Many will think of words which should be here but are not. (I would like to see "church" included with a note saying that it is never used to mean a church building.) The most glaring omission I found happened to be the first "test" word I thought to look up-"correspondence." The words "correspond" and "correspondent" are included, but it seems to me that "correspondence" is the more common or more essential variant (not to mention the cross-referencing of the phrase "science of correspondences" listed under "science." I trust that corrections can be made for subsequent printings, and I have no doubt that the compiler would welcome suggestions for additional entries.
     Still, the merits of this dictionary far outweigh its shortcomings, would recommend it highly not only to those newly discovering the Writings, but even to old-timers. Looking through it for this review, I found myself several times thinking, "Yes, I guess that is a little different from the regular definition, isn't it?" How much more revealing could it be when used as it should be, in close association with serious study of the Writings? Even to an experienced reader it can be very helpful; to school students and newcomers it is certainly invaluable.
     Kent Cooper
NCL 50 AND 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 AND 100 YEARS AGO 1986

     "New Church Life Coffee Meeting" is the heading of a piece in the June issue of 1936. For sixteen years there had been in Glenview a weekly meeting "for the purpose of reading and discussing the articles published in the Life and other journals of the New Church." It was considered "a valuable aid to social life, and has provided plenty of opportunity to get in touch with the thoughts and doings of our church . . . ."

     The price of coffee has gone up. but the basic idea seems eminently viable in 1986 [Ed.].

     The June issue of 1886 has an article on the spiritual side of mathematics. "We hold that there is no line of study which so prominently brings the Lord before us as the wisdom of all things as do the maligned mathematics." The writer commented on the atheistic approach to knowledges but looked to a day when all knowledge would be a "vehicle of Divine adoration."

280

Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     DO YOU CALL YOURSELF NEW CHURCH?

     I once had a discussion, well, really an argument, with a man who after many years of being in the New Church decided it was wrong to call yourself New Church. He said it was far too presumptuous, involving a spiritual judgment. I felt I was winning the argument. (It is not unusual for two people to be arguing and both feel they are winning.) If I am asked to fill out a form and state what my religion is I cannot say that I am Presbyterian, Lutheran or Catholic. I can't say that I am an agnostic. Of course I should say that I am New Church. What people on this earth celebrate the 19th of June? Why, "New Church" people do.
     Some passages in the Writings make me now want to argue the other fellow's joint. And I am wondering whether the New Church label we use for people is misleading. This person, we say, is New Church, and that person is not. On what basis do we say that a person is New Church? One answer could be that the person says that he or she is. Is someone a Christian by virtue of professing to be? The Writings use the term "so-called Christians" (e.g. AC 1059), and one gathers that some who live in cruelty and hatred make matters worse by calling themselves Christians. This is the tone we take from no. 5393 of the Arcana Coelestia, which describes those who live lives which horrify angels and then says, "And yet they call themselves Christians . . . ."
     In arguing in favor of calling myself New Church I mentioned the situation when one is filling out a form. There are those moments-entering the army, or the hospital, or some job. But what about the classic such moment? What about answering the questions when you are going from this world into the next? Are they going to ask you whether you are New Church? The Writings seem to answer this clearly, and that answer is a good one to bear in mind.

In the spiritual world into which every man comes after death, it is not asked what your belief has been, or what your doctrine has been, but what your life has been, that is, whether it has been such or such . . ." (Divine Providence 101).

     Let's ask the question again. On what basis do we say that a person is New Church? It can be because that person was baptized as a child. Obviously there are those who were baptized in infancy but have had nothing to do with the New Church in adult life and who do not call themselves "New Church." But what of someone who does call himself New Church by virtue of baptism?

281

And what of someone who was "born New Church"? If your parents and grandparents were New Church, does that make you especially "New Church"?
A passage in Divine Providence speaks of a person who makes no account of this or that evil. And then (in part) it says:

If such a one says, "I was born a Christian; I have been baptized" . . . does this amount to anything . . .? (DP 322:5)

We would return to this teaching another time and would leave the question there. "Do you call yourself New Church?"
FROM "FAITH ALONE" TO "GOD ALONE" 1986

FROM "FAITH ALONE" TO "GOD ALONE" Tatsuya Nagashima 1986

     Communications
To the Editor:
     I am writing this letter to you so that I may also participate in the "Faith Alone" discussion.
     Let me show you an example first.
     When I take a picture of a landscape, what I have to do first is to put a new film into my camera and look for some photographic values and push the shutter. It is an interesting job, but not finished. I must take the film to a shop for development and printing. Pictures are not complete unless the beautiful spectacle outside is positively printed through the negative film which was inside the camera.
     This can be used as a metaphor for illustrating the correlation between faith, work, and life/love, or in other words, intellectual operation, volitional action, and progress in regeneration.
     To look for beautiful scenes and push the shutter is compared to a human action of faith. It is an enjoyable but first necessary action for a believer, but not yet completed. To take the film to a shop for development and printing requires waiting in patience. The film has to go through a darkroom for chemical treatment. It must undergo a substantial change through temptations. But after being developed and printed, a new product reflects the concrete and remarkable outside reality of Divine good and truth.
     Let me present the above as follows:

Thesis:      To look for a beautiful landscape and push the shutter.
          i.e. One's initiation in believing Christian doctrines and having a faith in them. A negative print is being produced.

282

Antithesis: To send the film to a shop for development and printing.
          i.e. The believer has to undergo temptations which come from his own hereditary evils of inside and from hellish influx of outside. A positive print is being produced if one resists the evils.

Synthesis:      To have new pictures after their negative films are developed and printed.
               i.e. Progress in one's regeneration. Faith now is conjoined with love and life.

     The Writings de not say that the Pauline letters are heretical, but they are rather recommended to read as devotional books. Martin Luther, when he read Paul's letters, especially to the Romans, cried out, "Faith alone saves us." Luther was then not in the first thesis stage but in the second antithesis stage: in the spiritual darkness and temptations.
     Luther erred when he changed his experiential "faith alone" into a doctrinal "faith alone." He should not have taught what he had psychologically experienced in the antithesis stage to those who were still in the first thesis stage. As a result, far beyond Luther's own anticipation, a blind "faith alone" faith was established among his followers.
     "Faith alone" is right when it is inclusively interpreted: a living faith which seems to be temporarily separated from love during temptations, but to be recovered soon by conjunction with love. But "faith alone" is wrong when it is in the thesis stage for those who have no fighting will yet against evils.
     The former "alone" does not so much mean an isolation from a human will as an emphatic assertion of total dependence upon God's power. When being in the midst of the hellish influx and evil affections, spiritual eyes are covered with dark clouds, and one can exclaim blindly in a way, "Faith alone saves me!" in such a sense as "God alone saves me!" His mind is entirely darkened, seems to have no love, and finds no merit in himself.
     In the Writings, Swedenborg refers faith to truth, because in Hebrew "faith" has the same linguistic origin as "truth" for the ancients (see Faith 6). Faith was then conceived as a conjoined idea with a shining truth with affection.
     When Luther read the Pauline letter to the Romans, he read it in Greek which Paul himself wrote. It seems to me that Pauline "faith" in Greek had a sense of "persistent loyalty to the Lord." He must have been easily led to interpret his Romans 1:17, "The just shall live by faith," as if it ended with an additional "alone" as "The just shall live by faith alone." It might have been true, especially at the time of' spiritual darkness and temptations.

283

     He thought that a human being who is so much enmeshed in the carnal and hellish evils can only be saved when he looks up to the Lord who only saves him. Luther's faith must have been a living faith at first toward the Lord, but he and his followers unwittingly changed the original emphasis upon the experiential and psychological isolation into the doctrinal and theoretical isolation of "faith alone" faith. They had to confront with and against the Catholic emphasis on human meritoriousness.
     It is very important to note that the Lord teaches us in His second coming as follows:

It is here said that they must have faith that salvation from the Lord alone, and not at all from them, because this is the main thing of faith in temptations. He who when he is tempted believes that he can resist from his own strength, yields; the reason is that he is in what is false, and that he therefore attributes merit to himself, and thus demands to be saved of himself, and thus shuts out the influx from the Divine. But he who believes that the Lord alone resists in temptations, conquers; for he is in the truth, and attributes the merit to the Lord, and perceives that he is saved by the Lord alone. He who is in the faith of charity ascribes everything of salvation to the Lord, and nothing to himself (AC 8172; emphasis added).

     A question arises, of course, whether or not the Protestant "faith alone" has something in common with the above 'Faith that salvation is from the Lord alone." However, it is worth a try to give a good Interpretation.
     "When angels teach, they start where there is agreement," was written by Charis Cole from the Writings in the January edition of NEW CHURCH LIFE. As New Church persons, can we not start from the mutual consent of "Faith alone saves us" in such a sense as "God alone saves us, especially when being in darkness and temptations, and when still having the fighting will against the evils?
     We also can start from the agreement with the Catholics who insist in "human" cooperation with the Divine will and providence, as far as they admit that all merit and glory should ultimately and solely be to the Lord, not to men. Our New Church doctrines are common with theirs in that human free will should voluntarily cooperate with the Divine dispensation in doing His will.
     Although we do not agree with the "human merit" of Catholicism nor the "human inability" of Protestantism, we can agree with both of them in that "God alone saves us," not in faith apart from work, nor in men's work apart from God's.

284

     I know that what I have written above might involve many hard questions in theology, but I hope the revealed truths of the Heavenly Doctrine will be more revealed before us through our endeavors: discussion, objections, and corrections.
     Tatsuya Nagashima,
          Tokyo, Japan
WHITTINGTON PSALMS 1986

WHITTINGTON PSALMS Norman Turner 1986

     Dear Editor,
     I greatly enjoyed Miss Carla Zecher's letter in your March issue, but feel that she dismisses the Whittington Psalms a little too lightly, as "settings of the Psalms that happen to have been composed by a New Church man." In the preface to our Psalmody we read this significant statement: "A feature of the musical treatment is that there is no repetition of the words. . . ."
     Now considering how utterly fundamental repetition is to the art of music, can we not recognize that there is something distinctively New Church here, namely a willingness to subordinate the music completely to the sacred text, and thereby to accept constraints on musical form which would be rejected by other composers. Those who disparage the Whittington Psalms, or consider them too demanding for congregational use, should at least recognize this honorable intention behind their musical shortcomings. Respect for the Word above all else is exemplified in a more external form by the Hebrew anthems in our Liturgy. Rather than do any violence to the Hebrew, the publishers were prepared to print the music "back to front." Where the Word is concerned, music must take second place.
     At least some of the Whittington Psalms stir powerful affections with those who have made the effort to learn them, though it would be foolish to expect uniform excellence throughout such a collection. Whittington got as far as Psalm 56; of the remaining ninety-four, most still await musical treatment by other New Church composers.
     Norman Turner,
          Lightwater, Surrey, England

285

FROM AGE TO YOUTH 1986

FROM AGE TO YOUTH Rev. ERIK E. SANDSTROM 1986

A POEM BASED ON CONJUGIAL LOVE 137

One morn while meditating on conjugial love,
I saw two naked children frolic high above,
With baskets in their hands, around them turtle doves.
On coming closer, wreathed they were with flower leis
Of lilies, roses too, in hyacinthine shades.
A chain of leaves and olives intertwined them twain.
As closer still they came, not children they remain,
But strapling youth and maid. Their silken tunics blaze
With flow'rets. Firm their stride, they quickly closed the space
'Till their sweet breath stood on my cheek: Oh, paradise!
How can mortal heart and mind contain the sight?
They smile in unity, glance fearlessly; delight
Me with the heav'nly spring of innocence; apprise
Me then of their true stature. Speak they lightly both:

"We have been married partners in this flower of age
In which you see us now. A youth's, a virgin's stage
Began our bliss; then wisdom did its love engage
In uses that a husband and wife perform.
Conjugial love now both our hearts and minds adorns,
As heat to light, or love to wisdom, seeks its troth."

The angel youth, his wife aglow with trust, speaks on:
"With us in heav'n there is perpetual light; no dark
Can penetrate our realm. For midway 'tween the rim
Of yonder coast and noonday zenith, see we Him
Who is both God and Lord. Our heaven's sun, His spark,
Brings lasting union in a verdant springtime. Mark

You now that vernal breath? . . . As first we came, o'er you?"

His hand now led me on to celestial homes, where dwell
Like couples in the bloom of youth. As though to quell
My thirst for knowledge, faced he round, began to tell
The inmost mystery, to lift the charming spell:

"These wives, as virgins seen. old women used to be;
Old infirm men were these young husbands that you see.
They died as elders of your world, but now in this
The Lord had brought again their former married bliss.
For through their life on earth, their love, as tender kiss,

286

Fled far from hellish shores; in nought were they remiss.
Their blessed joys of true conjugial love is told
In tales of wonder, which hark back to days of old.

The youthful angel husband now stands by his spouse,
As I stride to admire their celestial house.
All glistens as from rubies and of flaming gold;
Their furnishings are all of some etherial mold,
To all the love of life of heaven's joy enfold.
The vision ends. I sigh. I pray to be enrolled
Among the blessed. For that quest myself embold!
MINISTERIAL CHANGES 1986

MINISTERIAL CHANGES 1986

     The Reverend Donald K. Rogers has been called as pastor of the Baltimore Society effective April 27, 1986.
     Candidate William O. Ankra-Badu has been assigned to serve as a New Church minister, residing in Ghana, West Africa, effective July 1, 1986.
     Candidate Eugene Barry has been appointed as resident minister of the Bath, Maine, Society, effective July 1, 1986.
     Candidate Frederick M. Chapin has been appointed as assistant to the pastor of the Kempton, Pennsylvania, Society, effective July 1, 1986.
DATE CHANGE OF GLENVIEW OAK LEAF FAMILY CAMP 1986

DATE CHANGE OF GLENVIEW OAK LEAF FAMILY CAMP 1986

Oak Leaf Family Camp is for families, couples, singles, teenagers, children, New Church people, young, old, and in between! Making vacation plans? How about spending a weekend in Wisconsin's beautiful North Woods with Your fellow church people? Rev. Eric Carswell will be presenting "Image of the Lord: Ethical/ Moral Decisions in the Light of New Church Doctrine." Sol do plan to join us for this time of enlightenment, as well as relaxation, conversation, entertainment, good food-and more! Mark your calendar for the second weekend in August, the 8th to the 10th. For more detailed information, please contact Nancy (Mrs. Raymond) Lee; Joel Smith; or Valerie (Mrs. Harold) Truax, The Immanuel Church of the New Jerusalem, 74 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025.

287

SIX-MONTH STATISTICS 1986

Announcements

We have reported ninety-two baptisms so far this year. (Last year it was eighty-two by June.) Seventeen of the baptisms this year have been adult baptisms. (Last year it was sixteen by June.)

289

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
RIGHT REV. LOUIS B. KING, BISHOP
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, 19009, U. S. A.

Information on public worship and doctrinal classes provided either regularly or occasionally may be obtained at the locations listed below. For details use the local phone number of the contact person mentioned or communicate with the Secretary of the General Church, Rev. L. R. Soneson, Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, Phone (215) 947-4660.
Only USA Addresses

     UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

     Alabama:

     BIRMINGHAM
Dr. R. Shepard, 4537 Dolly Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Phone:(205) 967-3442.

     Arizona:

     PHOENIX
Mr. Hubert Rydstrom, 3640 E. Piccadilly Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85018. Phone: (602) 955-2290.

     TUCSON
Rev. Frank S. Rose, 2536 N. Stewart Ave., Tucson, AZ 85716. Phone: (602) 327-2612.

     Arkansas:

     LITTLE ROCK
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Holmes, Rt. 6, Box 447, Batesville, AR 72501. (501) 251-2383

     California:

     LOS ANGELES
Rev. Michael Gladish, 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescenta, CA 91214. Phone:(213) 249-5031.

     SACRAMENTO
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ripley, 2310 N. Cirby Way, Roseville, CA 95678. Phone: (916) 782-7837

     SAN DIEGO
Rev. Cedric King, 7911 Canary Way, San Diego, CA 92123. Phone: (714) 268-0379.

     SAN FRANCISCO
Rev. Mark Carlson, 4638 Royal Garden Place, San Jose, CA 95136. Phone: (408) 224-8521.

     Colorado:

     COLORADO SPRINGS
Mr. and Mrs. William Reinstra, 708 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, CO 80829. Phone: (303) 685-9519.

     DENVER
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone (303) 429-1239

     Connecticut:

     HARTFORD

     SHELTON
Rev. Glenn Alden, 47 Jerusalem Hill Rd., Trumbull, CT 06611. Phone: (203) 877-1141.

     Delaware:

     WILMINGTON
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 417 Delaware Ave., McDaniel Crest, Wilmington, DE 19803. Phone: (302) 478-4213.

     District of Columbia see Mitchellville, Maryland.

     Florida:

     LAKE HELEN
Rev. John Odhner, 413 Summit Ave., Lake Helen, FL 32744. Phone: (904) 228-2337.

     MIAMI
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 15101 N. W. Fifth Ave., Miami, FL 33169. Phone: (305) 687-1337.

     Georgia:

     AMERICUS
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee St., Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.

     ATLANTA
Rev. Christopher Bown, 3375 Aztec Road #72, Doraville, GA 30340. Phone: (Home) (404) 457- 4726, (Office) (404) 452-0518

     Idaho:

     FRUITLAND
(Idaho-Oregon border) Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Dr., Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.

290

     Illinois:

     CHICAGO
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     DECATUR
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.

     GLENVIEW
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     Indiana:
Contact Rev. Stephen Cole in Cincinnati, Ohio, or Mr. James Wood, R. R. 1, Lapel, IN 46051. Phone (317) 534-3546

     Louisiana:

     BATON ROUGE
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 1652 Ormandy Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Phone: (504) 921-3089.

     Maine

     BATH
Rev. Allison L. Nicholson, 897 Middle St., Bath, ME 04530 Phone: (207) 433-6410

     Maryland:

     BALTIMORE
Rev. Donald Rogers, #12 Pawleys Ct., S. Belmont, Baltimore, MD 21236. Phone: (301) 882- 2640.

     MITCHELLVILLE
Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Rd., Mitchellville, MD 20716. Phone: (301) 262-2349.

     Massachusetts:

     BOSTON
Rev. Grant Odhner, 4 Park Ave., Natick, MA 01760. Phone: (617) 651-1127.

     Michigan:

     DETROIT
Rev. Walter Orthwein, 132 Kirk La., Troy, MI 48084. Phone: (313) 689-6118.

     EAST LANSING
Mr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.

     Minnesota:

     ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS
Rev. Michael Cowley, 3153 McKight Road #340, White Bear Lake, MN 55110. (612) 770-9242

     Missouri:

     COLUMBIA
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 103 S. Greenwood, Columbia, MO 65201. Phone: (314) 442-3475.

     KANSAS CITY
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.

     New Jersey-New York:

     RIDGEWOOD. N.J.
Mrs. Fred E. Munich, 474 S. Maple Ave., Glen Rock, NJ 07452. Phone: (201) 445-1141.

     New Mexico:

     ALBUQUERQUE
Dr. Andrew Doering, 1298 Sagebrush Ct., Rio Rancho, NM 87124. Phone: (505) 897-3623.

     North Carolina:

     CHARLOTTE
Mr. Gordon Smith, 38 Newriver Trace, Clover, SC 29710. Phone: (803) 831-2355.

     Ohio:

     CINCINNATI
Rev. Stephen Cole, 6431 Mayflower Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45237. Phone: (513) 631-1210.

     CLEVELAND
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.

     COLUMBUS
Mr. Hubert Heinrichs, 8372 Todd Street Rd., Sunbury. OH 43074. Phone: (614) 524-2738.

     Oklahoma:

     TULSA
Mrs. Louise Tennis, 3546 S. Marion, Tulsa, OK 74135. Phone: (918) 742-8495.

     Oregon-Idaho Border.-Se Idaho, Fruitland.

     Pennsylvania:

     BRYN ATHYN
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-3665.

     ERIE
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Rd., Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.

     FREEPORT
Rev. Ragnor Boyesen, 126 Iron Bridge Rd., Sarver, PA 16055. Phone: Office (412) 353-2220 or Home 295-9855.

291

     KEMPTON
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: (Home) (215) 756-4301; (Office) (215) 756-6140.

     PAUPACK
Mr. Richard Kintner, Box 172, Paupack, PA 18451. Phone: (717) 857-0688.

     PITTSBURGH
Rev. Ray Silverman, 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: (Church) (412) 731-1061.

     South Carolina:- see North Carolina.

     South Dakota:

     ORAL-HOT SPRINGS
Rev. Erik Sandstrom, RR 1, Box 101M, Hot Springs, SD 57747. Phone: (605) 745-6714

     Texas:

     FORT WORTH
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 13410 Castleton, Dallas, TX 75234-5117. Phone: (214) 247-7775.

     Washington:

     SEATTLE
Rev. Kent Junge, 14812 N. E. 75th Street, Redmond, WA 98033. Phone: (206) 881-1955.

     Wisconsin:

     MADISON
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.

     LISTING PLACES OF WORSHIP

     It has been our policy in recent years to put a list at the end of this magazine every other month. If you look at the list in the April issue you will see that there was no more room on those three pages for yet more addresses. As we are adding more addresses, we are listing this month only those in the United States and will list the addresses in other countries next month. The lists are not exhaustive, and you are reminded that in the December issue we report all the societies, circles and groups in the General Church.
     In the photograph below are the General Church ministers now serving in Europe. In the back row are three serving in Great Britain with visits to the continent. They are Frederick C. Elphick, Kenneth O. Stroh and Ottar T. Larsen. In the front row, Alain Nicolier (France), Bjorn Boyesen and Daniel Fitzpatrick (Sweden).
     [Photograph.]

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BEFORE MARRIAGE AND AFTER MARRIAGE 1986

     Notes on Conjugial Love
for Junior Girls Religion

     BEFORE MARRIAGE
AND
AFTER MARRIAGE
Notes on Conjugial Love
for Junior Boys Religion

     Both by Rev. Peter M. Buss
Each $5.00 plus 70?? postage

     General Church Book Center          Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
Box 278                    Or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009          Phone: (215) 947-3920

293

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI July, 1986 No. 7
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     Of the thousands of passages in the Writings, what if you were asked to name one that, at least for the present, is your favorite? It is an interesting exercise, and when you share it, it becomes an excellent means for promoting the reading of the Writings. We have heard people say, "I'm not sure I am at all familiar with that passage, and he is naming it as his favorite. I'm going to read that tonight." On page 310 we name the passage that was mentioned more often than any other in a recent survey of ministers. And on page 311 we quote a selection of only five lines which one minister has selected as his favorite. In this case the minister explains at some length what is behind this selection. In other cases in future issues the explanation may consist of a very few words.
     More than a hundred passages are used in John Odhner's third article, "A Light Burden."
     This month we are publishing a doctrinal class given by Bishop King recently in Bryn Athyn. We would remind readers that classes like this are available from the Sound Recording Committee.
     In February of 1984 we published a review by Bishop Willard Pendleton of the biography of Benade by Richard Gladish. We were delighted to find that Lifeline in England has also reviewed the book, and we thank the editor of that magazine for allowing us to print the perceptive and appealing observations of Rev. Claud Presland (p. 325).
     The piece by Mrs. Goodenough about the "New Age" has not been called a review here, although it amounts to one. Above all, Mrs. Goodenough is putting specific questions to our readers, and we hope that there will be response.
     The sermon this month observes that "if we love our country, and from good will benefit it, in the other life we will love the Lord's kingdom. For there the Lord's kingdom is our country; and if we love the Lord's kingdom, we love the Lord, because He is everything in His kingdom."
     Last month we gave information on places of worship in the United States. In this issue (p. 334) we list places outside the United States.
     A new issue of Chrysalis with the theme of "the Holy City" has just been published. A subscription may be obtained from the Swedenborg Foundation.

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PROCLAIM LIBERTY THROUGHOUT THE LAND 1986

PROCLAIM LIBERTY THROUGHOUT THE LAND Rev. ROBERT H. P. COLE 1986

     (A sermon on love of country as a degree of love toward the neighbor)
"And Jehovah said: Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land. And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof" (Leviticus 25:9-10).

     Throughout the ages, men of good will have sought liberty and freedom for themselves and their fellow citizens. Our heritage demands that we respect each and every person as a citizen of God with the ability to respond to His love for the betterment of all. It is our hope that this spiritual principle finds embodiment in the everyday affairs of our natural life, and that the laws of heaven can become laws of men.
     So when we hear the Lord speak as in our text-"Proclaim liberty throughout all the land," we can know that these words describe both a spiritual principle and a natural state greatly to be sought after by men of good will. It is important that we seek a world which supports and fosters religious liberty.
     The word 'jubilee" describes this year of liberty. It is from the Hebrew "yovel," meaning a ram's horn or the joyful sound of the horn. The year of jubilee was therefore the year of the trumpet. This trumpet was to be sounded, according to our text, on the day of atonement, which was the penitential day of the Hebrew calendar, probably the first day of their religious year. It was to be a day of peace. In the year of jubilee all indentured labor, in regard to the Hebrews, was to come to an end. All leases were to expire. The natural reason for this law was to preserve for the Hebrew his agricultural inheritance. He might lease the right to farm his land, but could not alienate his rightful heirs from their inheritance.
     The freehold right of the land of Canaan belonged to the Lord. The land is said in Scripture to be the inheritance of Israel; but since the land is theirs only by the will and favor of the Lord, not by right, they are strangers and sojourners there even as they had been in Egypt. If a Hebrew had to sell his labor to a resident alien, his release might be purchased at any time by himself or by a kinsman, the price of redemption being reckoned by the value of his service up to the year of jubilee. The fundamental principle which our text conveys to us, then, is that the Children of Israel themselves belonged to the Lord (see AC 1413, 1585).

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     Yet to gain any real spiritual value from the historical concepts which a study of our text can convey to us, we must consider the internal sense with especial regard to the idea of spiritual liberty. In the spiritual sense the land of Canaan is our mind, which is inhabited by various ideas embodying various loves. Each idea and its love make one inhabitant in the land. So the description of the different inhabitants and their relative freedom applies to ideas in our mind. For example, a true idea of God, infilled with love to Him, has the freedom of a fully-titled landholder. Knowledge and love make one in life. On the other hand, a true idea of God can also be a slave to selfishness, doubt, or a lower good love, unable to stand, free because its proper good or love is unexpressed in life. A person who knows of heaven may still, from selfishness, try to merit heaven by his deeds, and so make knowledge a slave to his own selfish love (see AC 5757, 5940; AE 569:5).
     Still other knowledges in the natural mind are neither bondsmen nor landholders, but serve as means to support life. For example, one's knowledge of the formation of one's nation from several sovereign land areas is dot spiritual truth, but it can serve to enrich the heritage of our national life on earth. Such knowledge is represented in Canaan by the menservants and maidservants bought by the Children of Israel from strange lands, of whom we read: "Of the nations that are round about you ye shall buy manservant and maidservant; and also of the sons of the lodgers that do sojourn with you, of these shall ye buy, and of their family that is with you, although they have brought forth in your land; and that they may be your possessions, and that ye may hand them over for an inheritance to your sons after you, to inherit for a possession; ye shall rule over them forever" (Lev. 25:44-46).
     It is often said by the Lord in His Word that they who do what is good on earth shall have their reward in heaven, because before we are regenerated, we cannot but think of some reward as the result of our spiritual labors; but it is otherwise when we have been regenerated. We are then indignant if anyone thinks that we benefit our neighbor for the sake of reward, for we feel delight and blessedness in imparting benefits, and not in recompense. For the genuine reward which we then have is the delight of the affection of charity, or love toward the neighbor, which rules when a spiritual bondsman is set free (see AC 8002:2-7; AR 128).
     So we see that the mind of man has spiritual inhabitants in need of the "year of jubilee" when false or gross loves can be removed, and liberty can be proclaimed throughout the land. But does our text apply in a broader sense, describing love toward the neighbor? Clearly, the answer is, "Yes!"

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     A society is the neighbor, our country is the neighbor, the church is the neighbor; the Lord's kingdom is the neighbor, and so above all is the Lord. All these are the neighbor who is to be benefited from charity. We are to "proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." We are to seek the preservation of a national union where genuine charity based on spiritual reasoning can and will be allowed to flourish and shine forth from generation to generation in the light of the Lord's Word, even as one's national flag waves proudly in the breeze and receives into its resplendent colors the brilliant rays of the sun (see AC 6819, 8123).
     Our country is more the neighbor than a province or state, because it is like a parent. For here we have been born or naturalized. It nourishes us, and protects us from harm. Our country is to be benefited from love, according to its necessities, which chiefly regard its sustenance, its civil life, its defense and its spiritual life. If we love our country, and from good will benefit it, in the other life we will love the Lord's kingdom. For there the Lord's kingdom is our country; and if we love the Lord's kingdom, we love the Lord, because He is everything in His kingdom; angels are in Him and serve Him. They live and have their being from Him. What we properly call the Lord's kingdom, then, is the good and truth from the Lord in those who are in it (see AC 6821; TCR 414). It is the courage and dynamic inner strength that one has from acknowledgment of the Lord's sovereignty.
     The church is more the neighbor than our country because one who has true regard for the church has regard also for the souls and eternal life of the men, women, and children who are in the country where the church is. The Lord's kingdom is the neighbor in a higher degree than the church in which we may be born or later enter. It inflows into the church on earth, and into the good and just things of our nation, as well as into the uses of our communities, and finally into each one of us. The Lord's kingdom consists of all who are in good, both on earth and in the heavens. So the Lord teaches in Matthew: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you"(Matt. 6:33). For when the Lord's kingdom is loved, everyone who is in good is loved, and this is why it is so often said in the New Church by thoughtful readers of the Writings: "If you truly love your country on earth, then after death you will be led to heaven and to the Lord's kingdom, which you will love as you loved your country, and so you will render to it every good which you rendered to your temporal country." The reason for this statement, which is called to our attention in various ways at times of national celebration, is that the Lord is our highest Neighbor.

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He desires that we should acknowledge publicly, privately and in our hearts that He has created others besides ourselves and our accepted neighbors in affinity and of a like religious belief to share in the uses and glories of His eternal kingdom. He has a Divine plan for His church which will thrive in a setting involving the continuing orderly history of nations which are founded upon the principles of religious freedom.
     It is the end or goal that determines the quality of all of our deeds. If our end or intention in civil affairs, for example, is to do good merely for the sake of reputation, or to acquire honors or profit for no useful purpose, then such goals are for self. But if our guiding purpose is to do good for the sake of fellow-citizens, for our country, or for the church, which is for the sake of the neighbor, then the things that we do in our business, service or domestic affairs are also done for the sake of the Lord and His kingdom, since such good is not from us but from the Lord, and that which is from the Lord is the Lord's.
     It can be seen that charity, or doing good from love toward the neighbor, is to be practiced quite differently toward a society of the upright than toward a society of those who are not upright (see AC 6820). Our prisons are filled with those who choose to live contrary to the laws of order as set forth by our nation's principles and those of its several divisions. We ought, however, to be careful not to impose unjust indenture upon men or women for political purposes. Infraction of just laws should be the sole reason for incarceration or deprivation of personal freedom in this nation or any other whose people hold a high regard for civil, moral and spiritual liberty (see Charity 83).
     In the fourth commandment, by "father" is meant the Lord. "Honor thy father and mother" means that we are to love good and truth; for to have love for the Lord and His kingdom is what motivates those who highly regard their country and its good. This we can also see from the meaning of honoring as being to love, because in heaven one loves another. This love has within it honor, and in honor there is love. Honor without love is refused in heaven and rejected because it is devoid of life from good (see AC 8897, 8900; TCR 305e). We decorate our heroic soldiers and statesmen, but it is their patriotic service that we are decorating, not merely their human form.
     When we regard what is just and right as the essential and only thing of value, we are like those who fight in battle for their country, or risk their lives in some way for their country, and who then have no regard for their life, nor for their rank and possessions in the world, which are at such times relatively of no account (AC 9210:2). The highest heavenly values, then, come into their earthly fullness in the unselfish exercise of the love of country.
     We stand ready to work in our everyday uses to let truth find union with love in our life, and to bring the truth of the Word into the life of our nation, which will release spiritual bondsmen from the pain of servitude.

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We are prepared for the blessed year of jubilee, the year of the trumpet, the year of the increase out of the field, when with joy we may "proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." Amen.

     LESSONS: Leviticus 25:1, 8-12, 23, 24; Luke 7:1-10; Arcana Coelestia 3816:3.

     Arcana Coelestia 3816:3

     He who loves his country, and has such an affection toward it as to find a pleasure in promoting its good from good will, would lament if this should be denied him, and would entreat that there might be granted the opportunity to do good to it; for this is the object of his affection, consequently the source of his pleasure and bliss. Such a one is also honored and is exalted to posts of dignity; for to him these are means of serving his country, although they are called rewards. But those who have no affection for their country, but only an affection for self and the world, are moved to take action for the sake of honors and wealth, which also they regard as ends. Such persons set themselves before their country (that is, their own good before the common good), and are relatively sordid; and yet they more than all others are desirous to make it appear that they do what they do from a sincere love. But when they think privately about it, they deny that anyone does this, and marvel that anyone can. They who are such in the life of the body with regard to their country, or the public good, are such also in the other life with regard to the Lord's kingdom, for everyone's affection or love follows him, because affection or love is the life of everyone.
WHY AND HOW OF EVANGELIZATION 1986

WHY AND HOW OF EVANGELIZATION Rev. DOUGLAS TAYLOR 1986

(Concluded from the June issue)

We have spoken at length on the subject of motivation. We should be striving to do the Lord's will and not our own. It is the Lord's kingdom that we wish to spread, not our own. This attitude has a bearing on the methods used in The How of Evangelization. We should use nothing that is contrary to the Lord's kingdom-no deceit, no compulsion or persuasion, no watering down of doctrine, no leading to self or the aggrandizement of the organization.

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     In what follows we will have to be content with focusing only upon the one method of spreading the Lord's kingdom that is within reach of all of us, the one that does not require spending a great deal of money, the one method that has been used most often in the church, and is by far the most effective-answering people's questions about the church. Whatever else needs to be done in developing methods of evangelization, the ability of priests and laymen to speak interestingly and helpfully in answer to questions is of supreme importance. There will always be a need for this.
     In general, charity requires that we consider the other person and his needs. If evangelization is really to be a form of charity, this looking to the welfare of others is essential not merely desirable but essential. If what we say fills a long-felt need, it will be seen as intensely interesting to the neighbor. When evangelization-proclaiming or announcing concerning the Lord and His kingdom-is done in this way from goodwill toward the neighbor, wishing well to him; when it is neighbor-centered, not self-centered, then it cannot be anything else than successful-in terms of helping another to advance into or along the way to the Lord's kingdom. The reason is that the Lord would then be in it.
     We know that we should be neighbor-centered, but our natural inclination is to be self-centered, to speak from our own point of view, to speak about what is of interest to us, to present first of all what we think is most important and interesting. Perhaps we may not have realized how uncharitable this is, how self-centered it is to expect another to be interested in what seems important to us. That subject may not hold the slightest interest for the other fellow. Yet he may at the same time have many unanswered questions on other spiritual subjects. For example, we may feel it most important to announce first the news about the Lord's second coming and the last judgment. This is indeed the New Evangel; there is no doubt about that. The process of evangelization is not complete until that is made known, because that is the advent of the Lord that must be announced and proclaimed. But can we honestly expect every person we meet who inquires about the church to be interested in that subject or to accept it when we make that our opening gambit? A great deal of preparation is in most cases necessary before the truth and the good of those teachings can be seen and appreciated. If we insist on making a beginning with that subject every time for the reason that it is in the sight of heaven the New Evangel itself-we may never have the opportunity of learning that the person to whom we are speaking has been seeking for years to understand the Old and New Testaments, or the life after death, or the trinity, or the spiritual aspects of marriage.

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You see, the basic principle is that we should not present a teaching unless we feel fairly confident that it can be received with interest, that it is something with which the neighbor can easily agree, something that interests him.
     The Lord's conversation with the woman of Samaria at Jacob's well is a very good model. He did not open the discussion by proclaiming that He was the Messiah. If He had done so, there would have been no conversation at all! Instead, He spoke only of such matters as were of interest to the woman at the well. Only gradually, as the conversation unfolded, did the woman realize that she was in the presence of Someone who could answer her questions. Only when she raised the subject of the Messiah who was to come did the Lord proclaim the essential gospel of the Christian Church-that the Messiah had come.
     If we are to follow the Lord's model conversation, we will first discover what the neighbor's goods and truths are, what good attitudes he has toward the Lord, His Word, and the life of charity, and what true thoughts he has concerning them. We will seek to draw him out on these subjects especially because they are central; they are the three essentials of the church. Besides, they will reveal most clearly what his interests are and what his difficulties are. We will be very glad to support and encourage whatever good things and true things he has, unreservedly praising what is good and true. After all, is not what is good and true in another the neighbor that is to be loved, fostered, and developed?
     In order to foster what is good and true, in order to practice the doctrine of charity, we will have to resist our natural tendency to focus on falsities. It is so easy to listen only until we hear a falsity, and then proceed immediately to argue the point, hoping to set the other fellow right and convince him, that is, conquer him. This does nothing more than inflame the proprium on both sides of what is now no longer a discussion but an argument. Obviously, it is of charity in all our human relations to avoid arousing the proprium. If we are to foster what is good and true from the Lord and the neighbor-which charity requires us to do-we clearly must avoid arousing what is from self in him. This applies also, and especially, when answering people's questions about the Lord and His kingdom. In regard to this, it is most instructive, and perhaps sobering, to read what is said of angelic instructors as they give information to newly arrived spirits. It is said that "they make no account of the fallacies and falsities of spirits, except as childish things, yet by no means deriding them, thus accounting them as nothing, themselves remaining in their own tranquil state" (SD 1105).
     If we bear in mind that our object is to strengthen the neighbor's goods and truths, we will allow him to indicate what aspect of the Heavenly Doctrine should be discussed.

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Charity will prompt us to give him that privilege. In any case, it is practically impossible to give an overall summary of what the church teaches in such a way as to arouse interest. The reason is that so many of the general statements of doctrine need to be amplified and qualified-and illustrated. It is far better to ask or discover what subject would be of particular interest to the inquirer: the nature of the Word, the nature of the Lord, the life of religion, the life after death, Divine Providence, the spiritual aspects of marriage. No matter what is of supreme interest to us, let us focus on what will help the other fellow understand and live what he already believes. This is the way the Lord works; He takes what we have and multiplies it. It is involved in such miracles as the replenishing of the widow's pot of oil in the book of Kings, and in the two miracles performed by the Lord when He fed the multitude with a few leaves and fishes. He took what they had and multiplied it. This involves the spiritual law to which we have referred-discovering the neighbor's goods and truths and seeking to develop them. In this way we will be promoting the Lord's kingdom. We will be actively (practically) praying that His kingdom may come and that His will may be done-as in heaven so upon the earth.
This approach takes away the fears that have traditionally enslaved us. The conversation can be quite relaxed and pleasant for both parties. The delights of charity toward the neighbor will pervade it. We will not feel called upon to give a long discourse; we will not feel obliged to be an orator. We will simply answer briefly the questions that our charitable attitude has encouraged. We will feel like a helper, not a persuader.
Furthermore, we will in this way discover those whom the Lord has prepared to receive the New Evangel. We will be enabled to identify those "who hunger and thirst after righteousness" (Matt. 5:6). Moreover, the Lord will inspire, move, and enlighten us so that we may help fill them with the spiritual food and drink that they so sorely need, which the Lord has abundantly provided, and of which, in the Divine Providence of the Lord, we are privileged to be custodians and dispensers. After all, it is the Lord's truth, not ours, that we are to dispense. It is the Lord's good that He will inspire into the hearts of men and women by means of that truth. The goodness does not come from us. Nor are these teachings "the doctrines of the New Church." They may be "the doctrines for the New Church," but we do not own them. They are the Lord's. We are to take them, use them on ourselves, and share the joy with others. That is why the Lord, in the Coronis to the True Christian Religion, issued "an invitation to the whole Christian world to enter this church; and an exhortation to worthily receive the Lord, who has Himself foretold that He would come into the world for the sake of this church and to it" (LV).

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LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) 1986

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) Rev. JOHN L. ODHNER 1986

     Part III

     Building Up Your New Will

     Last month in this series of articles we spoke of how the fight against evil can be easier if we take positive steps to strengthen ourselves against evil. This month we continue, with a focus on the power that love has against evil. In the battle against evil, the new will fights against the old will. The stronger your new will is, the easier the battle can be.

10. Fight Evil With Love.

     Any task is easy if you love to do it. Any task can be difficult when you do not want to do it. I find it easer to play the piano for an hour than to wash the dishes for 10 minutes. This principle is just as true for shunning evils. Love makes the task easier.
     To begin with, the greater our love for the Lord and others is, the more we will be willing to learn about evil and examine ourselves.

Those who are in heavenly love accept instruction, and as soon as they are brought into the evils into which they were born, they see them from truths, for truths make evils manifest (HH 487, emphasis added, here and in the following quotes; see also Char 181).

     In addition to helping us recognize evil in ourselves, love is what gives us the power to fight against evil. In fact, it is love in the internal man which does the fighting against the evils in the external man (Char. 181, 183). The only way to fight evil is love:

The only means of driving away the devil and his crew from the door of the mind is to love to the Lord and towards the neighbor (AC 364; see also AC 5168:2).

If they who are not in charity should be tempted they would yield at once (AC 4274:2).

     An example of this is the power of conjugial love. One woman describes the power of conjugial love over the evil of adultery as follows:

For me it is a case of not letting myself dwell on thoughts of someone else. I do that by repeating that I shun an evil as a sin against the Lord by keeping busy, and by thinking of what a good man my husband is (Theta Alpha Journal, Spring 1985, Vol. 9, no. 9, p. 22).

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     The Writings also describe this power of conjugial love:

From true conjugial love there is power and protection against the hells (AE 999:2).

At the presence of conjugial love diabolical spirits become furious, insane and mentally impotent, and cast themselves into the deep (AE 1002e).

There is no love which labors . . . more intensely, or which opens the interiors of their minds more powerfully and easily than conjugial love, since the soul of each intends it (CL 302).

11. Work To Overcome Your Fears.

     There is one commandment which is repeated more often than any other in the Old and New Testaments. We need to hear it again and again: "Fear not. Do not be afraid."
     One of the 100 passages which tell us not to fear is Deuteronomy 20, where the priest was asked to tell the people, "Today you are on the verge of battle with your enemies; do not let your heart faint, do not be afraid, and do not tremble or be terrified because of them; for the Lord your God is He who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to save you." Then the officers were to say to the people, "What man is there who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest the heart of his brethren faint like his heart." You may remember the time Gideon sent home over 2/3 of his soldiers because they were afraid (Judges 7:3). The victory would come more easily with a few courageous men than with many cowards.
     Spiritually, the ones who were sent home are those who cannot overcome in temptation because they "fear the evil, and also cause others to fear them" (AE 734:13). A worldly person may fear the punishment in hell, but a spiritual person should not (see AE 696:6, 24).
     "When there is fear, then those who want to inflict evil are at once at hand" (SD 4744m). Fear draws evil spirits like a wounded animal draws wolves. Evil spirits cannot overcome a person who has confidence in the Lord, but they can easily manipulate people who are afraid of what others might think, or who refrain from evils simply out of fear of retaliation or punishment in hell. In fact, fear of losing money and status can actually make reformation impossible. "No one is reformed in a state of fear . . . for love opens the interiors of the mind, but fear closes them . . . and makes it impossible that a person can be reformed" (DP 139). So before the battle, eliminate the negative motivations-send home your fears.

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12. Be Afraid to Hurt Those You Love

     The writer in Theta Alpha Journal goes on to say:

The other thought so strong in me is that as much as I love my children I could never do anything to cause them harm. The gravest hurt I can think of for them would be the destruction of our marriage (Theta Alpha Journal, ibid).

     Many fears make the battle against evil harder. However, there is another kind of fear which helps us fight evil: it is the fear that is in all good love (cf. CL 371). It is a fear for another rather than a fear of another (see SD 6110:55). It is fear that someone may be hurt. "Holy fear is not so much a fear of hell and damnation as it is of doing or thinking anything against the Lord and against the neighbor" (AC 2826; cf. AC 4274:2, AE 696:23). The Writings tell us that this fear "is a result of our wonder at and longing for what Is Divine and also a result of our love" (AC 3718).

To be compelled by love and by the fear of its loss is to compel oneself (DP 136:9).

13. Call on Your "Remains."

     For seven years Joseph kept storing up a fifth of Egypt's grain. When famine followed, the Egyptians were able to survive on stored grain.
     We can get through our lean times by drawing on a similar store. Every time we go through a good state, such as a time of trust or peace, a time of caring for others, a time of enlightenment through the Word, a memory of that state remains. These "remnants" or "remains" of earlier states are the starting point for our regeneration (AC 5335:2, 2636:2, 5899) and the source of our nourishment during spiritual famines (see AC 5297:3). The Lord and the angels draw these states from the inward reaches of our minds and use them to counter the hells' attacks against us (see AC 737, 1050, 268, 530:2, 3335:3).
     Let your mind drift back to a childhood time when you sensed complete trust in your parents' strength. Or perhaps there was a time when you felt pity for someone who was suffering. There may have been a time when you felt a great sense of purpose in life. Maybe you can draw on memories of courtship. Or you might turn to a favorite passage from the Word. The Lord is using those memories to awaken similar states now, to stir your resolve to fight evil.

14. Develop a Sense of Inner Peace and Confidence.

     The fiercest hurricane has a center of complete calm. One time Swedenborg heard a rushing noise of a great mob of spirits around him, who were complaining that everything was going to total destruction.

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But in the center of it all he heard the soft music of angel choirs. He learned that this was symbolic of how "the Lord rules the fragmented and confused things which are on the outside from what is peaceful in the center, by which the surrounding disorderly things are brought back into order" (AC 5396e).
     We cannot fight confusion with confusion. Inner peace is a key to withstanding the assaults of hell.

Peace has in it confidence in the Lord. A state of peace takes away all evil, especially self-confidence (AC 8455).

[During temptations] a person is inmostly in a state of peace, for unless this were with him inmostly, he would not fight . . . . Moreover, this is the reason why he overcomes (AC 3696:2; see also 1726e).

15. Hope.

     Of all hell's horrible methods of destroying our good loves (see AC 1820), the most cruel is when they take away hope. The point of despair is inevitably the focus, the climax, the height and the depth of the battle (see AC 1787, 6144, 5369, 7147, 7166, 8567). It is the inmost or highest degree of spiritual pain (AC 8313, SD 1042).
     Just as hopelessness is hell's greatest weapon, hope is our greatest defense. The Lord answers every attack of the hells, but that answer comes to us primarily as hope (AC 8159). When a person is attacked by evil spirits, "the Lord keeps him in hope and trust, which are the forces . . . by which he resists" (AC 6097; cf. 11007, 6574:2).
     A person's hopes are directly tied to his love. Actually, the reason why the Lord does not give us certain knowledge of the future is that hope is much more powerful than knowledge. Without hope, love will die (see DP 178).
     The Writings give several examples of the power of hope: "Wives are nourished by hope of friendship, confidence, happiness together" (CL 167). "Hope of becoming an angel exalts the love of use" (HH 517). "Hope of having children nurses and strengthens conjugial love" (CL 254). And for a person who is sad or struggling with evil, hope can console, encourage, nourish, cheer, revive, calm (AC 7183, 7183, 8165, 3610, 4783, 6577, CL 78, 216a).

In temptations . . . good spirits and angels . . . continually keep the person in hope. . . .He who allows himself to be cheered with hope remains steadfast in an affirmative attitude (AC 2338).

     When you are desperate, hope. Hope for the good that the Lord can bring from evil. Hope that the Lord can change you. Hang on to hope.

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16. Keep Your Goals Clearly in Sight.

     A very important factor in the fight against evil is a person's goals or ends. A person's end or goal is his love-it is what he loves above all else (see AC 3066e, 1317). It is by means of a person's ends that he is either in heaven or in hell (AC 3670). Consequently, the fight against evil is a fight between ends. The hells especially attack a person's ends and try to put them in doubt (see AC 1820, 1787).
     One of the ways the hells can attack a person's ends is by giving priority to the means. The whole effort of hell is to make ends into means and make means into ends. They want us to love things and use people, rather than to use things and love people.
     They would also like to distract us from our good goals by discouraging us with our imperfect results. We may not be very successful in many things we do, and it may look as if we are not getting very far with fighting our evils. The angels on the other hand "especially avert evil ends and inspire good ones"(AC 5354); and they excuse a person's evil if his goal has been good (AC 7122:2, 3796:4, 6559, 1079, 1088). It is primarily through our ends that the Lord works with us and leads us (see AC 3570:2, 3565). He pays little attention to whether we are "successful" at shunning evils, or whether our love is perfectly pure. He mostly cares whether our goal or intention is shunning evils and loving others (see CL 71).
     One of the ways we can strengthen ourselves against the attacks of hell is to visualize our goals, to "keep our eyes on good as the end" (see AC 5949). "An intelligent person is one who keeps goals in view" (AC 5094:4; cf. 3796:3).
     The more clearly we can see in our minds the outcome we are seeking, the more hope we will have, and the more our reason and love will be stirred to strive for the goal:

It is reason's greatest delight mentally to envision the effect from love, not after it is attained, but before it is, not in the present but as future. So man has hope, which rises and declines in the reason as he sees or anticipates the outcome (DP 178).

17. Enjoy the Love in Your Life.

     One of the subtlest ways that evil spirits make life more difficult for us is by baiting us with selfish delights and destroying our good delights. "They fire up selfish desires by means of delights which they snatch from the person's delight in something else" (AC 1820). The greatest delight of evil spirits is to take away the heavenly delights of others (see HH 400).
     It is much harder to live well when we don't enjoy it. Perhaps if they can't stop us from attending church, they might just get us to stop enjoying it.

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If they can't prevent us from working hard, they still might get us to enjoy the paycheck instead of our use to others. If you are the kind of person who would never have an affair, they might still get you to enjoy the TV soap affairs. Or even if you would never deliberately hurt another, they might still give you a sense of satisfaction when someone who has been rude to you is in some kind of trouble.
     The angels are also especially interested in our delights. They "observe where a person's delights turn themselves, and so far as they can from man's freedom, moderate and bend them to good" (AC 5992; cf. AC 4063:4).
     Whether you are in a good or bad state is often less significant than whether you are enjoying the state you are in. The battle between good and evil is a battle of delights. "While the person is in temptations, there is a combat between these two kinds of delight" (AC 3928; cf. AC 8352, 8452, HH 384, 396, DP 145).
     One example of this battle of delights is in marriage. For many people, the immediate spiritual issue is not whether they will stay married, but whether they will choose to enjoy marriage. Note that Swedenborg titled his book The DELIGHTS of . . . Conjugial Love . . . and The PLEASURES of . . . Adulterous Love. In this book he wrote, "it is the delights of the two loves that are so opposite, since love is nothing without its delights" (CL 427).
     Because of this opposition, heavenly delight has great power against evil spirits. The influence of heavenly joy makes them feel intense pain and they throw themselves back into hell (see HH 400). This means that the more we enjoy what is good, the more easily we can overcome our enjoyment of evil.

In the same degree in which a person perceives delight in this good, and pleasantness in these truths, he feels undelight in the evils of the former life, and unpleasantness in its falsities (AC 370 1:7; cf. 2657:6).

     So we can see that one key to overcoming evil delight is to allow ourselves, and even compel ourselves, to enjoy the good love which the Lord has given us.

A person compels himself when he compels his outward thought . . . to receive the delights of his affections which are good (DP 145).

18. Take Responsibility for Your Life.

     The Writings use the term "guilty in both negative and positive ways. On the one hand, one should believe that evil is from hell, and "not appropriate evil to himself and make himself guilty of it" (DP 320). On the other hand, during repentance one is to "acknowledge his evils, to make himself guilty, and to condemn himself on account of them" (HD 160).

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     Clearly, there is a difference between the depressing, hopeless feelings of guilt that immobilize us emotionally, and the healthy willingness to reject past attitudes and change for the better. I find that when the positive meaning is intended, a better translation of the Latin word for "guilty" (reus) is "responsible." Don't feel guilty about your evils; do accept responsibility for them.
     Feelings of guilt are one of the key weapons the hells use to destroy our spiritual life. They love to burden our consciences with things that no one should feel guilty about (AC 5386, 5724; SD 1240-1242). Furthermore, by bringing to mind our past evils, they bring our good intentions into doubt and discourage us from our efforts to care about others. The angels fight these feelings by drawing out the best in us all our previous states of caring, love, and understanding which remain stored within us (see AC 737). It will be easier for the angels as well as ourselves if we can get rid of all that useless guilt.
     A key concept here is freedom. Your spiritual love will not grow as a result of outside pressure, but only as a result of your own inner choices. These are choices which you can make more easily when you accept the idea that you are responsible for the way your own life turns out.

19. Make an Effort.

     I have been telling you that the fight against evil will be easier if your love is greater and your new will stronger. However, there will be times when the struggle is difficult even for the best of people. The fight against evil in ourselves is a fight for our lives (see AC 8403:2). And the stronger our love is, the more fiercely the hells attack it (AC 1820). The Lord gives us all the power we need to overcome; He just asks us to be willing to use that power to our best ability (see AC 8307:2).
     Love takes effort. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your mind and all your soul and all your strength" (Mark 12:30). Your will is like your muscles, which get stronger with every effort you make. Likewise, a person's heavenly self is formed in the effort of his thought (AC 1937:2).
     The first of charity is to shun evils, and the second is to do what is good (Life 22, AC 8179:2, BE 52). Love, courage, tenderness. trust, peace, purpose, delight, vision, responsibility, effort-these can give you new will power; that is, give power to your new will. Each of them can strengthen your love and make the task of spiritual growth easier, not as substitutes for shunning evil, but as helps. Next month I will list still more ways to make the task easier, with a focus on the power of the new understanding.

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MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (1) 1986

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (1) Rev. ERIC H. CARSWELL 1986

     The idea is such a natural one. Ask ministers to choose their favorite passages in the Writings and then have the pleasure of comparing notes. This year the idea was carried through. Rev. Wendel Barnett, encouraged by Rev. Prescott Rogers, invited ministers to list their ten favorite passages. He then put the results on a word processor and circulated to ministers the lists with observations about the passages most frequently chosen. (No 8478 of the Arcana Coelestia was chosen by more men than any other passage.)
     We are beginning a series of favorite passages and in each case inviting the minister to choose his preferred translation and to comment as he wishes on why he chose the particular passage.

     [Photo of Rev. Eric Carswell who resides in Glenview, Illinois, where he is assistant pastor and principal of the Midwestern Academy.]

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     MY "FAVORITE" PASSAGE

     BY REV. ERIC H. CARSWELL

Rational good never fights, no matter how much it is assailed, because it is gentle and mild, long-suffering and yielding, for its nature is that of love and mercy. But although it does not fight, it nevertheless conquers all. It does not ever think of combat, nor does it glory in victory. It is of this nature because it is Divine and is safe of itself (AC 1950:2).

     I have spent a considerable amount of time reflecting on the meaning and implications of this passage. It seems to lead to a tremendous number of attitudes and behaviors that would be quite different from ones that we normally accept as typical, appropriate and even desirable. The presence of rational good would influence how we interact with a wide variety of people, from spouses, to children, to co-workers, to people in other churches and far beyond these. The primary question is, what does this passage mean? It is presented as a stark contrast to the "Ishmael rational" that is led by truth separate from good.

The person whose rational consists in truth alone, even though this is the truth of faith, and does not at the same time consist in the good of charity, is altogether such. He is a morose man, makes no allowances, is against sell, regards everyone as being in error, is instantly prepared to rebuke, to chasten and to punish, shows no pity, does not apply or adapt himself to bend their minds; for he looks at everything from truth, anal at nothing from good (AC 1949:2).

     The description of the Ishmael rational is relatively easy to picture in a person's life. Forming a clear picture of how rational good would appear is considerably more challenging. The first part of the description of rational good perhaps evokes images of "warm fuzzies," somewhat like the actions of a friend who tries to make you feel better no matter what you have done or said. Now, while warm fuzzies may be nice to receive, my picture is that their track record against evil isn't very impressive. Yet the description of rational good says that it conquers all. Not only is it unbeatable, but it manages this accomplishment all the while maintaining a sense of great safety, because, to my understanding, it senses the presence and operation of an infinite and loving God.
     Another image of rational good is provided in the following passage.

. . . a celestial angel never fights, still less is his hand in the neck of his enemies [see Gen. 49:8], nor indeed does he regard anyone as an enemy insofar as he is concerned (AC 6365; see also 6369).

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     It is one thing to say that celestial angels never have to fight because evil spirits cannot even stand their presence, but unfortunately in this world, spiritual goodness alone will not always carry the day. It is obvious to me that rational good can assume a form that may appear like deep concern or even anger. Consider the description of charity in a general or in a soldier.

[A general who is a form of charity] does not love war, but peace; even in war he continually loves peace. He does not go to war except for the protection of his country, and thus is not an aggressor, but a defender. But afterwards, when war is begun, if so be that aggression is defense, he becomes also an aggressor. In battle, if he has not been born otherwise, he is brave and valiant; after battle he is mild and merciful. In battle he would fain be a lion; but after battle, a lamb (Charity 164).

If [a soldier] looks to the Lord, shuns evils as sins, and does his work sincerely, justly and faithfully, he also becomes a form of charity . . . . He is against unjust plunder; he abominates the wrongful spilling of blood. In battle it is another thing. There he is not averse to it; for he does not think of it, but of the enemy as an enemy who desires his blood. When he hears the sound of the drum calling him to desist from the slaughter, his fury ceases. He looks upon his captives after victory as neighbors, according to the quality of their good. Before the battle he raises his mind to the Lord and commits his life into His hand; and after he has done this, he lets his mind down from its elevation into the body and becomes brave, the thought of the Lord-which he is then unconscious of-remaining still in his mind, above his bravery. And if he dies, he dies in the Lord; if he lives, he lives in the Lord (Charity 166).

     Or consider the power of this passage:

. . . if a man repels an insulting enemy, and in self-defense strikes him or delivers him to the judge in order to prevent injury to himself, and yet with a disposition to befriend the man, he acts from a charitable spirit (TCR 407).

     For most of us, once we have gotten ourselves pumped up to defend something or someone, it is hard not to carry a grudge against the initial source of the problem. It is hard to feel or express genuine goodwill in such a situation. Rational good will not become a force in our lives until we have fought many a long and hard battle against the part of our mind that seeks ill for those whom we view as "the enemy." It may be a long and hard battle to attain this state of mind, but surely the end result is well worth it-unbeatable spiritual strength and a perfect sense of safety.

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CONSENT 1986

CONSENT Rev. LOUIS B. KING 1986

     A DOCTRINAL CLASS

     What is consent? What is its origin? What is its quality? What does it accomplish?
     The Writings have many things to say about consent, and a number of synonyms are used; such words as "agreement," "cooperation," "affective or affirmative response," "permission" and "choice." These, like the word "consent," are simply phrases-sounds-and yet all words are symbols for ideas, and ideas are mental pictures. And when the rational mind views these mental pictures which words conjure up, then we begin to see the realities of life, the values that truly must enter into life's situations.
     We are told that consent, for example, is the essential or the essence of marriage. And surely we know that marriage enters into every subject in creation. When consent in marriage begins to diminish, the essential relationship between husband and wife is jeopardized. The interior bonds of marriage are weakened even though the externals may hold fast (and they should) but upon the degree and the quality of consent will the marriage depend entirely.
     Consent, then, is more than just a word spoken at the time vows are exchanged. Consent is more than an action or a cooperation at a given point of time. Consent is a dynamic, living response. It is, in fact, the essential of human response to all of life, the good and the truth that inflows into man and causes him to be an individual being.
     The Lord is life. He alone lives. Yet His life creates vessels-vessels that are sensitive to life, that can receive life and feel that life as if it were one's own. And the marvel of that reception of life is that there is the appearance of self-life, that life originates in man and therefore he has the freedom to respond as of self.
     All action, then, is from the Lord. All reaction and response is with man. But even that reaction is made possible because the Lord's Divine life can be in man in such a way that man feels it to be his own.
     We read in the Apocalypse Explained that the Lord's love is an infinite desire to give of everything that is intrinsically Divine to men that they might have it for their own. But this is impossible because only the Lord can live.
     So God created man in such a way that as a vessel of life he could receive life and feel it as if it were his own. And in that wonderful sensation of life, as of self, there is the capacity to respond, to consent through acknowledgment that what inflows is Divine, and to use that according to the truths which the Lord makes known from without through His Word.

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     Marriage, then, depends upon consent, and marriage exists in many degrees and in many kinds. There is the Divine marriage in the Lord: the union of the Divine and the Human in one person. If there is a union or a marriage between the Divine and the Human, is there a consent in the Lord? Consent has to do with reception, and reception can only be predicated of finite vessels. There is no finite vessel in the Lord. Reception cannot be predicated of the Lord or any part of Him. So, consent has no part in the Lord. And yet when the Lord came into the world in order to redeem and save the human race, He put on a finite body and a finite mind. He put on a vessel which could receive His own soul and respond to it that there might be a reciprocal relationship between the Divine and the Human in the Lord, and that there might be consent on the part of the Human to receive the Divine and to carry out its infinite longing to save the human race.
     The Lord put on the human to redeem the human race, which could not be done unless there was a vessel upon which there was inscribed hereditary evil through the Mary human. The hells could then approach the Lord and endeavor to destroy that consent which the human offered to the Divine.
     But imagine the human consciousness in the Lord longing to have the Divine infill it and accomplish through it the ends and purposes of the Lord's advent into the world to redeem and save the human race. And imagine the hells struggling to destroy that consent, to withhold the human from the Divine that there might not be a union.
     In Arcana Coelestia no. 2034 it speaks of the Lord's tender love to save the human race. And it is said that in every moment of His operation to unite the Human to the Divine, and the Divine to the Human, He saw in that effort the salvation of the human race, and this He loved.
     What did the hells see in the uniting of the Human and the Divine in that wonderful prototype of consent? They saw the failure of everything that they had worked for, and their endeavor was to prevent this consent.
     When the Lord glorified the Human, consent and reception could no longer be predicated of Him, and that is so today. But there was a time, when He was in the world, that consent figured as an essential element in the whole glorification series.
     Below the Divine marriage there is the marriage of the Lord with His kingdom in heaven and in the church. The Lord is called the bridegroom and the husband; the church, the bride and the wife. And we see in this consent of the Lord's kingdom such a unified looking to the Lord and acknowledgment of His Divine that the whole of the heavens appears in one unified form-the human form-consenting to the presence of the Lord as the very soul of that Gorand Man of heaven.

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     And below this marriage there is the spiritual, or heavenly, marriage which takes place in each individual, of which marriage it is said that in the resurrection they are neither married nor given in marriage, because the reference was to a joining together by mutual consent of the will and the understanding-something that has to happen here on earth, not in heaven later on.
     In the very beginning the proprial will receives life. The understanding is separated; it is elevated by truths and looks down on selfish motivation. The loves of self and the world endeavor right at the beginning to try to get the understanding and the rational mind of man to consent to the government of the love of self. But the Lord implants remains in the understanding, and those remains become a tender, fertile seedbed for the reception of truth. And when the truth from the Word is implanted, there grow up principles-wonderful principles of conscience-the initiation of a new will into which the Lord's life inflows, and from that new will, into the understanding to achieve the consent of man to the Lord's leadership and the exclusion of the proprium.
     Below the spiritual marriage, which must take place in men and women individually, there is the ultimate form of all marriage, the conjugial relationship of a husband and a wife. And of this it is said, consent is the essential (CL 21).
     And let us remember that all consent comes from the Lord's influx of life. The Lord does not just hand a portion of life to man where after he lives from himself, interacting with the Lord. The Lord's life inflows continually. There is never a break. He is present in that life, through the soul, to lead and guide man within the freedom of his framework and environment to consent to the Lord's leadership. That is the whole effort.
     And, therefore, when we consent to marriage in this world, to love, honor and cherish one another, it is not just the words spoken. It is a commitment, a dynamic response of our whole being to open our lives to the Lord's influx that He may establish consent to eternal life. We stress this dynamic, ongoing, living human response of consent because it is the Lord's will that this shall exist, that this shall draw men together, men to each other in the church, men and women in marriage, and angels to the men of the church on earth, and all into union or conjunction with the Lord. And when we are troubled; when the marriage on any plane is threatened; when consent languishes and there is a feeling of the loss of closeness or conjunction, what is the answer?

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The answer is the presence, the unchanging presence, of the Lord in the soul, in the Word, through the heavens.
     How profoundly the Lord brings His Divine into these vessels. And all that He asks is that we consent to His ends and His purposes. How can any consent languish to the point where it disappears if the true origin and nature of consent is understood, and if the Lord is believed and looked to?
     In the True Christian Religion no. 3 we are given the five items of faith of the man of the church. Among them is to acknowledge the Lord-to believe in Him. To believe in Him is to have true consent, to know that He is present, working in every condition of life to build consent for everything that is of His Divine with us. In marriage, in the life of use, in the life of the church, in the life of charity, the Lord is present as the very source and origin of consent, willing that we shall feel it and long for it and use it.
     So much of life is contained and involved in consent. Think of the very beginning, the initiation of life, conception, the sperm provided by the husband, the receiving egg from the mother-the approach of love, the consent of wisdom. There is no human interference with this. There is no as of self. This all takes place according to the laws of order, wherein there is a striving as long as the Lord's order operates-a striving for marriage, for the will of good and the consent of truth. There are some wonderful numbers that deal with that. And when conception takes place there is a human soul. And the human soul begins to build a body corresponding to its potential for usefulness here and hereafter, a wonderful, unique body.
     And when birth takes place, when the first breath of life is experienced, consent is given, the as of self expresses its first response to the Lord. The lungs are opened, a rush of blood to the head-to the brain-to open up those areas of intellect. A correspondential basis is laid for the as-of-self response-consent. And with that first cry, symbolically, is the promise of eternal consent.
     Shortly thereafter the infant is brought by his parents for baptism-again, a service of consent. This time the parents consent in behalf of the child to raise the child to know the Lord, to acknowledge Him and in his own way to consent, through worship, to the Lord's leadership. New Church education begins with the consent of baptism. And the child grows and becomes a youth. He approaches his own state of reason, and he comes before the Lord again to confirm his consent to follow the promises made for him by his parents.
     Shortly thereafter, not too shortly hopefully, he may appear again with his fiancee before the Lord, this time to express, in a beautiful service, the confirmation of interior consent-consent to love, to honor and to cherish a married partner forever, that there shall be a consent first on the plane of the soul and the mind, and afterwards a consent in the external.

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And marriage confirms this again; the promises are made and all that is involved in consent, and the husband and wife take their place in a New Church society where, again, they enter into a communion with others and organizationally give their consent to be governed by the priesthood in ecclesiastical uses-a symbol, again, of the government of the Divine Providence in the life of each individual.
     So much of life is involved in consent, and consent is so vital. In the Word of the Lord many beautiful things are said about consent, many lovely stories.
     In the Old Testament we see the child Samuel, dressed in his white linen coat and ephod, tutored under the guidance of the old priest Eli in the tabernacle at Shiloh. The Lord calls to him. He has not heard the Lord's voice. There was not open vision. But the Lord calls him, and gradually he comes to recognize the Lord. And he says, "Speak, Lord, for your servant hears"-obeys- consents.
     And centuries later the virgin Mary, in the little town of Nazareth, bowed herself before the angel Gabriel and said, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." There are six hundred places in Scripture where the literal sense beautifully depicts the importance of consent.
     What makes consent possible? The Lord. The Lord makes it possible because each one of us is a vessel created to receive life and to respond to it. The vessel in itself is empty-dead. In a very real sense we are at any given moment the product of influxes and response.
     When the Lord created man, in the literal story, he formed him of the dust of the ground, and the dust formed images called man, even as we are termed vessels-dead vessels. But then it is said He breathed upon the form, and he became a living soul. And so the vessel, when the Lord's life inflows into this soul, through the heavens into his conscious mind, and out of the Word through the senses, becomes a living being-a human form of life-with the ability to respond, to consent through acknowledgment of the Lord, or to negate to confirm the wonderful appearance that he lives from himself. Conjunction is impossible without the appearance of self-life. The Lord must be in man, and man must be in the Lord. That is Scripture's way of saying that we can be conjoined with the Lord and live forever. It is by His influx of life into us that He is in us. And it is by our reception and our consent that we are in Him.
     Influx is predicated of the Lord-action. Reception and consent is predicated of man, because man has the freedom to use it.

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He is not the origin of it. And response, or the efflux-the performance of use-is predicated of both man and God, for the active use of charity going forth draws its living quality from God, but its form is a projection of the limitation of the man. The Lord's life flows into the devil as well as the angel and enables each to have an effect upon others. But because the effect is seen and appears according to the state of the vessel, man is credited entirely with the response, when, in fact, we are told in the Writings that the Lord is the agent, and that, in fact, he is the re-agent as of self in each man. The Lord wills then that His Divine things be in man, and in order that this may be so, they are in man as if man's own.
And life cannot inflow and stop dead. It must go forth. And it will go forth according to the vessel. If the vessel consents to the Lord's leading, there will be an acknowledgment that everything good and true is from the Lord.
Why do we stress these numbers which deal with the Divine of the Lord in man-of man's minimal part in all of this? Are these numbers for the purpose of making us feel that man is nothing and the Lord is everything, that even He makes the choice? Not so. These teachings are given so that we will never forget the immediate presence of the Lord in all states of life, and that when our proprium causes consent to languish, in whatever form it may take, the answer is there. The Lord is there, inflowing with a creative, a desire and urging to form in us a response that will be a consent to His government. "I am the vine," He said, "you are the branches; except you abide in Me, you can bear no fruit. Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). "But with God all things are possible" (Matt. 19:26).
REPORT OF THE GENERAL CHURCH WORD COMMITTEE 1985 1986

REPORT OF THE GENERAL CHURCH WORD COMMITTEE 1985 Rev. N. Bruce Rogers 1986

     The current task of the Word Committee is to consider alternative readings to the New King James Version of books of the Word, and to prepare a list of suggested emendations.
     In pursuit of this purpose, the Word Committee met five times in 1985. Our goal was to meet monthly, except during the summer, but scheduling conflicts, other commitments, and the great deaf of work required in preparation for each meeting did not always allow us to meet this goal.
     Nevertheless, the committee managed to consider and adopt seventy-one additional suggested emended readings, bringing the total to ninety-four by the end of the year.

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A list of twenty-six of these suggested emendations was made available to the Council of the Clergy at its annual meetings in March, and a further, updated list will be made available to members of the Council at its next meetings in March, 1986.
     Again, no decision has been made regarding a date for publication of this list for use by the church at large. The list continues to grow slowly, and the end is not in sight. The list grows slowly because each suggested emendation requires careful research and consideration before it can be adopted. Furthermore, a number of suggestions are researched that are then not considered certain enough or Important enough to be included in the final list. All of this takes hours and hours of work, primarily on the part of the chairman, but also by other members of the committee, who must review his work and come to their own, considered judgments.
     In addition to the regular work of the committee, at the request of the Bishop the chairman privately prepared sample revisions of selected chapters of the Word: Genesis 1-3; Psalms 15, 23, 96, 100, 127, 139; Matthew 5, 6; Revelation 12, 21, 22. These revisions were based on the traditional King James Version, emended in comparison with the original languages and in the light of the Writings' interpretation of the verses, and updated in language to conform to current standard English usage. Most of this work has already been made available to members of the Council of the Clergy.
     The committee has undergone some changes in membership. In addition to the chairman, current members include Rev. Messrs. Alfred Acton, Donald L. Rose, Frederick L. Schnarr, Lorentz R. Soneson, and Prof. Prescott A. Rogers, candidate for the priesthood. Two other, presently inactive, members are Rev. Andrew J. Heilman and candidate Jonathan S. Rose Mr. Rose has been prevented from active participation in the committee by his commitments in pursuing a doctoral degree.
     The committee remains interested in receiving further suggestions for alternative readings to the New King James Version. We prefer that these suggestions be accompanied by a statement explaining the reasons for the suggested changes, lest we fail to note the significance. In order to prevent the list of suggested emendations from growing cumbersomely long, the committee has adopted a policy of adding only suggested emendations that seem sufficiently important to warrant a change. In making this determination, the committee considers both linguistic and doctrinal arguments. Our aim is a proper understanding of the literal sense in its own context and in relation to the Heavenly Doctrines.
     Rev. N. Bruce Rogers,
          Chairman

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QUESTIONS ABOUT THE "NEW AGE" 1986

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE "NEW AGE" RUTH GOODENOUGH 1986

     Since reading a book called Gods of the New Age,* and also noticing a "New Age" flavor in some New Church publications, I have begun to wonder if New Church people are aware of what many conservative Christians believe is meant by the "New Age" movement.
     * Gods of the New Age, Caryl Matrisciana, Harvest House Publishers, Eugene, Oregon, 1985, 221 pages. Paperback, $6.95
     Gods of the New Age is the gripping testimony of a woman who was raised in India, then lived in England where she immersed herself in a world of rock music, drugs, meditation, human potential psychology and psychic experiences in a blind search for some meaning in life through various kinds of "highs." Her search was in vain until eventually, in America, she was introduced to Jesus Christ and the Bible. From that perspective she realized with amazement and dismay that all her past highs had been counterfeit, the work of the Deceiver.
     Further, she saw how closely those ideas and activities, which her Christian friends categorized as "New Age" phenomena, were derived from the Hindu concepts, customs and perversions she had observed, and sometimes been terrified by, in her childhood. We are warned that Eastern philosophy, resting on concepts such as man's identification with God and the belief that truth is found inside oneself, is subtly invading the Western world. The author demonstrates that even Christian churches are vulnerable to this attack which she concludes is part of Satan's diabolical scheme to wipe out Christianity and install himself as ruler of the universe. (In the New Church, we would express this idea as an attack of the hells, rather than of "Satan.")
     Ingredients of the "New Age" are outlined in the book as follows.

     1)      God is perceived not in a personal sense, but as law, energy, or creative force.
     2)      Humanity. People are regarded as part of the Divine, or essentially God. The body is seen as a temporary dwelling.
     3)      The world is viewed as illusory, and one must not become too attached to it. Matter is but a gross manifestation or emanation from pure spirit and will dissolve and reappear again an infinite number of times.
     4)      Salvation is accomplished through enlightenment, or being liberated from attachment to the mind and to the world. The process of achieving this salvation depends on self-effort. It means realizing you are a part of God, and experiencing this unity through specific procedures.

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     5)      Good and Evil. Goodness is usually synonymous with enlightenment, and evil is associated with ignorance. Moral evil is usually spiritualized away. An enlightened person transcends the crude duality of good and evil and realizes that it is all part of the cosmic balance (page 25).

     It is not difficult to see how people who read the Writings superficially, and also those who accept some ideas in them while discarding others, could be persuaded that "Swedenborg" fits right in with these "New Age" concepts.
     It appears that in recent years many have been caught up in various forms of self-centered psychology, from human potential and self-awareness groups, yoga, and meditation, to psychic experiences, cults and the occult. There is such a spectrum here from what appears helpful and good to what is questionable, to what is obviously evil. Are any or all of these the manifestation of a "New Age" movement originating in Eastern mysticism? How wary should the New Church be?
     Do New Church people, in a naive desire to find the good in others and in their beliefs, tend to overlook important differences? Do some of us try to equate mystical concepts with the new truths found in the Writings? What criteria will help us distinguish which ideas originate in and confirm revealed truth and which are distortions? Do conservative Christians in fact associate Swedenborg with the fundamentally false ideas in "New Age" thought? Grant Schnarr's current articles show how little the Christian world understands what the Writings actually say. Are "New Agers" equally unaware? What have other readers of NEW CHURCH LIFE learned about the "New Age"?
MINISTERIAL CHANGES 1986

MINISTERIAL CHANGES Editor 1986

In addition to his other duties (NCL, 1985, p. 536), Rev. Alfred Acton will become Secretary of the Council of the Clergy, Director of General Church Religion Lessons and Chairman of the Sunday School Committee, effective July 1, 1986.
Retaining editorship of NEW CHURCH LIFE, Rev. Donald L. Rose has been appointed Assistant to the Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Society, effective July 1, 1986.

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SOMETHING NEW TO THINK ABOUT 1986

SOMETHING NEW TO THINK ABOUT Rev. Frank S. Rose 1986

     New Thought-A Modern Religious Approach-the Philosophy of Health, Happiness and Prosperity by Dr. Martin A. Larson, 399 pp. plus notes and index, published by the Philosophical Library, 19X5, reviewed by Rev. Frank S. Rose.

     When Dr. Larson and I first met, in addition to being delighted, we were both rather astonished. I had found a student of religion who had just published a book featuring Swedenborg, and he had found a real live Swedenborgian minister, having thought for some time that the species might be extinct.
     It has been fascinating to read his book, and see through his eyes the widespread influence of Swedenborg's Writings on modern religious thought. It is generally known that certain churches, such as Christian Science, have many elements that were obviously borrowed from the Writings. I suspect that most people reading this book will find connections with other churches that they had not known about. Did you know, for example, that the Shakers might be called a "Swedenborgian heresy," and that the Unity Church owes much to the Writings?

     Dr. Larson has brought together threads of religious thought, especially focusing on certain key people and the churches that arose out of their work. But according to the author, Swedenborg is the "Fountainhead," and this is the way he is described in the opening chapter. Dr. Larson outlines the story of Swedenborg's life, and sets out the main doctrines of the Writings. It is a good summary though we might not agree with some points, especially his analysis of Swedenborg's call as "only a dream." When he summarizes Swedenborg's contributions to the New Thought movement he includes a number of ideas that belong more to New Thought churches than they do to the Writings.
     Two are particularly important: 1) The idea of the nature of God, and 2) the idea that health and prosperity are the main aims of religion.
     Listing Swedenborg's specific contributions he first mentions:

that God is impersonal and unitarian, the life-giving force which exists in the universe and which is shared by every creature that inhabits it; God, in fact, is the substance of the cosmos (p. 44).

     Apart from the word "impersonal," this seems to me to be an accurate statement. Later in the book he lists a number of points "largely Swedenborgian" and includes in it:

That God is a great, central, and impersonal force and energy immanent in the universe . . . . That, since this is true, prayer addressed to the deity is as meaningless as a plea directed at an electric dynamo (p. 213).

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     Of course Dr. Larson knows that the Writings teach that the Lord Jesus Christ is the personal manifestation of God, and that we are to pray to Him. He is here commenting on New Thought thinkers. The Writings reject the tripersonal God and invite us to think of God from essence and not merely from person (Apocalypse Revealed 611). This means thinking of God as essentially Divine love. It also includes thinking of Him as the Word, or the Divine wisdom. And yet we cannot picture God apart from the human form. The New Church is to be the crown of churches because:

it will worship one visible God, in whom is the invisible God as the soul is in the body.

     Worship of an invisible God is like the eye trying to grasp the universe,

or like vision in mid-ocean, which falls only on air and water, and completely fades away. But conjunction with a visible God is like seeing a man in the air or on the water, stretching forth his hands and inviting all to his arms (True Christian Religion 787).

     Some people think of prayer as a way of manipulating God or making Him change His mind. Whereas the Writings reject this kind of prayer, they do not reject prayer by any means. We are taught to pray to the Lord in order to open ourselves to being led by Him. This is prayer to the Lord and from the Lord.

     Secondly, New Thought churches also put a tremendous emphasis on health and prosperity. Could you say the same of Swedenborg? Dr. Larson says:

a scientific religion is demonstrably possible which has, as its objective, the well-being, health, happiness, success and prosperity of its communicants in this life, and an immortality of joyous activity and pleasure for eternity. We may call the Swedenborgians the modern Gnostics (pp. 45, 46).

     If someone asked you what the main goal of the New Church is, would you say: "to be healthy, happy and successful"? Probably not. But unlike many other churches that have looked with grave suspicion on money and physical health, these goals are at least consistent with the true goal of eternal life-not just in the distant future, but in bringing heaven to the earth. It is important to have a sound body as a basis for a sound mind. And the Lord does wish all people to enjoy a full, healthy and successful life. But the Writings do not leave it at that. They point out that God in His Providence looks primarily to our eternal welfare, and things like physical pleasure and material prosperity are only a means to a higher end.

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The Lord leads people away from seeking material success for its own sake "and also from acquiring wealth for its own sake or just to have it. Leading the man away, He introduces him into the love of uses so that he may regard eminence not for his own sake, but for the sake of uses" (Divine Providence 183).
     People who read Larson's book and know little or nothing of the Writings may be confused in places as to what are teachings of Swedenborg, and what points come from the many other religious thinkers referred to. People who have been raised in the New Church will find many places in the book that make them pause. They might find themselves wondering whether certain points are in the Writings or not. Maybe we have come to accept a certain view of the Writings that is not exactly what the Writings teach.
     Having grown up with people who believed in the inspiration of the Writings I find it challenging to see how ideas from the Writings have been taken by some thinkers into different directions than the ones I thought were consistent with their teachings. Considering that many of the churches mentioned in this book have prospered numerically much more than New Church organizations, we can't help wondering whether there is something for us to learn from them. If reading this book will stimulate people to read the Writings for themselves, and possibly give them new insights into what the Writings teach, it will have served very well.
     This book gives a wonderful overview of the New Thought movement, tracing connections between many New Thought writers, and linking them all with Swedenborg, the fountainhead. Here we have a fascinating and largely untold story, given with a breadth of scholarship and good humor by a man whose life demonstrates that health and vitality can last well beyond three score years and ten.
NOTICE 1986

NOTICE 1986

     A position as translator's assistant is open. Individuals applying for the position must have complete fluency in Norwegian, and a very good working knowledge of Danish and English. Familiarity with the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, and membership in the General Church of the New Jerusalem are also required.
     The duties of the assistant will comprise translating the theological works of Emanuel Swedenborg from Danish into Norwegian, and other material from English into Norwegian, as well as assisting Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen in the translation of the above-mentioned theological works from the Latin into Danish.
     If you are interested, and believe you qualify, please call Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen (phone: 215-756-6660) no later than August 1, 1986. The position will be based in Kempton, Pennsylvania.

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REVIEW (Reprinted from Lifeline) 1986

REVIEW (Reprinted from Lifeline) C. H. Presland 1986

Bishop William Henry Benade, Founder and Reformer, by Richard R. Gladish, General Church Book Center, 1984. Cloth, pp. 579. Price $15.00

     The Editor sends me this book, just received for review. I had already skimmed it, and commented on it to the author, an old friend, especially known for his most excellent 3-volume work on New Church schools and education in England and in America.
     This new book is cloth bound, well illustrated, a nice piece of typesetting. Proofreading is first rate-not impeccable, but what book of this size is? Its author has his lively style of writing, his clarity of scholarship, and his always diligent care in his research which must have been vast. But may I fault him on his comment that we in Conference still talk about "conversaziones"! We strangled that word early in my secretaryship; but I do have to confess that Mr. Gladish, way back in 1956 looking for me in Anerley while I happened to be in Philadelphia, did once hear it make a postmortem appearance!
     The problem with reviewing this book is that for an English readership, handling quite unfamiliar American history, there should really be a full-scale outline of that history. It is not possible to do justice to the scale, depth and complexity of the Benade story without producing an unreasonably long review likely to be of limited interest in this country. Two time-consuming and futile efforts have taught me that! And I am very conscious that there is within the General Church even now a great affection and respect for Benade; although there can be alive very few who remember a man who died in London in 1905-"as he lived, so he died, a great man-great in the truth, and also great in his error" (page 577). The children of the men and women who worked with Benade are still about, remembering the things they were told of this astonishing man. Not for the world would I want to tarnish those memories. Nor does Gladish, who obviously shares to some extent, not fully, that great respect. He makes fair and proper judgments-there is an unscriptural nonsense about, even within the church, that says we can make no judgments about virtually anything: that is quite opposed to CL 523. Gladish does not take that view: how generous he is in his judgments, yet how unwilling to omit any evidence he finds distasteful. He is quite unable to condone any discourtesy, bullying or dogmatism from Benade or anyone else. Himself a longtime professor in the Academy schools, his very fair analysis of human error is quite impartial.

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     Now how briefly can I give an English reader enough background to make Benade's service to the church understood? He is an enigma; variations in his character are extreme. He emerges as shatteringly unlike the disciplined gentle scholar with a peaceful home background, sheltered from the world. I have all these years imagined him as an American John Clowes. In an endearing fashion, he comes out now as a strong man completely committed to the truth wherever it may lead him, and as a very human man with all the weaknesses, the tribulations, the temptations of the unregenerate. Benade was a minister of the Convention, which was for many years the only counterpart in the U.S.A. of the Conference here, and was ordained in 1846. Anxious to be absolutely tied to the doctrines of the Second Advent as he understood them, and many of his contemporaries took a much more liberal view than he did, he very deliberately gathered around him a small team of very competent, very loyal, ministers and lay people with whom he could work together in harmony. "The Harmony" founded within the Convention an "Academy" (which would be concerned with education, scholarship, close study of the Heavenly Doctrines) as a powerhouse. As you would expect, within Convention some clapped in applause, many sat back neutral on their haunches, a few vivacious and determined characters started to growl loud and clear that they didn't need it. But Benade was unstoppable.
     By 1876, Benade was a senior minister within the Convention, a man of 60, and a stormy petrel. I am sure he did not want it like that, but he was no diplomat, not always very polite (and that is an understatement), and very confident that he and his friends were on the right lines. There was no desire to force the pace, no desire whatever to break from the Convention. But that year the Academy, still within the Convention, got itself a charter from the State of Pennsylvania "to use a Common Seal, to confer Degrees and grant Diplomas as other Colleges and Universities." It founded its own theological school-but still within the Convention.
     Benade, who had some wealthy friends in his harmony, traveled very widely all his life. (He had few home ties as we shall see.) He came to our Conference in Wretham Road, Birmingham, in 1877 (John Presland was in the Chair when he walked in!) and was welcomed as a distinguished man of the Convention. But back home, during his two years of travel, the Academy was moving on towards a great distinctiveness, and Convention was getting disturbed still more. One of the Academy people wrote years after, "We were all of us affected by the same sphere of impatience and indignation . . . we as well as the Convention were lacking in charity." I wonder.

327

I have read widely enough to know there was great bitterness-and some folly. I think this "lack of charity" theme gets a bit distorted by a sense of guilt. I think these were all honest, sincere men and women, torn by grief that they could not understand one another's inability to accept such an obvious approach as they themselves had. Their differences in a tiny organization could be between close friends and within families. It was just plain sad! (I have often asked myself whether, given their environment and their problems, I would have gone with the Academy, but discussing that is not for a review!) Note, please, that when very deep emotion is aroused, dispassionate clear thought from doctrine becomes very difficult; there was on neither side the desire to be uncharitable, of that I am sure. For charity to fail, that desire must exist! The truth is, I think, that Benade and his company as well as the Convention lacked foresight. I can say that from hindsight! They did not see that they must separate. Neither side wanted it that was right. Both ducked the inevitable-that was wrong. Neither side was happy and, from desire not to give offence, neither side was acting freely. For me, Benade was not wise. For me, he was an autocrat and a poor pastor, a man without a sense of humor or sense of the ridiculous, although good with schoolboy jokes. Is that unfair, unkind? I hope not. But he had a tremendous sphere and power of thought.
Benade traveled again, and on the way to England had a near-fatal stroke. His friends in London nursed him and sent him back home to Philadelphia recovering in physical strength. Gladish gives us medical views on what the stroke did and then tells us that the poor man now started "to show suspicion, mistrust and anger towards those who opposed his iron will or who differed doctrinally or otherwise from him . . . . However, this reaction was also evident in the years before his stroke, though not so markedly. The high priest whose enlightenment came directly from the Lord-as he felt and believed-was losing patience in his advancing years with mavericks" (page 413). (I hope Gladish is sure that Kate Benade, on whose authority he writes that startling sentence, is correctly reported.)
But do not put down to that fact that in 1890 the right thing happened. Separation from the Convention took place, and under Benade as Bishop (a title that, at that time, just grew) the General Church of the Advent of the Lord was founded. It still hoped to work in love and charity with the two older bodies of the church. Its constitution was very acceptable, pure poetry to a New Church ear: "its purpose is to proclaim and teach the everlasting Gospel, that the Lord Jesus Christ reigneth, as that Gospel is set forth in the books written by Him through His servant, Emanuel Swedenborg." What is wrong with that?

328

But Benade's sickness did not take these people out: they went because they knew it was now the time, however unhappy they might be, to go.
     But now came a strange development. Benade, "the aging romantic" to use the Gladish phrase, now 77, came to England and at Michael Church in London married one of the leading ladies in the General Church here, she 43. After a long honeymoon he returned to America with a doting wife. But he was an old man, a sick man. And over the next years, he fell afoul one by one, of virtually all his colleagues and all his friends. He became impossible to work with. Aged 81, he started to produce strange teachings. He would neither retire nor resign. They all had loved him, and did still. It was impossible for them to remove him from office-quite unconstitutional in their thinking, foreign to their whole concept of a priesthood and a bishop. Almost to a man and woman (not quite) they resigned from the General Church of the Advent of the Lord, which left it with a bishop and no people, and they founded The General Church of the New Jerusalem as we know it today, with W. F. Pendleton as Bishop.
     Hearts were heavy. All were sad. They wanted, as N. D. Pendleton put it, "to guard the name and fame of their late Bishop." They saw to it that he had no financial problems. The Benades chose to come back to England, to Tilson and the Burton Road Church which for years stayed out of this new General Church, and here he died.
     Even at this, to me, inevitable length, I have not started to tell the story Gladish tells so well. The book needs a chronological table, for so much happens and it is hard to get the events in the right order. This I find especially when I try to see how Benade's personal life weaves into his official life. The help a man has in his home with his life and faith will affect his whole approach to, and sympathy with, the world outside his home. Benade had no real home for most of his life, for his first marriage was an absolute disaster leading to her divorcing him (reminds me of John Wesley's marriage, and he like Benade had a Moravian background) after 36 years of desperately hard life, the last 16 of which they had not lived together! He had an apparently happy marriage from 1881 to 1887 when his second wife died. This man's conjugial loneliness most of his life touches my heart it is too difficult a subject perhaps, but Gladish seems to me too much to ignore its implications. There were in fact four children of the first marriage; the Rev. D. P. Johnson of the Convention is a direct descendant.
     The book is full of life and interest. I have noted more than I comment upon. Does Gladish know that the Thomas Colley, Archdeacon in the Church of England in Natal, who asks Benade for a "B.D. or a D.D." since he "cannot look for Academical honours in his own Church," was in fact a failure student at our New Church College, a disaster?

329

(R. R. Rodgers in his story of his life tells us about this.) We are told of the uproar in Conference when the Academy gave a degree to our Rev. R. J. Tilson; my memory says it was a B.D., not a B.Th. (as Gladish says), and that would worry our people as seeming to be a British University graduation which a B.Th. would not then be. Gladish makes play with Charity 174 (his p. 180)-special pleading, it seems to me. Avoiding one problem he steers into another, Swedenborg's coupling of "children and servants." He should clarify!
This review becomes too long. In justice to our worthy friends in the General Church and to a most excellent book which brings the strange history into a clear focus, it could hardly be otherwise. All our historians should get this book-and all others should read it! Finally, in one place there should be an errata slip-earnest students please note. Mr. Gladish at the foot of page 67 and top of page 68 has got things back to front. In 1844 there was a silly, rather technical, controversy going on in the church there over what we know as "the Conjugial Heresy" (or "the Boston Principle")-nothing to do with Conjugial Love. The Americans asked us whether we Britishers could believe in this. Gladish says the Americans told us. Not a bit of it-we told them-and pretty firmly. We told them, not they us, that "we begged to say, most distinctly, most unequivocally, and most decidedly, that in our opinion no such relation had any existence . . . ." Please put your copies right. Good for us! Good for the British Conference which wanted then, and still wants, to work with all New Church people, whatever their history, everywhere. The charming Mr. Gladish teases us on occasion (e.g., p. 537) about our innate British caution-but we did know then, and I hope we still do, when to throw discretion to the winds and put our foot down! We helped then, I think, and the Lord give it to us to continue to help, wherever we can, our brethren everywhere. Yes, an excellent book!
C. H. Presland
HARMFUL THINGS ARE TURNED TO GOOD 1986

HARMFUL THINGS ARE TURNED TO GOOD 1986

When any crime is permitted by the Lord, it is evil men and their infernal instigators who are the authors of it. Nevertheless, all the evil which the evil intend and do to the good is turned by the Lord into good (Arcana Coelestia 4493:6).

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     DO YOU CALL YOURSELF NEW CHURCH? (II)

     Last month we began to ask on what basis we might call someone "New Church," and we noted such passages as Divine Providence 101 in which we learn that the question after death is not going to be about your belief or doctrine but rather about your life.
     We raise this question, not with the hope of determining whether or not we shall give a New Church label to ourselves or to others, but to encourage reflection on passages that bear upon this matter.
     Surely the following passage is a key for such reflection.

If charity were in the first place, and faith in the second, the nature of the church would be different; for then no others would be called Christians but those who live a life according to the truth of faith, that is, a life of charity (Arcana Coelestia 6269).

     Try reading the above passage in its context and thinking "New Church" when you see the word "Christian." Try likewise with the following from the Doctrine of Life.

From these considerations it may be concluded and seen without doubt whether a person is a Christian or not, indeed, whether a person has any religion or not. One who does not regard adulteries as sins, both in faith and in life, is not a Christian; neither has he any religion. But on the other hand, one who shuns adulteries as sins, and especially one who on that account holds them in aversion, has religion, and if he is in the Christian Church he is a Christian (Doctrine of Life 77).

     Here is a positive thought. The Writings show that there are people who seem to have their doctrine wrong and talk as if they believed in faith alone, but who are in fact "Christians in heart"-(AC 3242). Might there be church members whose doctrine you and I might wonder about by virtue of what we hear them say, who in heart really are "New Church"?

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PRAYER FROM THE WRITINGS 1986

PRAYER FROM THE WRITINGS David Gladish 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor,
     The other day we came to AE 1148:4, where there's a prayer that intrigued me. I changed it to the first person and smoothed out the diction a little. Here it is.

I pray the Lord to be with me always, to lift me up and turn His face to me, to teach, enlighten and lead me, to grant my life, since I can do nothing that is good by myself. And I pray that hell may not lead me astray and make evil seep into my heart. I know that if the Lord is not leading me, hell will lead me and will inflate me with all kinds of evil, such as hatred, revenge, cunning and deceit, like a snake injecting poison. For hell is there, stirring things up and forever agitating, and wherever it finds a heart turned away from God it enters, besets it and draws a soul down to hell. O Lord, rescue me.

     Do you think it would be of interest to readers of LIFE? It comes in one of those delightful places where Swedenborg gets personal and seems to be talking right to his reader.
     David Gladish,
          St. James, Michigan
WHY CHANGE? 1986

WHY CHANGE? Anonymous 1986

Dear Sir,
     Why are we changing a perfectly good thing to something not so good? Who has given us permission to change something in the Bible that doesn't need changing, unless we are doing something for those who are too lazy to find out what "Thou art" means instead of "You are"? If it is important enough to spend a good lot of money to change, then why isn't this question put to the vote?
     Other languages have the words "Thee" and "Thou" in reference to the Lord. Why should we change (especially the New Church) when we too have the pronouns in our own language?
     Many of our older people simply hate to refer to the Lord as You. Why, oh why, are we trying to change it to the more familiar You??
     Anonymous

     Editor's Note: It is not our policy to publish letters when we do not know who the writer is. We are making an exception in this case, as it expresses a feeling that may be widely shared. The writer who signs himself "Still a Reader" has supplied his name to us.

332

ENJOYING BOTH ELLIOTT AND DOLE TRANSLATIONS 1986

Dear Editor,
This letter is in reply to Rev. Dole's, which in turn was in response to my letter on the new Arcana translation. Not being a translator. I certainly do not intend to debate the technicalities involved. I think it only fair to mention, however, that I have had discussions with people knowledgeable in this area who are as critical of Rev. Dole's translations as he is of Rev. Elliott's. That doesn't diminish my enjoyment of Rev. Dole's translations any more than his critiques diminish my enjoyment of the new Arcana, however. We are all, as individuals and as a church, slowly growing in our appreciation of just what doctrine's all about, and the back and forth in the increased attention being given to translation seems part of that process. The Word is like a diamond, and different translations are like different facets to view it through, each reflecting different hues. The real challenge, it seems to me, is to avoid what DP 259 refers to as "intellectual dissensions" over such matters, keeping charity as an "essential." Still a Reader
CAN I KNOW IF I'M GOING TO HEAVEN? 1986

CAN I KNOW IF I'M GOING TO HEAVEN? Leon C. Le Van 1986

Dear Editor,
     Your excellent NEW CHURCH LIFE has recently raised the question. "Can we know whether we shall go to heaven?"
     I believe the Lord may let us know.
     For it is no secret to ourselves as to whether we are thinking, loving, and doing the things that constitute the heavenly life. If we are living the heavenly life from (and with) the Lord even now, we are already in heaven as to our minds and hearts. And if we are inwardly in heaven now, shall we not be in heaven later? Here are several suggested test questions:
     Do I shun evils as sins against God? Do I labor to obey the Commandments? Do I love the Word in its literal sense and read it? Do I love and read the internal Word? Do I love, strengthen, and support the church? Do I love the Lord above all things and the neighbor as myself? Do I frequently "talk with God" in prayer?
     If these are the things we regard and love, then we may be assured that the Lord is lifting and leading us to heaven and to Himself. And we may properly say, "Bless the Lord, O my soul."
     Leon C. Le Van,
          St. Petersburg, Florida

333

Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified Editor 1986

Announcements

Correction: the death of Percy Edward Mayer occurred on November 4, 1985, and not on April 11th as mistakenly reported in the February issue.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

335

     CANADA

     Alberta:

     CALGARY
Mr. Thomas R. Fountain, 1115 Southglen Drive S. W., Calgary 13, Alberta T2W 0X2. Phone: 403-255-7283.

     EDMONTON
Mr. Daniel L. Horigan, 10524 82nd St., Edmonton, Alberta T6A 3M8. Phone: 403-469-0078.

     British Columbia:

     DAWSON CREEK
Rev. William Clifford. 1536 94th Ave., Dawson Creek, V1G 1H1. Phone: (604) 782-3997.

     VANCOUVER
Mr. Douglas Crompton, 21-7055 Blake St., V5S 3V5. Phone: (604) 437-9136.

     Ontario:

     KITCHENER
Rev. Christopher Smith, 16 Bannockburn Rd., R.R. 2, N2G 3W5. Phone: (519) 893-7460.

     OTTAWA
Mr. and Mrs. Donald McMaster, 726 Edison Avenue, Apt. 33, Ottawa, Ontario K2C 3P8. Phone: (613) 729-6452.

     TORONTO
Rev. Geoffrey Childs, 2 Lorraine Gardens, Islington, Ontario M9B 424 Phone: (416) 231-4958.

     Quebec:

     MONTREAL
Mr. Denis de Chazal, 17 Baliantyne Ave. So., Montreal West, Quebec H4X 281. Phone: (514) 489-9861.

     DENMARK

     COPENHAGEN
Mr. Jorgen Hauptmann, Strandvejen 22, Jyllinge, 4000 Roskilde. Phone: 03-389968.

     ENGLAND

     COLCHESTER
Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh, 2 Christchurch Court, Colchester, Essex C03 3AU Phone: 0206-43712

     LETCHWORTH
Mr. and Mrs. R. Evans, 111 Howard Drive, Letchworth, Herts. Phone: Letchworth 4751.

     LONDON
Rev. Frederick Elphick, 21B Hayne Rd., Beckenham, Kent BR3 4JA. Phone: 01-658-6320.

     MANCHESTER
Mrs. Neil Rowcliffe, 135 Bury Old Road, Heywood, Lanes. Phone: Heywood 68189.

     FRANCE

     BOURGUINON-MEURSANGES
Rev. Alain Nicolier, 21200 Beaune, France. Phone: (80) 22.47.88.

     HOLLAND

     THE HAGUE
Mr. Ed Verschoor, Olmenlaan 7.3862 VG Nijkerk

     NEW ZEALAND

     AUCKLAND
Mrs. H. J. Keal, Secretary, 4 Derwent Crescent, Titirange, Auckland 7. Phone: 817-8203.

     NORWAY

     OSLO
Mr. Eyvind Boyesen, Vetlandsveien 82A, Oslo 6. Phone: 26-1159.

     SCOTLAND

     EDINBURGH
Mr. and Mrs. N. Laidlaw, 35 Swanspring Ave., Edinburgh EH 10-6NA. Phone: 0 31-445- 2377.

     GLASGOW
Mrs. J. Clarkson, Hillview, Balmore, Nr. Torrance, Glasgow. Phone: Balmore 262.

     SOUTH AFRICA

     Natal:

     DURBAN
Rev. Geoffrey Howard, 30 Perth Rd., Westville, Natal. 3630. Phone: 031-821 136.

     Transvaal:

     TRANSVAAL SOCIETY
Rev. Norman E. Riley, 8 Iris Lane, Irene, 1675 R. S. A., Phone: 012-632679.

Zululand:

     KENT MANOR
Mrs. D. G. Liversage, Box 7088, Empangeni Rail, 3910, Natal, South Africa. Phone: 0351- 23241

     Mission in South Africa:
Superintendent-The Rev. Norman E. Riley (Address as above)

     SWEDEN

     STOCKHOLM
Contact Mr. Rolf Boley, Arvid Morners Vag 7, 161 59 Bromma. Phone: efter kl. 18.00, 08-878280

336

TABERNACLE OF ISRAEL 1986

by
THE RT. REV. GEORGE de CHARMS

     First Edition 1969
Second Edition 1985
1000 copies
Published by
The General Church Publication Committee
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania 19009

     Hardcover $9.00 plus 95?? postage

     General Church Book Center
Box 278
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
or by appointment
Phone: (215) 947-3920

337

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI August, 1986 No. 8
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     When we speak of the "growth" of the church we can mean more than numerical growth. Dr. Kurt Simons begins in this issue to speak of a growth in awareness (p. 373).
     The music festival in June has been acclaimed a success. At that time some participants had a preview of the article about hymns by Jeremy Rose (p. 358). Jeremy is the son of the dictionary compiler who on page 354 shows us how very old many of our translations of the Writings are.
     There were six hundred thirty-five people in the Bryn Athyn cathedral when Rev. Peter Buss was ordained into the third degree of the priesthood, on which occasion he delivered the sermon entitled "Choices" and the declaration which appears on page 344.
     "As a teacher and parent, I have been repeatedly and profoundly impressed by the importance of accommodation." The writer of the article on page 364 has asked that these points be presented anonymously.
     This month we have the second in a series of favorite passages. Rev. Robert S. Junge tells in a few words why he selected a certain passage from Divine Love and Wisdom.
     Imagine a God who upon being asked to be merciful to mankind would respond, "Toward them I cannot; but as I saw Thee upon the cross, and beheld then Thy blood, I have been moved to compassion. Nevertheless I will not pardon them, but will impute unto them Thy merit . . . ." This is from the Doctrine of Faith, nos. 44 and 45 in which a distorted concept of faith is presented "in its nakedness." The article on atonement on p. 367 speaks of the evolution of this concept.
GLENVIEW PAMPHLETS 1986

GLENVIEW PAMPHLETS 1986

     The attractive pamphlets being produced in Glenview are getting more and more attention throughout the church. One of the latest is entitled Spiritual Struggles, an excellent 12-page presentation. If you order before mid-September this one only costs 35e: Swedenborg Center, 74 Park Drive, Glenview, IL 60025.

     *     *     *     *

     The Gabriel Church in Los Angeles also has attractive wares (see p. 381).

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CHOICES 1986

CHOICES Rev. PETER M. BUSS 1986

     "I have chosen the way of truth; Your judgments I have laid before me" (Psalm 119:30).

     The angels of heaven share one thing in common. Every single one of them is there because he or she chose to follow the Lord. Mary, the earthly mother of the Lord, is in heaven today: the Writings tell us so. She didn't get there because she bore the infant Jesus, but because in the quiet of her own mind she chose to shun the evils He forbids. Now she worships Him as her God and Lord, and she always will. The disciples are in heaven, but they entered its gates through no special dispensation. Each of them, individually, chose to obey God. Each in his own way said, "I have chosen the way of truth; Your judgments I have laid before me."
     It was about our ability to choose that the Lord spoke through Ezekiel when He said that His ways are completely fair. A son does not get punished for the sins of his father. If he shuns evil he will live. An evil man does not even get condemned for his past sins if he repents. His choices in the present will allow the past to be forgotten. "Therefore I will judge you, every one according to his ways, says the Lord God . . . . For I have no pleasure in the death of him who dies . . . . Therefore turn and live."
     In the New Church we know very well that the Lord has given us the freedom to choose, and that He guards it by a most special providence, for only in those things which we choose as from ourselves will we find any happiness, any human life at all. Our freedom of action is limited in many ways, but from God we have the ability to choose what we love and what we believe, and "It is a law of the Divine Providence that man's understanding and will should not be compelled in the least by another" (AE 1150:4; cf. DP 97).
     The Writings help us to understand many things about our choices, about how to make them, and how to resist the feeling that we cannot help but do evil, that we are powerless in its grip. For example, a most important idea is contained in the words "the way of truth." In a few verses in Psalm 119 "way" is used five times. "I have declared my ways and You have answered me . . . . Make me understand the way of Your precepts . . . . Remove from me the way of lying . . . . I have chosen the way of truth . . . . I will run in the way of Your commandments." We tend to think that a choice is made in a moment of time. In one sense that is true, but it is meaningless unless it is made over and over again, and unless the opposite choice is not made in the meantime.

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A writer once remarked that it is easy to give up smoking cigarettes; he does it fifty times a day. And fifty times a day he chooses to start again.
     Each choice we make is a start on a way of life. Every day from that time on we make repeated decisions to walk along that path.
     Take the choice of what we will believe. It is a conscious decision. It requires searching the teachings of the church and seeing that they are true, and then deciding to believe in them. Faith is not something that happens to us. We seek it. But once we have made that commitment we have only begun to choose our faith. We will learn more, and we will need to think about each truth we learn, and decide to believe it because the Lord has said it. We will find our faith challenged, and we will need to decide how to react to each idea which calls the Writings into question. We choose our faith every single day of our lives.
     The same is clearly true about our choice to shun an evil. It is relatively easy to make the initial decision, and once we have made our confession to the Lord and determined to stop doing evil, we feel a certain contentment. All our experience tells us it won't last without a struggle. The wish to do that thing or to think about it will return, and then we make the choice again. We will consciously, deliberately say "no" to the same evil desire hundreds of times in our lives before we can truly say, "I have chosen the way of truth."
     Therefore the Writings call self-compulsion a freedom that is greater than any other. It doesn't seem so. When we are trying our hardest not to give in to an evil desire it seems we are anything but free. The wonderful truth is that in that struggle we are exercising our freedom, because we are fighting for something that we deeply want. At such times we might seem to be self-centered, concerned for our salvation, wrapped up in our own problems. Yet the Lord tells us that in fighting against temptation we are inwardly acting from a love for the Lord Himself, and for all those whom we want to serve. This is what gives us the strength to fight. We choose to fight, but it is this inner love, inflowing from Him, which gives us the power (see AC 1937).
     Every choice that is meaningful in life is a series of choices. Take marriage-and this principle applies to any human love. When two people marry, they promise to show kindness to each other. Does that become easy because they vowed to do it on their wedding day? A Christian author has lamented the prevalence of what he calls "uncommitted love" in many marriages. People seem to say "I will love you as long as I feel like loving you." But no marriage will last unless both people choose to show love to each other every day of their lives, unless they renew their vows by the little acts of kindness and consideration which can be done or left undone, unless they choose to act from love especially at those times when they do not feel love.

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Marriage is built through the conscious decision to shun those things which will hurt marriage. Every day a wife or a husband chooses, many times, to go on loving her or his spouse. And it is on the basis of these choices, which are made in the present, that the Lord can inflow with the warmth which makes love seem spontaneous and utterly delightful. If we don't choose love, day by day, it will dry up and blow away.
     There are many ways in which the hells try to steal our ability to choose. One of their tricks is to persuade us to delay a decision. Like the bad habit which we are going to give up next month or on New Year's Day, our evils seem tolerable for a little longer. We are tempted to wait for "just the right moment," some time in the future.
     This is a subtle and dangerous temptation, because there is no such thing as a choice in the future. The only choice that means anything is the one that is made in the present. If we put off our repentance until some future time we are making a conscious decision in the present to go on doing evil, and that is the choice that matters. Time and again in the New Testament the Lord urged His followers to act in the present, and not delay. To the disciple who said to Him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father," He replied, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their dead" (Matt. 8:21, 22). "And another also said, 'Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.' But Jesus said to him, 'No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God'" (Luke 9:61, 62).
     The hells also try to make us feel that we have lost the right to choose. Every one of us has done or thought evil, and the hells arouse the memory of those evils and condemn us by means of them (see AC 761). They try to make us feel that we are such bad people that it is hopeless for us to try to change. Nothing can be worse than the silent despair of those who are made to feel that they are marked out for hell, that they have been so bad that the Lord has ceased to work with them. It is this agony, inspired by evil spirits, of which the Psalmist spoke when he said, "O Lord, how are multiplied mine enemies. Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, 'There is no salvation for him in God'" (Psalm 3:1, 2).
     We must fight the disposition to think this way. It is utterly untrue. The whole power of the Lord's Providence is devoted to allowing us the freedom to choose, right up until the end of our life on this earth. The Writings say He preserves this freedom "unimpaired and sacred" (DP 96; AE 1155; AC 5854).

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We don't have to wait until some mythical "right moment" in the future, and we can be completely confident that the infinitely loving God will never fail to preserve, even in the worst of mortals, the chance of salvation. "But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, and keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. 'Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?' says the Lord God, 'and not that he should turn from his ways and live?"(Ezekiel 18:21-23).
     At any moment in his or her life a person can say, "I will stop doing this evil," and the Lord will immediately be present with all His power, allowing that decision to be carried out. It is true that some choices are easier than others. If a person has not yet sinned, he need only once a week or twice in a month resist the evils to which he is inclined, and he will notice a difference (see Life 97). It is much harder if he has deliberately done what is wrong, because he is fighting past choices. Everything which we think about from affection and treasure in our thought remains with us and becomes a part of our lives. If in the past we have made evil a part of us, then when we turn from it, we must retrace our steps. We have to undo choices so that we can become different from what we have been. We must revisit the bad choices we once made, so that they can cease to be a part of our lives. The trials this brings make the effort of self-compulsion much harder.
     The simple truth is, however, that every time we make a choice to obey the Lord, it gets easier. At times it doesn't seem like it. A person will fight the temptation to be dishonest and find that the wish to make money by whatever means he can keeps returning. He gets discouraged. He seems to be making no progress. Yet there is a spiritual law at work. Each time he freely chooses to resist dishonesty the evil spirits who inspire it are removed a little further from him and the angels of heaven draw a little closer. The trouble is that he doesn't sense that very clearly. He knows only that he has chosen, dozens of times, to resist an evil, and it seems to return. He needs to have faith in the slow, steady, irresistible power of the Lord. He needs to know that with each choice the Lord is quickening what is good in him and weakening the evil, and slowly but surely he is making real progress.
     And there is another spiritual law at work, which contains the secret to how we learn to love. The Writings have what seems like a strange teaching when they say that we can choose to shun evil but we cannot at first choose to do genuine good (see AE 1152:2). It seems unfair, until we realize what is being said. Of course we can choose to do good.

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A woman can choose to spend many hours caring for a sick friend. A man can devote a lot of his leisure time to a civic project. Those are good things to do. But if they have not resisted some evils in themselves, then the tendency to evil within them will cause them to want to take credit for what they have done, and to find some advantage for themselves in their goodness. They won't be able to help it. However, if they are shunning their evils, then the Lord inflows, and He makes their good genuine. He gives them joy in what they are doing. He makes them to feel satisfaction in the work, and tenderness toward the people they are helping. He allows them to sense the happiness of those others, and find in that their reward.
     Herein lies the secret of true freedom. We have the power to shun evils or to do evils. If we do evils, then our freedom gradually becomes slavery. We come to love something which is insane and in this world we are constantly hiding it from others, and are restrained from doing what we really want. In the other world, we are forbidden to do what we love to do! Our freedom was exercised for a few years only, and it is severely curtailed to all eternity.
     The person who chooses to shun evils has some difficult choices to make. At first they may seem to be hard, but slowly the Lord's love inflows from within; it is that love which drives out the desire for evil. Then we come into true freedom, for we find ourselves able to do all the good things that we want, without any fear or restraint, and we find that we do them from delight. This is genuine freedom. An angel of heaven does anything he wants, because what he wants is good.
     Yet, to all eternity, we will go on choosing. In the other world we cannot move between heaven and hell, but a person who has chosen the way of truth is free. Each morning he will wake up in heaven and look at his wife, and choose to love her again. Each day he will use that freedom to decide to serve his neighbors a little better than he did the day before. Each day he will elect to love the Lord more deeply. And each day he will discover-as if from himself-how blessed it is to live in such a land among such people, and under such a God. He will make his choice, in the present, to obey his God, and in that he is no different from us. For our Lord has given us that freedom, every single day, and therefore we have absolute power to choose life eternal. Amen.

     LESSONS: Ezekiel 18, AC 1937

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DECLARATION OF FAITH AND PURPOSE 1986

DECLARATION OF FAITH AND PURPOSE Rev. Peter M. Buss 1986

     I believe in the visible God, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, ruling the whole universe; and at the same time He is present individually in the hearts and minds of each single person. His infinite power is now visible in the human form of love and wisdom, and He creates those who turn to Him into an image of this Divine Human.
     I believe that the Lord has manifested Himself through His threefold Word. When we read the pages of this Word the Lord Himself is speaking to us. He is immediately present by means of it, and gives us light to see the path of Life and the power to walk in it. The Word is the medium which conjoins God and man.
     I believe that the faith of the New Church should be to believe what the Word teaches, and its charity should be to do what the Word teaches.
     I believe that the only hope of growing happiness in this world is through the Writings for the New Church. Salvation is of the Lord, and in the Writings alone has He spoken clearly to this earth. Only in His threefold Word is He to be found in all His glory. Only from it can the light of heaven begin to radiate to people of all nations, and bring the blessings of heaven closer to the inhabitants of the earth.
     Therefore it is the duty of the organized church, to honor and to promote the Word in all aspects of life. As individuals we should learn of it and live according to it. In our homes, in our churches and in our schools we should teach it diligently to our children, and help them sense the beauty of its truth. As a church we should proclaim it fearlessly and joyfully to all people, that our Lord's children may be drawn nearer to Him, and be healed in His presence.
     The church is formed of those who are striving to obey the Word in their private lives. We do not know the interiors of others. But an organization of the church should strive in externals to do those things which the Lord requires of us, and should pray that what we do outwardly we will come to love in our hearts. Our church should do justly, acting with justice from judgment in the conduct of all its affairs, and pray that the spirit of justice comes to be the interior motive of its members. It should love mercy by acting according to the principles of mercy, understanding others, appreciating their uses, and forgiving their trespasses-hoping that the spirit of mercy may settle upon our hearts. It should humble itself in walking with its God, and pray that in spirit and in truth we may come to recognize that all good is from the Lord, and we are blessed when we receive it from Him.

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     I believe that we of the General Church of the New Jerusalem can serve the Lord by worshipping Him; by learning from His Word and promoting its knowledge wherever we can; and by manifesting in the affairs of our church the principles of justice, mercy and humility. Then let us pray that these things are not done only before men, but from religion, so that His kingdom may indeed be among us, and our church may become a part of His heaven upon earth.
     Rev. Peter M. Buss

     [Given upon ordination into the third degree of the ministry on June 1, 1986.]
LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) 1986

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) Rev. JOHN L. ODHNER 1986

     Part IV

     Building up Your New Understanding

     I used to retype an article at least three or four times before submitting it for publication. Now with a computer. I can correct typos, move paragraphs, rearrange sentences, print out fresh copies and even transmit it to the typesetter without ever retyping it. Writing is much easier because I have more powerful tools. Washing machines, ball point pens, airplanes, power drills, and can openers are all tools that have made our lives much easier. If you have ever tried to open a tin can with a fork, you know what I mean.
     There are many powerful tools that can make our spiritual lives easier as well. These tools are truths.
     In the last two articles we wrote of how life can be easier if we strengthen our relationship with the Lord and strengthen our love. The love which the Lord gives us is a great source of power against evil. Yet that power can be exercised only by means of truths (see AC 1661:2), just as electricity can be put to use only by means of suitable tools. This part is about the tools (truths, thoughts) which make fighting evil easier.

20. Think About the Lord.

     Of course your ability to fight evil will increase if you turn your thoughts to the Lord. In fact, all the truths of the new understanding focus on the Lord, know Him, understand Him, acknowledge Him, listen to Him, remember that He fights for you. Think of His power and His love, His mercy and wisdom. (See Part II for more on this.)

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21. Think About Heaven.

     One of our most powerful defenses against evil is thought about eternal life. (I have added emphasis to some of the numbers quoted.)

No evils can be removed except by the true use of freedom of choice in spiritual things, and this is done by directing the mind to reflection upon the state of life after death (TCR 498; cf. DP 73:6, 7).

In order to be lifted up from sensuous spirits, he must think about eternal life (AC 6201).

Everyone fights [against evil] who believes that hell and heaven exist, and that heaven is eternal happiness and that hell is eternal unhappiness, and who believes that those who do evil come into hell, and those who do good come into heaven (Life 94).

When the internal sight or the thought is turned toward the world and rests there, the thought in consequence becomes worldly; . . . but when it is turned heavenward it becomes heavenly (HH 532).

     We can think of heaven as our proper goal (see SD 2854), and also as the source of all the good we do (compare just below).

22. Think About Hell.

     For many Christians, the thought of hell is attended with either disbelief or with fear; many simply do not think about it.
     In contrast, the section on hell in Heaven and Hell has some hopeful and beautiful teachings in it:

The Lord rules the hells (HH 536).

In heaven there is all power, and none in hell (HH 539).

No one is cast into hell by the Lord (HH 545).

God never turns away His face from man (HH 545).

God is good itself, love itself and mercy itself (HH 545).

     One of the ways the evil spirits discourage a person is that they "make him believe that he does it of himself, . . .and yet at the moment they are infusing and compelling this belief, they accuse and condemn him (AC 761; see also AC 5036, 6097). It is comforting to know that our evil thoughts and feelings have a source outside of ourselves in hell.

If man only believed as is really true, that all good is from the Lord and all evil from hell, he would neither make the good in him a matter of merit nor would evil be imputed to him; for he would then look to the Lord in all the good he thinks and does, and all the evil that flows in would be cast down to hell from which it comes (HH 302:2; cf. DP 320, AC 6324, 904, AE 1141:2, AR 224:10).

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23. Polish up Your Ideals.

     We must know evil to fight it, and we must know good to know evil:

Man merely believes that evil exists, but what its quality is he does not know, and this for the sole reason that he does not know what good is (AC 48 18e).

Who can know what is evil and false unless he knows what is good and true? Or who knows what is unchaste, dishonest, indecent, and ugly, unless he knows what is chaste, honest, decent and beautiful? Or who can discern foolishness but one who is wise? or knows what wisdom is? Or who can rightly perceive discordant sounds but one who by learning and culture has absorbed harmonious music? (CL 424, cf. 425e)

     The stronger your ideals, the more clearly you can picture the kind of person you wish to become, the more easily you can identify and overcome the things which stand in your way, even if your ideals seem unattainable at the present.

He who does not affirm and acknowledge the good and truth which are of faith and charity cannot come into any combat of temptation, because there is nothing within to combat back against evil and falsity (AC 3928; cf. 8963).

24. Learn What Evil Is.

     A doctor cannot cure a disease that he does not understand. A mechanic can't fix a car until he knows what is broken. Knowledge is equally necessary for our spiritual life. "No one can be regenerated except through knowledges of faith, which are truths" (AC 2063:3, cf. 3502:2). "No one can ever fight against evils and falsities until he knows what evil and falsity are" (AC 1661:2; cf. AE 356:3).

25. Think About Shunning Evil.

     Simply thinking about shunning an evil is no substitute for actually desisting, but it is a good first step.

Anyone who thinks in his heart that there is a God, that the Lord is the God of heaven and earth, that the Word is from Him, and is therefore holy, that there is a heaven and a hell, and that there is a life after death, is able to shun these evils [listed in the Decalogue] (AE 936).

     Another passage makes taking the first step sound even easier:

When anything gets in the way that the person knows is dishonest and unfair, something his spirit moves toward, it is simply a matter of thinking that he should not do it because it is against the Divine precepts.

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If a person gets used to thinking this way, and from so doing establishes a habit of so thinking, he is gradually conjoined to heaven . . . . Who cannot think this way because of his freedom? (HH 533).

26. Think Good Thoughts About Your Neighbor.

     The Lord wants us to think well of others. "Those who have conscience are kept by the Lord in good thoughts about the neighbor, and are withheld from thinking evil" (AC 1919). "They who are in charity scarcely see the evil of another, but observe all his goods and truths, and put a good interpretation on what is evil" (AC 1079). This of course does not eliminate the need for civil and moral judgment on those who do evil. But it does mean giving peep le the benefit of the doubt, and being especially careful of imputing false motives to others. Thinking positively about other people is a key to victory over evil. "The temptations in which a person overcomes are attended with the belief that all others are more worthy than himself" (AC 2273).

27. Use the Word.

     The word is like a tool chest containing many powerful concepts.

The combats are carried on by means of truths of faith which are from the Word. The person must fight against evils and falsities from these; if he fights from anything else, he does not conquer, because the Lord is not in anything else (AC 8962).

Without the Lord, by means of the Word, there is no salvation (LJ 55:3).

     Use of the Word makes tremendous power available to us:

The power of the Word in the sense of the letter is the power to open heaven, . . . . and also the power to fight against falsities and evils, thus against the hells. A person who is in genuine truths from the sense of the letter of the Word can disperse and scatter the whole diabolical crew and their devices in which they place their power, which are innumerable, and this in a moment, merely by a look and by an effort of the will (AE 1086).

     The key to receiving this power is in the way we read the Word. A person can see genuine truths only when he has been enlightened by the Lord. There are several factors which can help bring enlightenment. One is that the Word must be searched from a genuine affection for the truth (AC 4368:2, 5432:4, 6047:2, NJ H D 257). This means not simply reading and studying, but reading with questions in mind, seeking answers that apply to life, being willing to have your ideas changed. "Many are affected by the Word of the Lord, and devote much labor to reading it; but still there are few who have as the end to be instructed in the truth" (AC 4368:2).

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     Truth is much easier to learn when we enjoy it (see AC 5094, HH 321). When you discover a new truth in the Word, celebrate! Let yourself be happy with what the Lord teaches.
     Comparing passages can also bring enlightenment. In difficult spots the Lord enlightens us by giving understanding from other passages (see AC 3436). Another factor is prayer: "The Word should be searched with devout prayer to the Lord for enlightenment" (AC 5432:4). It also helps to read frequently, a chapter or two each day (AE 803:2). Don't let your mind run dry of the truth.

28. Do Not Take Credit for Your Good.

     One way to make things harder on ourselves is to take credit for our efforts, or to think that we deserve special favors because of the way we have worked or suffered. This belief hides more evils than I would care to list (see TCR 439 for eleven of them; also AC 4174, 4145:2, 3956, TCR 442).
     Because of the evils associated with merit, our temptations will become more frequent or more severe if we fail to realize that we deserve nothing (see AC 2273).

29. Do Not Dwell on Your Failures.

     Evil spirits love to bring to mind all your past failings, and to make even your successes look like failure. They "call up a person's evil and falsities . . . whatever he has thought and done from his infancy" (AC 751). "They excite and draw forth all things in a person that have been evilly done and evilly thought, and thereby accuse and condemn him" (AC 8159; cf. 8960).
     It is essential that you be able to clearly identify your evils so that you can overcome them. But mulling them over and brooding about them is playing into the devils' hands, and makes you vulnerable to their greatest weapon-despair.

30. Work to Overcome Your Doubts.

     Doubt can make the struggle against evil more difficult. We may doubt whether it is possible to change ourselves, or doubt whether we really want to make an effort to be responsible. We may doubt whether the Lord cares about us, even doubt His existence.
     When Thomas doubted the Lord's resurrection, the Lord appeared to him and gently said, "Do not be unbelieving, but believing" (John 20:27) . . .

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The Lord does not condemn us on account of our doubts, but He does ask us to overcome them.
     Doubt is a limiting factor. It impedes spiritual progress. A person cannot be admitted into wisdom until he is free from doubt (see AC 2718). Doubt is a tool of hell, and overcoming it brings us closer to victory. "He who is in temptation is in doubt about the end in view. The end in view is the love, against which the evil spirits and evil genii fight, and thereby put the end in doubt. And the greater the love is the more do they put it in doubt . . . . Assurance respecting the result precedes the victory and belongs to the victory" (AC 1820). In order to ease our burdens in temptations, "good spirits and angels from the Lord in every possible way dispel this state of doubt" (AC 2338).

31. Send Away Your Worries.

     When Peter stepped out of the boat into the water, he found that it held his weight. He was able to walk on water, as long as he kept his eyes on the Lord. When he began instead to worry about the strong wind and the waves, he began to sink (Matt. 14:30). Only by turning back to the Lord could he be saved.
     A person in spiritual temptations worries about his evils and his lack of love and trust in the Lord. This anxiety is part of the temptation, and in fact temptation is defined as a "more inward anxiety (AC 6097, 4627:3, NJ HD 187, 188). It is induced by evil spirits who love to torment people (AC 1820); it can cause despair (AC 1787). The fact that this worry is there is a good sign: "If when a person reflects upon the evil he has done he feels any anxiety it is a sign that he will still receive influx through the angels" (AC 5470:2; cf. 7217, 8164). However, simply worrying about our spiritual life will not make things better, and is actually part of the torment from hell. It is not by anxiety but by trust in the Lord that we overcome.
     "Do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink:'" (Matt. 6:35). Much of our worry is about our belongings, reputation, health, and other worldly things. Of course it is important to carefully provide for ourselves and be concerned about our future, but worry and anxiety about these things is forbidden and even condemned. People who are not happy with what the Lord has provided for them, and who do not trust His leading, and who prefer worldly things to heavenly things, are constantly worried about their future. And since they reject the Lord, they have no consolation, and curse themselves (see AC 8478) . . . This kind of worry makes life much harder and needs to be sent away.

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     Once Swedenborg felt a knot in his stomach as a result of worry. He knew it must be from spirits who cause concern about the future. He writes, "I spoke to them, saying that they had better go away, because their sphere, which caused anxiety, did not agree with the spheres of the spirits who were with me" (AC 5179).

32. Keep an Open Mind.

     It is better for a person who is controlled by evil spirits to have a closed mind, because he is then in less danger of getting involved in more evils than he already has. But for a person who is in faith it is better to be open-minded. "The less his ideas are determined to one thing" and the more flexible he is, "the better it is. And the less persistent and hard, the more easily he is bent by the Lord to all things which please the Lord and to good" (SD 3024:2).
     Frequently people turn truths into heresies by focusing their minds on a single truth to the exclusion of others (see AC 362). Good is not confirmed by a single truth, but by many truths (AC 4197). If we keep our minds open to new truths (see AC 5804, 2272:2), we will see the truth more clearly, and it will be easier for the Lord to regenerate us.

33. Look for Confirmation of the Truth.

     In an earlier article in this series I mentioned the importance of confirming or strengthening your belief in God. What was said there applies to all truths-they become stronger when they are backed up by evidence and experience.
     Now we must be careful not to think that an idea is true simply because there is evidence to back it up. Falsities can be confirmed as easily as truths can (and just as confirming truths makes things easier, confirming falsities makes things harder-see AC 1109, 1295, 2385, 2538). Yet once we see from the Lord that a concept is true, we can strengthen it by evidence and experience. Without confirmation, a truth is simply a memorized fact which is soon forgotten. Confirmation gives a person a rational understanding of the truth and fixes it in his consciousness (see AC 3175:4, 3388, NJHD 257:3).

All theoretical matters are to be drawn and concluded from experiences, and are also to be confirmed by them (LJ 315).

Truth must be confirmed and illustrated by many things before it is acknowledged (AC 3175:4; cf. 8702, 8772:2).

     The stronger the truths are, the more easily the battle can be won. In temptations, although many truths may be called to mind, it is only truths which have been confirmed that have the power to raise up those who are in doubt and despair, to give consolation and relief, and to "govern the interiors of the mind" (see AC 5044, AE 558:2).

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No wonder in trouble we turn back to the familiar passages that are tied to our affections.

34. Put Love in the First Place.

     Having the right thoughts can make things easier, but thinking is not the ultimate issue. Evil thoughts may come into your mind without your choosing them, and then the key is how you act on those thoughts. "The things which enter into a person's thought and not through it into the will do not make him unclean; . . . a person cannot desist from thinking evil, but from doing it" (AC 8910:2).
     Thoughts are good tools for making our spiritual life easier. One useful thought to keep in mind is that thinking by itself is useless. Thought saves no one" (AC 2228:2). Thoughts without a life of love are like tools without workmen. Consequently, a key to spiritual progress is the acknowledgment that love is more important than doctrine or thought. "No one can ever say he is regenerate unless he acknowledges and believes that charity is the primary of his faith" (AC 989). If Christians would make love to the Lord and charity toward the neighbor the principal of faith, then "from all the differing churches there would be made one church. And all the dissensions that come forth from doctrine alone would vanish. In fact, all hatred of one against another would be dissipated in a moment, and the Lord's kingdom would come upon the earth" (AC 1799:4).
     Next month's article will focus on how we can make our spiritual burdens lighter by building a receptive base in the natural man.
LIFE AND DEATH 1986

LIFE AND DEATH 1986

A good life is called Life, and an evil one Death. This is why religion is of life, and why its life is to do what is good (Doctrine of Life 8).

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REFLECTIONS ON COMPILING A DICTIONARY 1986

REFLECTIONS ON COMPILING A DICTIONARY Rev. FRANK S. ROSE 1986

     One Sunday a woman came to church in Tucson, and said that she had looked us up in the Yellow Pages having read something of Swedenborg. A week after her first visit she wrote me a letter explaining that after the service she went to the library, and borrowed Heaven and Hell. She added that she had to "reach for her dictionary." I knew that many of the words she would look up would not be found in an ordinary dictionary, and that some would be found with a variety of definitions and she would have trouble knowing which definition applied to the usage in the Writings. Then it occurred to me that we need a dictionary to help people understand the language found in English translations of the Writings.

     Early Drafts

     I wrote the first draft of the dictionary in less than a week. To begin with I simply went through the Concordance looking at the headings. Whenever I came across a word I thought might not be well understood, I wrote it down. This gave me a list of about 500 words. Then I looked them up in an English dictionary and in the Latin, which was easy since Potts kindly provides the Latin for each entry. I wrote simple definitions for each word, put them into a booklet and made over a dozen copies of this first draft and sent it to various people for suggestions.

     Later Drafts

     While working on the second draft I decided on a major change of policy. I decided to include all words, even ones used in only one passage and in one translation. It is interesting that soon afterward I heard one of these words, "murrhine," used in a lesson at a worship service. I also decided to include phrases such as "the good of truth" and "the spiritual of the celestial." By this time I was also receiving suggestions from people all over the church, and was coming across new words in the course of my reading. Eventually the dictionary included more than 1500 entries.

     How Did the Situation Come About?

     The standard edition of the Writings consists of 30 volumes. Add the Spiritual Diary, and you have 35.

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If fresh translations were coming off the press at the rate of a volume a year, it would take 35 years to complete the set. We have not been having new translations at anything like that rate. If someone bought a brand-new set of the Writings from the Swedenborg Foundation today, what would be the age of the translations used? This is not an easy question to answer. Most of the volumes do not carry the date of translation.
     In the standard edition the most recent hardback translation is of Divine Providence (1961). The next earlier is Apocalypse Revealed (1912). Then there is The True Christian Religion (1910), Conjugial Love (1907), The Four Doctrines (1904) and Heaven and Hell (1900). Only eight of the 30 volumes were translated this century!
     Going back we find that the Apocalypse Explained was translated sometime around 1897 and Divine Love and Wisdom in 1885. The Posthumous Theological Works seem to have been translated and collected into two volumes during the last quarter of the 19th century, and Miscellaneous Theological Works in 1857. A few volumes of the Arcana were translated in the 19th century, and the rest in the 18th! At least eight volumes of the 30 date from the 18th century. Admittedly the Arcana Coelestia was revised later, but basically the translation in the green binding is about 200 years old!
     But what about the paperbacks? Many of them are simply reprints or revisions of old translations. The new ones are: Heaven and Hell (1975 Dole), and Apocalypse Revealed (1969 Siechrist), plus Divine Love and Wisdom which has recently been finished.
     The Spiritual Diary, is not included in the standard edition. For all but the first volume we have only one translation, and for the most part it is appallingly bad. Fortunately Dr. Durban Odhner is now working on the Latin text (which requires careful study of Swedenborg's handwritten notes, and a fresh translation, with a new title, Spiritual Experiences.

     The Swedenborg Society in England has done many more. Since 1949 the following works have had new translations: Divine Providence, True Christian Religion, Conjugial Love, The White Horse, Heaven and Hell, The Last Judgment, The Four Doctrines, Divine Love and Wisdom, Apocalypse Revealed, and most recently the first three volumes of a brand-new translation of the Arcana Caelestia.
     Of course recent translations are not necessarily better than the old ones, and the age of the translation is not the sole reason for the difficulties experienced by modern readers.
     In the last two hundred and thirty years or so, many people have tried their hand at translating Swedenborg, some of them not particularly well trained in Latin. Some of them have introduced words into translation that people in the church have come to think of as distinctively New Church, but which were in fact errors.

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     Syntax

     The greatest problem for the reader is the syntax, or the way words and phrases are put together to form sentences. A good translation should read as if written in the target language. According to that definition, how many books of the Writings are well translated?

     New Words

     There are many words used in the Writings that are simply old-fashioned words. Some are new to the English language. There are, in particular, five that occur with some regularity: conjugial, containant, proprium, scortatory, and vastate. Words like "limbus" and "storge" do not occur very frequently and are usually translated some other way ("envelope" and "parental love").

     Faux Amis

     The most difficult problem lies with the faux amis (false friends), words that look like ordinary English words, but mean something different in English than they do in the Writings. Take, for example, the word "tempt." After listing five definitions, the Random House Unabridged Dictionary has this entry: "6. Obs. to try or test." Now that is precisely the way the word is used in the Writings. Three words in particular are employed a great deal in modern English but in a very different sense than that of the Latin, and these are "temptation," "immediate" and "ultimate." These days when people speak of something as being "the ultimate" they usually mean "the greatest, the best," whereas in English translations of the Writings it means "the lowest, the most external."

     Difficulty Making Arguments Based on Mistranslations

     One very real problem with faulty or incorrect translations is that we can go to great lengths building arguments on something that is essentially just a mistake. For example, you find in the Writings that the angels "read the Lord's prayer." Does this mean that they have copies of the prayer written down? The Latin word legere can also be translated "recite" and clearly this is what is meant. It also seems to me that the expression "the affection of truth" is simply a mistranslation. In English we speak of "affection for truth."

     Doubting Myself

     In the process of working on the dictionary I soon found myself doubting what words mean.

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I would read through a passage in the Writings, and circle all kinds of words, some of which are not really obscure or incorrect. I just lost confidence in knowing the meaning of words. Do people know what "declivity" means? I wondered. No doubt have included many words in the dictionary that are well-known, partly because of this frame of mind. This doubting proved very helpful in tracking down words that might otherwise have missed such as "deprecate," and "luxury." It turns out that "deprecate" is a very ancient translation meaning, literally, to "pray away" or "to pray that something go away." as Pharaoh deprecated the plague of frogs. It does not mean to "despise" or "look down on." at least in the passage in the Writings where you will find it. For some reason my eye caught the article in the Concordance on "luxury" and I stopped to doubt whether I knew what it meant. In the article there are passages that say that "luxury is a cause of separation" and that "people who live a life of luxury go to hell." Is this saying the people who have beautiful things and are well-off are in spiritual danger? It turns out that "luxury" comes from a word meaning "overgrown, excessive," and the Latin is intended to convey the idea of going to extremes, very likely in sexual abuses.

     Conjugial

     It seems that the Writings use the word "conjugial" in a different way than we have come to use it in the church. If you were to ask someone:

1.      Have you reached "conjugial age" (old enough to be married)?
2.      Do you have a "conjugial bed" (marriage bed)?
3.      When was the last time you had "conjugial communion" (sharing between husband and wife)?
4.      What do you think a "conjugial debt" is (marital obligations)?
5.     Have you experienced "conjugial cold" (coldness between married partners)? And, incidentally, if, as we usually think, "conjugial" means a special, spiritual love between husband and wife, what in the world is meant by "conjugial cold"!
6.     Do your pets have "conjugial love" (mating instinct)?
7.      Have you arrived at a "conjugial state" (being married)?

     Doctrine

     As part of my doubt. I began to wonder about the word "doctrine." The first thing we notice about the word is that it is mostly used in the singular. There is a book of the Writings titled: The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine (not "Heavenly Teachings"). In number 7 it says, "to deliver this doctrine is the design of the present work." The way we use the word we would have expected "these doctrines."

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     After considerable study and reflection, I came to the conclusion that the word "doctrine" refers to an overall concept, a complex of many different elements, a general "point of view" or set of principles from which the Word is read. This is why it is called a "lamp," a single light source that sheds light on the page. This is "the doctrine" (not "the doctrines") that is to be drawn from the sense of the letter of the Word and confirmed by it. People see the Word from their "doctrine." Notice how the angel asked the individual what his "doctrine" was, and the religion he formed from "it" (Doctrine of Faith 42). Clearly that is not talking about "a teaching," but rather an entire cluster of teachings, from a certain point of view. In one case the point of view was that everything of religion went back to faith alone. In the other, it went back to the marriage of charity and faith.
     Consider then, this proposition:

1.      The doctrine (point of view) of the translator affects his translation.
2.      The people who use the translation have their doctrine (point of view) affected by it.
3.      Changes in translation can lead to a shift in a generally accepted doctrine (point of view).
4.      Therefore there is tremendous resistance to changes in translation.

     Conclusion

     English is only one language, and even in English we do not have the Writings available in a language understood by many of our readers. The translations we have do not accurately reflect the meaning or simplicity of the original. Many other countries have few translations or none at all. And in quite a few countries people depend on English translations of the Writings.
     We have before us a huge, unfinished task. Two hundred and thirty-seven years after the first volume of the Writings was published, we still do not have all of the Writings available in modern, readable language in any tongue. This seems to be a challenge requiring our best effort and attention. The dictionary Words in Swedenborg may help a little, but does nothing to touch the real problem. To deal with that we will need many scholars, thoroughly versed in Latin, and able to convey the meaning simply and accurately into modern languages.
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

Everyone's soul is in the Lord's hand (Divine Providence 94).

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"I OWN THY SWAY" 1986

"I OWN THY SWAY" JEREMY ROSE 1986

     I love going to church. I am one of the ushers for the Sunrise Chapel in Tucson, and a member of the Evangelization Committee. I am very interested in church growth, and as a result, I love having visitors come to our services.
     I am also the bass player in a blues band. From time to time the lead singer in the band shows up in church. He is black, and grew up in the ghettos on the south side of Chicago, but he and his family are religious and it always feels good to see them at our services. Nevertheless, I feel a little chagrined seeing him pick up our Liturgy and try to struggle his way through it, flipping pages back and forth, singing unfamiliar songs, and most importantly, singing words that must not be very meaningful to him. Why do I assume that? Because on closer inspection, many of them are not very meaningful to me, and I have been singing them all my life. While it is comforting to sing in the archaic language and inverted sentence structure only to be found in religious services, I still have difficulty. Even with my college degree in Speech Communication and Linguistics, a Phi Beta Kappa key, and skill in three languages, I simply do not know what the phrase "I own Thy sway" means (Hymn 89, line 2).
     I began to take a very close look at the words to the hymns I have been singing since my earliest childhood, and I was amazed at how much effort it took to truly understand them. In the past I have found myself trying to inject feeling into the hymns, trying to avoid the habit of merely reading the words without thought, but the task of interpreting what the hymns are actually saying is often so difficult that I simply give up. When I do understand the thoughts and feelings expressed in the hymns, they are not always sentiments I share with the authors.
     There are three main problems that I see with the lyrical content of most of the hymns in our Liturgy: 1) Archaic language, and along with that, 2) archaic and overly complicated sentence structure, and finally, 3) an underlying negative tone.
     By archaic language I mean words and phrases such as: bulwark, verdure, myrtle, diadem, our apostate race, succor, contrite, t'assuage, Thy sure repose, mandate, fain, the earnest of salvation, effulgence, dress, oblation, marshalled, natal star, Jesse's stem, and garner throng. Many of you will know what these words mean, but I imagine that the majority of the people singing them, especially first-time visitors (whom I am personally eager to impress), will not.

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While it is possible in many cases to figure out what the words mean as you are singing, that is an intellectual exercise which seems to detract from the original purpose of singing hymns.
     Out of the 91 standard hymns in the modern Liturgy, all but thirteen use a "Th-" word: Thee, Thou, Thy, Thine, hath, doth, and "-eth" endings. Of the thirteen remaining, six use the word "ye," and one uses both "lo" and "hail." While everyone knows what all these words mean, I still find it a distancing phenomenon, something which encourages me to think that religion is something separate from life, and God is someone who should not be talked to as a friend. I never use those words in "real life" and never talk that way to the people I love. This formalized language implies respect and a tone of holiness, but experts in New Testament Greek tell me that this formal tone is simply not present in the Gospels in their original language. Respect is sacrificed for familiarity and intimacy. Jesus encourages us to cultivate a personal relationship with Him, yet we seem to prefer the distance; we would rather think of Him as "throned afar" (Hymn 19).
     Ten of our hymns refer to Zion, which has recently taken on unfortunate political connotations. Hymn 10 refers to "chosen people," and Hymn 14 to "saints," neither of which I think is appropriate for a New Church Liturgy. The paradoxical phrases "twilight dawn" and "alien kindred" appear in Hymns 24 and 108 respectively. Hymn 17 calls for us to "magnify His Name," using the word "magnify" in a way that is long outdated. Over half the words in verse 2, line 4 of Hymn 14, "Thou wast and art, and evermore shalt be," are no longer part of our language.
     If one examines the index in the back of the Liturgy. it is obvious why such archaic language is prevalent: out of the total 130 hymns, 89 were not even written in this century. The words to nineteen of our hymns were written before the Writings were even published! Two were written in the 1600s. two in the 1500s, and one by St. Bernard of Cluny in 1145 A.D. We are a new church, but we do not sing new songs.
     Even more difficult than these words is the inverted and sometimes impossibly complicated sentence and phrase structure used in virtually all the hymns. Every song uses some form of inversion, from "Yonder where they sweet vigil keep," to "Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see" (Hymn 14). The latter example in particular I find very difficult to follow. Is it saying, "Thy glory may not see the eye of sinful man," or "the eye of sinful man may not see Thy glory"? Does "may not see" mean "not allowed to see," or does it mean "might not see"? If I spend enough time on it, I can figure it out, but the truth is that while I am standing in church singing, I simply don't spend the time untwisting the logic of the verse, and it comes out as merely a string or words.

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"O teach Thy wand'ring pilgrims by this their path to trace": by the time I get to the end of the line and realize that I do not know what it is saying, it is too late-the next verse has begun.
     The intellectual level of my mind shuts down, and the primitive level is left wondering what my mouth is saying. "Lord, Thy Word abideth, and our footsteps guideth," I sing, and my primitive mind asks: "What do our footsteps guide?" "The fear of want remove," I sing, and my primitive mind asks: "What is 'want remove' and why should I fear it?"
     Sometimes the imagery is so hard to follow that it conjures up very strange pictures in my mind, such as the phrase. "Wastes rise in verdure and mingle in song" (Hymn 8). "The earth and main" (Hymn 21) refers to the whole planet, but also singles out the northeastern most state in America.
     These are perhaps trivial examples, but I also find myself thinking more insidious thoughts. For instance, in Hymn 41 is the phrase: "Love Thou art, and tender mercy, wayward, sinful still are we." Unless I really pay attention, the distinction between when we are singing about the Lord and when the focus shifts to ourselves is not at all clear, and I find myself unconsciously describing the Lord as being "wayward" and "sinful."
     One could accuse me of paying too much attention to small, subliminal messages, but my point is that the hymns are so intellectually involved and complicated that we are left with almost nothing but the subliminal messages. Poetic language is one thing; confusion is another. I dare say that most of us, most of the time, do not think thoughts of God's cruel hate as we are singing; we think of nothing at all.
     Often these phrases are convoluted simply for the sake of the rhyme scheme (as in Hymn 99, verse 2, where the rhyme scheme is almost entirely dependent on this). Phrases are inverted and all but turned inside out so that a word which would normally occur in the middle of the line can now be used to rhyme with the previous line. As for me, I would gladly give up the rhyme for clarity of thought.
     The last point to trouble me, especially after reading all the hymns in succession, is the overwhelming negativity and morbid preoccupation with the darker side of life presented in the hymns. Forty of our hymns, for instance, contain some form of the words "dark" and "night." While it is sometimes a source of comfort, especially in times of distress, to sing about such things, and the Lord's uplifting us from them, most of the time we are nor in distress. It is unbalanced, and even though each time something dark and somber is brought up. It is countered with a message of hope and salvation, still the overall effect is negative.

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The list of the "dark" topics discussed in the hymns is much too long. Listen to this:

The flood of mortal ills prevailing; cruel hate; the stormy blast; thy foes oppressing thee; the night of thy sorrow: being enslaved by tyrants; the accents of sorrow and mourning, the engines of war and commotion; this world of sin; storms awaking and wintry blasts sweeping o'er us cold and drear; every sin; every ill; all the weary day; darkness and confusion; the shadows that lead our wandering feet astray; earth's vain toil and wandering; weakness and helplessness; my suffering heart; the contrite, the weak. the lowly, the meek; sin and blindness; earth's richest boons growing dim; our darkness; doubt and fear; our dark sky; the dark'ning world; mists and rocks and quicksands: clouds and darkness; midnight's solemn hour; helpers failing and comforts fleeing; earth's joys growing dim and its glories passing away; change and decay all around; earth's vain shadows; weakness, ignorance, sin and shame; the world's allurement, threat and fashion; dusk, and darkness. and the dead; foes unclean invading and filling Thy hallowed halls with dread; sin's insulting host boasting their victory and thy sorrow; fleeing from burdens; looking upon our misery; our cry of deep contrition; foes infernal; utter need and mortal weakness; foes within assailing with hate and scorn; life's temptations; bitter strife; hosts infernal; death and hell; darkling man; the clouded mind; the troubled breast; life being long and dreary; darksome night; this long and weary night; the night of darkness and of dread; sore burdens; disease and death; darkness and the grave; the blind, the dumb, the palsied and the lame; the leper shunned by all mankind; the sick with fevered frame: pain and loss; temptation's hand; destruction walking around us; arrows near us flying; bitter grief and pain; clouds and darkness; the rugged way, the grief, the fears; the lonely night; doubt and terror; the shades of death; mortal pain; lowly bondage; fear and death and mortal strife; ancient wrong; winter's grief; the weary waiting eye; fear and gloom: death and night; all that's wrong; and death and pain and strife.

The impression I get is that the authors held the attitude that life on earth is misery, which they seem bitter about being born into, and they are simply waiting until they get to heaven, where all their problems will be solved. Not only do I myself not think of life as "cold and drear," but I do not consider it healthy to simply wait "to reach at last Thy heav'nly fold when life on earth shall end" (Hymn 11).
Hymn 51 is another example: "Rest comes at length, though life be long and dreary, the day must dawn, and darksome night be past. Faith's journey ends in welcome to the weary, and heav'n, the heart's true home, will come at last." This bears strong overtones of a faith alone attitude, something our religion tries to avoid. Hymn 58, verse 2, "To us the burden, Lord, seems sore, but Thou hast called it light," seems to betray a deep bitterness. That same hymn ends with the line:

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"Then may we find a home in heav'n, Thy promise to all men, to dwell with Thee, to love Thy law, in timeless joy. Amen." Again: Life on earth is miserable, but all our problems will be solved when we reach heaven.

The summary effect is that these hymns do not express, or are not a vehicle through which I can express, my religious feelings and beliefs. Instead they conjure up images of an old, old religion, a distant God, and a life that bears little resemblance to mine. While I do love many of the hymns in our present Liturgy, many of them are not adequate for my religious needs, and virtually all of them could bear updating. Like most of you (I hope), I have a great fondness for a lot of these songs, and they recall sweet memories from my childhood. Even the phrases and words that I had not understood until recently carried with them good associations. Like most children, it did not bother me that I didn't understand them. Now as an adult, however, I think it very important to understand what I am singing, and to believe in it. I hope that this fondness will not prevent us from rewriting the hymns so that everyone can understand them.
I would like to see my black friend come to our church more often, and so I would dearly love to provide him with a Liturgy that would be meaningful to him, and to anyone else who chooses to attend our services. The growth of the New Church, something I have a great investment in, depends on this. It is a new, exciting and rational religion, and I would like our Liturgy to reflect this more closely. I long for a songbook which expresses a religion to which we can all "turn with simple, childlike hearts" (Hymn 82).
NCL 58 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 58 YEARS AGO 1986

The August issue for 1936 begins with an article containing observations and reflections on statements in the Writings that could be considered opposed to scientific evidence. The title is "Natural Divine Truth." A more recent addressing of this subject was undertaken by Fred Elphick forty years later (NCL, Jan., 1976, p. 6). We are hoping to publish an article along similar lines within the next few months.
Having had a feature this March on the subject of books by Kingslake, we're most interested to find that this magazine reviewed a little booklet by Brian Kingslake fifty years ago. The title was "Some Aspects of Education." Our reviewer says. "The author is evidently an earnest student of the whole subject of education in the light of the Heavenly Doctrines."

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Just as a number of readers in the eighties have been heartened by Brian Kingslake's more recent writing, the editor of the LIFE fifty years ago said, "it is heartening to observe in this pamphlet the signs of a zeal in the direction of distinctive New Church education . . . "
Fifty years ago this month we published the dedication speech given by Rev. Hugo Odhner at the dedication service of De Charms Hall after it was totally renovated following a fire. Fifty more years of elementary school education then took place within those walls, and now in 1986 it has been devoted to uses of the Boys School of the Academy of the New Church. We are told that the first use of that building by the high school this year actually took place on the fiftieth anniversary of the dedication. We are publishing a photograph of the building as it looks today and would encourage visitors to Bryn Athyn to find occasion to visit its attractive facilities.
ACCOMMODATION 1986

ACCOMMODATION Name Withheld 1986

[Photo of DE CHARMS HALL]

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     "Teaching" and "leading" require learning and following; otherwise they are of no effect-by definition. A large amount of "teaching" can produce a large amount of learning or a small amount, or none. It's a matter of efficiency.
     Often we fool ourselves into thinking we are accomplishing what we are not. For example, if a teacher or minister gives a lot of instruction through lectures, he may assume that his students have appropriated a lot of learning. Probably they have not. Instead, they may have learned passive endurance, daydreaming, anger and frustration-and a little knowledge.
     Am I a "teacher," or do I facilitate "learning"? Do I focus on presentation or do I plan for reception and appropriation?
     As a teacher and parent, I have been repeatedly and profoundly impressed by the importance of accommodation. I have learned much through my own mistakes (still an integral part of my life!), through positive experiences, through observation, reflection, and experimentation; and through reading studies addressing stages of mental growth.
     Both the New Revelation and science contribute significantly to our understanding of human learning. In Growth of the Mind Bishop de Charms has brought them together in a most constructive form. Art in Education is a highly developed curriculum for the visual arts which links stages of mental growth to subject matter. Recently, the Bryn Athyn Church School has published a curriculum for the language arts and one for speech and drama, and a few years ago a social studies curriculum. Now ministers and teachers are developing a new religion curriculum which promises to be well accommodated to children.
     Accommodation has to do with suitability, appropriateness. It strives for a harmonious matching of the subject under consideration with the people being approached. When you accommodate a subject to an individual or a group, you try to think and feel from their point of view. What would cause them to care about what you wish to present? What would turn them on to your subject? What would intrigue them? You must be sensitive to their states, thoughtful of their needs-"accommodating."
     To accommodate effectively requires knowledge and skill. It helps to have a "bent" for it, but that's only a gratuitous beginning. Work is involved-first to study and discover what people's needs are, then to develop a variety of strategies to meet those needs. It's an ongoing process for teachers. It's one of the things that continues to concern and excite them as the years roll by teaching the same subject at the same grade level.

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If it doesn't, stagnation soon follows.
     Teachers, of course, are not our only teachers. Parents are too, and ministers are also teachers-of a very special sort. Divine truth is their subject matter; leading to the good of life is the use to which they are called. But between knowledge of truth and an inspiring presentation of truth (leading to the good of life) there can be a significant gap-and often is.
     I may be mistaken, but my impression is that the ministers of our church learn very little about accommodation to state during their years of formal training. Perhaps more is being done now than in the past. Naturally, once out of theological school, they're not usually interested in pursuing further formal studies-especially in such a mundane area as teaching methods. They want to get on with work.
     But wait! Tools are important! A painter does need a brush even just the right brush-to convey his subject sensitively; his thumb just isn't adequate. And a mason does need to learn how to shape stones, how to lay them so they fit together well, so they stay put-so they build a wall.
     And ministers do need excellent communication skills. They do need to understand their people their needs, interests, and capacities. Otherwise, they are talking to themselves-or at best, to each other piling stones rather than building with them.
     Unfortunately, many teachers and ministers are apparently not convinced that it is important for them to become excellent communicators. My impression is that they consider it irrelevant, or perhaps demeaning, to involve themselves in studying stages of human development and strategies for meeting them.
     My plea is that we consider studying accommodation as a significant, ongoing aspect of our renewal as parents, teachers, and ministers. I see a tremendous need for this in the church. I want my grown children to be turned on by our church services, not turned away. I want our doctrinal classes to be so stimulating and valuable that their reputation brings our young adults to them as well as friends from other churches. And I want to feel excited and inspired myself when I attend a church service or class. I want my children at the Academy and in the elementary school to look forward to the learning side of their education-not just the social life and sports.
     Now having said all that, I'll finish by explaining what goaded me into picking up my pencil in the first place.
     The rational mind does not even begin to open until approximately age thirteen. Therefore, addressing children in rational, abstract terms is totally inappropriate. They are living on the sensual and imaginative levels and they must be fed on those levels!

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Above those levels they cannot truly understand; therefore it is a waste of time to try to teach them abstractions. And of course, what they cannot comprehend will also bore them. When they are bored they are unhappy, and when they are unhappy in church-they don't like church.
     Is the letter of the Word so boring that ministers feel they must expound its internal sense to children? Hopefully, to ask the question is to answer it. Let the Word speak for itself; the glory is in the story.
     Isn't the letter of the Word also profoundly meaningful to adults? Can't we still be deeply moved by these stories later in life-and the more so as we mature and open ourselves to the leading of the Lord? Power really does reside in ultimates for all of us. When truth can be seen in the events of a story, it is affecting and compelling in a way that's different from the intellectual excitement that one feels toward doctrinal exposition. Both are important, but in the New Church we usually hear doctrinal exposition.
     The internal sense of the Word only becomes meaningful to an adult if he first has a knowledge and love of the letter of the Word. Without this, the internal sense has little punch. It needs its base and containant, its ultimate. Childhood is the time to build this base.
     Ministers need to be consummate storytellers. This is a skill that can be learned. But it takes commitment first, then a search for the means, then a lot of hath work. Everyone loves and responds to a story, but for children, stories are especially vital. They are the means by which we bridge the gap between truth and life. Stories personify; they show truth in action. By means of stories we witness religion applied to life, and we feel the drama of good and evil contesting in people's lives.
     Ministers and teachers should be experts in the area of accommodation. There's much material available, even within the church, and there are many knowledgeable people to consult, also within the church. There are books, courses, and workshops available in the world beyond our church, too, that are of great value. Let's give the study and understanding of people as high a priority as the study and understanding of doctrine.
     There, I've said it. I've put my message strongly because I care deeply about the church, its children, my children, myself, and all those people "out there" we'd like to invite in. My intention is to point a finger at a need, not at a person or group of people. Please accept my offering in that spirit.
     Keep up the good work, and make the good better parents, ministers, and teachers, "teachers" all!
     Name of writer withheld on request.

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EXPLAINING THE ATONEMENT 1986

EXPLAINING THE ATONEMENT JOHN SABOL 1986

     (Correctly Pronounced as the At-one-ment)

     It is easy for man to confuse what God has given him. For example, faith and charity cannot be separated, because faith is to believe what the Word teaches, and charity is to do what the Word teaches. If we not only believe but do these things, we will go to heaven.
     To those who take an interest in religious ideas, it is perfectly clear that the doctrine of the at-one-ment is not understood. This doctrine is supposed to be central to Christianity, and yet Christians do not agree on what at-one-ment means. In the beginning, the word at-one was two separate words-at and one. When you are at-one with somebody, you are going in his direction and in agreement with him. Tyndall was an atone-maker, i.e., a reconciler who helped people appreciate each other. Shakespeare in Coriolanus (Act 4, Scene 6) said: "He and Aufidius can no more atone [be at one with each other] than violentest contrarieties."

     Fuller, in "A Pisgah Sight of Palestine" wrote: "His first essay succeeded so well, Moses would adventure on a second design, to atone two Israelites at variance."
     Sir Thomas More, in his History of King Richard III wrote: ". . . having more regard to their own variance than their new atonement."
     History shows that among the earliest of the fathers of the church, no distinct views on at-one-ment were expressed. Man first made this doctrine with Irenaeus (A.D. 140-202) and Origen (in the early part of the third century). In this first view of the at-one-ment, it was held "that Christ was offered to satan as a ransom on behalf of men, because in men he had acquired the rights of conquest." Christ was regarded as more than an equivalent for his loss of mankind. But satan had miscalculated his antagonist, and in the end he was overcome by Christ, and lost both his offered ransom and mankind as well. This view of the at-one-ment was regarded even by those who held it as a trick played upon satan in order to frustrate his evil designs upon man.
     Ambrose of Milan, in the fourth century, wrote, "It was necessary in order that this fraud should be carried out upon the devil that the Lord Jesus should take a body." Such was the first and oldest Christian presentation of the at-one-ment. This doctrine, that the at-one-ment was a ransom paid to the devil, was held by the church for nearly a thousand years.
     In the twelfth century, it was revised and restated by Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury.

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Discarding the old theory entirely, he taught that sin is a debt, and that by the justice of God it is absolutely necessary that this debt should be paid in full, either by man himself, or by a substitute having all legal qualifications for his office. This substitute was at last found in Jesus Christ, who suffered and died in our stead.
     Bad as this theory was, it was an advance over the old idea of a contest between God and the devil. According to Anselm, the satisfaction rendered by Christ was that the mere payment of the debt due to God gave man no claim to the Divine favor. And this false doctrine, under various modifications, has continued to be held by the church as doctrine for the last 800 years.
     Coming to the Reformation, Luther wrongly declared that: "Faith justifies, because it appropriates the merits of Christ. Therefore, the righteousness which is imputed to the believer, simply by the grace of God, is the obedience, the suffering, and the resurrection of Christ, by which He has satisfied the claims of The Law and atoned for our sins." The Writings also tell us that Luther was told by angels not to separate faith and charity, which he did! (See DP 258.)
     Coming closer to our day, we find the Westminster Confession (1643-1647) in Article III, on justification, stating that "Christ, by His obedience and death, did fully discharge the debt of all those that are justified, and did make a proper, real and full satisfaction to His Father's justice in their behalf. Yet, inasmuch as He was given by the Father for them, and His obedience and satisfaction accepted in their stead, and both freely, not for anything in them, their justification is only of grace."
     From these statements it is seen that from the very beginning, and in each re-statement of this false doctrine of the at-one-ment. God is regarded as many enemy. Each re-statement has God represented as being propitiated by the sufferings and death of the innocent Christ in place of the actual sinner. Isn't this a barbarous idea of the at-one-ment?

     What has happened is that faith has been separated from charity. We present this faith separated in its nakedness: "God the Father, being angry with mankind, cast them away from Him and out of justice resolved to take vengeance by their eternal condemnation; and He said to the Son, 'Go down, fulfill the law, and take upon Thyself the condemnation destined for them, and then perchance I shall be moved to compassion.'"
     Therefore, He came down and fulfilled the law and suffered Himself to be hanged on the cross and cruelly put to death. When this was done, He returned to the Father and said, "I have taken upon Myself the condemnation of mankind. Therefore, now be merciful!"-thus interceding for them.

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But He received for an answer, "Toward them I cannot, but as I saw Thee upon the cross, and beheld then Thy blood, I have been moved to compassion. Nevertheless, I will not pardon them, but I will impute unto them Thy merit, but to none others than those who acknowledge this. This shall be the faith by which they can be saved."
     Such is this faith separate from charity in its nakedness.
     Anyone with enlightened reason can see that it contradicts God!

     1.      God, who is love itself and mercy itself, could out of anger and its consequent revengefulness condemn men and accurse them to hell.
     2.      God wills to be moved to mercy by His Son's taking upon Him their condemnation, and by the sight of His suffering upon the cross, and of His blood.
     3.      One deity could not say to another coequal deity, "I do not pardon them, but I impute to them Thy merit!" Or, "Now let them live as they please. Only let them believe this and they shall be saved."

     The reason why these absurdities have not been seen is that they have induced a "blind faith," and have by it shut men's eyes and stopped up their ears.
     Emanuel Swedenborg exposed these errors over two hundred years ago, and clearly demonstrated that it was contrary both to reason and the Word of God. God is not man's enemy. The church needs truth, and not the substitution of one mistake for another. God became God Incarnate in the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is God manifest!
     We should not invent false doctrines. The Bible teaches that the love of Jesus Christ and the love of man are different! A man is a form receptive of love, of life, of truth, and whatever excellences he may enjoy. A man does not invent truth nor create his own virtues. A man does not live from himself! John 14:6 tells us that "Jesus Christ is the truth, the way, and the life!" "All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made, and in Him was life" (John 1:3)

     The Bible affirms this great truth that Christ is God, and God is Christ! Did not our Lord say:

I and My Father are One!
He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father!
He that loveth Me keepeth My commandments!
I lay down My life that I might take it again!
No man taketh it from Me . . . I lay it down of Myself.
I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again! (John 10:17, 18).
All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth!

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     These and other passages are the natural language of a Being who is God. Remember, Paul said in Col. 2:9 that: "in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the godhead bodily." "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself" (2 Cor. 5:9).
     We tend to forget that the work or fight of our Lord Jesus Christ with the powers of evil on man's behalf was quite as much in the other world as in this, and it was waged out of sight. Man was so completely under the power of evil at that time that only God could set man free! That was the work that Christ came to do as God Incarnate.
     At the time of the Lord's first coming, man had failed, and God could have destroyed this earth. Man had on this planet frustrated the Divine plan of forming a heaven composed of angels from the human race. Hereditary evils in the course of time had so completely cut man off from heaven that God could not draw near to man. He could not keep man in spiritual freedom, and He could not inspire man with the nobility of life. Man had given himself to the powers of evil. Genesis 6:5 tells us that "every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."
     To restore man to a state of order, the power of satan had to be broken and heaven had to be restored. This work was accomplished by bringing God Himself into actual touch with sinful man. God Himself:

a)      assumed our human nature.
b)      shared our propensities to sin through His human mother.
c)      bore all the evils of this world.
d)      resisted the influences of this world--both flesh and the devil.
e)      cast out every tendency to do wrong within Him.
f)      at-oned, or made at one, our frail human with the essential Divine.
g)      became finally by these actions our Redeemer and Savior of this world.

     The passion on the cross was His ultimate or last step! The suffering and death of Christ was not expiatory, but incidents in the life of the Good Shepherd, who laid down His life for His sheep. The cross was His final temptation, and so there is force and meaning of His last words-"It is finished."
     When the redemptive work was concluded, the at-one-ment was completed. All evil was conquered and a new period dawned upon sinful man. Freedom was restored to man's will. God in His Divine Human was again able to inspire His children to accept His love and wisdom. We see by careful study that the at-one-ment worked by Christ was the work of Christ Himself, and not of a second person of three gods.

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     In Romans 5:11 Paul states: "We have received the at-one-ment!" The word commonly used is "reconciliation," and in the original Greek it is the same word as that translated at-one-ment in this passage. It was never the reconciliation of God to man. As Isaiah (63:9) said: "In all their affliction He was afflicted, and in His love and in His pity He redeemed them!"
     The Lord's first coming was to help man in man's "human nature." Christ was the very eternal life Himself. Christ was God who manifested Himself in the flesh. Christ glorified His Human, making it Divine, or God Himself!"
     We can now stand in His presence, for we would burn up in the presence of pure God. God has taken on a Human that you and I can see, worship and follow. Even Moses could only see the back parts of God as He passed by!
     This is the great difference! We can be at-one with God if we follow Him!
POEMS BASED ON THE WRITINGS 1986

POEMS BASED ON THE WRITINGS MARJORIE R. SONESON 1986

     TEMPTATION (based on AC 8403)

Before a man's an angel, before his Maker calls him home,
A bitter battle breaks him and leaves him pleading for his tomb.
There's no regeneration without temptation's empty days.
All heaven's halls are hidden, while devils lure man through their maze.
A fight precedes the victory, for proprium must be destroyed.
The natural will must perish so heavenly bliss can be enjoyed.
The old will always struggles, resisting what it knows must come.
The new will cannot enter until the fiery fight is won.
Temptations and vastations must follow one another, and
They bring regeneration when mortal conflicts finally end.
While man sustains the battle he feels abandoned and alone.
Yet all the weary while God awaits him on His throne.

     "WE ARE BECAUSE GOD IS" (DP 46)

     "I think, therefore I know I am," Descartes was heard to say.
He might have added to this, for all who care to pray:
"If God is dead, as some have said, then I could never be.
I know there is a God because I think there is a me."

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MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (2) 1986

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (2) Rev. Robert S. Junge 1986

     The choice this month is from Divine Love and Wisdom, a portion of number 363 which reads as follows:

     There are many things pertaining to love which have received other names because they are derivatives, such as affections, desires, appetites, and their pleasures and enjoyments; and there are many things pertaining to wisdom, such as perception, reflection, recollection, thought, intention to an end; and there are many pertaining to both love and wisdom, such as consent, conclusion, and determination to action; besides others. All of these, in fact, pertain to both, but they are designated from the more prominent and nearer of the two.

     [Photo of Rev. Robert S. Junge who resides in Bryn Athyn, PA where he serves as Dean of the Theological School.]

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I love this number because it emphasizes the importance of both love and wisdom in determination to action-a particularly useful concept in marriage. It is so useful to remember the need for both affection and thought in the decision-making process. Both love and wisdom's being involved in consent points to how important it is that consent be informed. We cannot ask people to consent unless they really understand the issues. Even the selection of the words "consent, conclusion and determination to action" are rich in their implications regarding leadership. And these more particular applications are fun, because they come under the general heading that love and wisdom make man's very life.
R. S. J.
ON THE EVANGELIZATION OF CHARITY: 1986

ON THE EVANGELIZATION OF CHARITY: KURT SIMONS 1986

     A Proposal

     The organized New Church is growing. Some of the growth is in numbers, but more important now, perhaps, is its growing awareness. From such events as the Planning Seminar1 to the development of the new liturgy, new ritual and new translations, there is apparent a new sensitivity to the diversity of states and needs that a truly universal "general" church needs to meet. As part of this expanding outlook, it seems useful to reflect on the fact that, traditionally, its evangelization has been largely directed toward spreading truth, in effect the evangelization of truth. This is certainly understandable in view of the heavy emphasis doctrine places on development of the rational degree. It is also understandable in view of the "social gospel" and outright political movements in the former church. These movements have often, in effect, made abuses of civil and moral charitable uses, substituting them for-rather than adding them to-organized religion's primary spiritual development goal.2 Clearly the organized New Church does not wish to follow suit.
     It seems possible, however, that we in our turn have an alternative temptation, to keep involvement in the world too "correspondentially" at arm's length, to shortchange what might be termed the "evangelization of charity." Just how literal, how ultimate, should we be in applying teachings such as that ". . . [There is no charity apart from the works of charity; it is in its practice or use that charity consists" (AC 997), or that "Charity and faith are only mental and perishable things unless they are determined to works and coexist in them when possible" (TCR 375)?

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In an era that injures childish innocence with everything from television to monster games and war toys,3 for instance, do we dismiss as merely symbolic the Lord's statement that it is better for a person to be killed than for him to allow such injury (see Matt. 18:6, Mark 9:41, Luke 17:2)? Is there significance in the fact that in a parable of particular pertinence to evangelization (e.g., AE 444:14), the good Samaritan didn't lecture the man, or give him a first aid manual? He knelt down and laid hands (i.e., ultimates) on the wound. To what degree, exactly, should we do likewise and, in evangelization, "teach men so"?
     These questions have been raised before, of course.4 And, as in other areas of applied doctrine, there appears no simple single answer to them. Again, continuing reflection on these matters seems useful as part of that growing process. What follows is such a reflection.
     Question 1: Does AR 547's statement that the New Church will not grow until the falsities of the former church are removed imply that we should aid this process, rather than wait passively for it to happen?
     Falsity does not evaporate spontaneously! It needs truth shone on it to allow what is true charity to be discriminated from what is not (see TCR 406ff.). The Lord works by means of men. Should not thus the organized church go out and help dispel false thinking in ways that only it, from doctrine, can, and in areas well beyond purely theological matters'' "Here I am. Send me" (Isa. 6:8). The Writings provide sophisticated analytic tools for spiritually dissecting issues in any realm of life, and as an "expert" in doctrine, should not the church be leading the way in doing this? The heart and lungs do not purify the blood and keep it to themselves; they send it out for application in every cell's use in the entire human organic.
     Furthermore, if the first of charity is to put away evils (TCR 435ff.), this presumably applies as much at the level of the greater neighbor of society-at-large as it does to the individual (see AC 6819ff., Char. 72ff.). As part of larger society, we are responsible for its civil and moral "regeneration." Evils cannot be put away if people do not view them as evils. That many "persons in authority"(NJHD 313) guiding the world's political and cultural life do not do so hardly needs further comment here. They "ought to take notice" of what is orderly and what is not (NJHD 312). When they don't, those who do "notice" from doctrine need to pointout the difference! Of particular interest to the church and Academy, with their long orientation to children and family, may be the grisly physical, psychological and spiritual abuse of children around the world, and the stunningly effective attacks being made on the institution of marriage.

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     Question 2: Should the church develop more extensive ties with those individuals and organizations of the church universal who are reflecting and acting on charitable needs and uses in the world? These people would seem to fit the description of those who can receive doctrine since they have "cultivated their intellectual faculty and not destroyed it in themselves by the love of self and the world" (AE 732). Furthermore, a major characteristic of both the Christian and gentile audiences whom the Writings say will be receptive to the New Church is that they are in the good of charity and mutual charity." [T]hey who are in good, and yet in things not true . . . such persons are in the capacity of receiving truths" (AC 9192).5 Such people are thus presumably receptive to those active in states of charity, and indeed have "abhorred" traditional Christians when this was lacking.6 Should the presence of charity in visible form thus be a hallmark of the organized church's use-and evangelization-plan?
     There is also the intriguing question of whether the church specific can receive the help it needs from the church universal if the church specific does not participate in and develop common links of charity with that outer segment of the church. In the story of the woman clothed with the sun, those who are "not dragons" are "what is meant by the 'earth helped the woman' " and these people "do not know otherwise than that faith produces fruits, which are good works" (AE 764, 767). If we do not meet and work with them in the field of "good works," will they attend to us otherwise?
     Question 3: Conversely with the church's credibility suffer when it does not participate in New Testament (e.g. Matt. 25:34ff.) Charity to the neighbor when virtually all other organized religions are so involved? Since we claim to be a step beyond previous churches, do we set the stage for disillusionment when a newcomer discovers that we are not simply not equivalent but have directed almost no thought or effort this way at all? That people outside realize this lack was demonstrated in the findings of the Denney report.7 Furthermore, more than 60% of the people surveyed for that report rated "Offers a variety of volunteer community service activities" as "Very" or "Moderately Important" in making a decision about joining a new church (while only 5.2% rated this as "Not Important").8 This also presumably explains why in their recommendations of how to "change the image of the church as a 'closed uncaring religion' " the Denney group recommended that the church "encourage members to be active in their communities, particularly in events that serve the welfare of the total population," and "develop programs of a non-religious nature that address some of the needs of the people in the communities in which the societies are located . . . ."9

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     There appears to have been some confusion in the church's history about participation in works of natural and moral charity, as a result of such passages as TCR 422ff. on the benefactions of charity, which have been cited as playing down such uses. Careful reading of these passages, however, appears to show they are warning of abuses, not challenging the uses themselves when performed with proper judgment. Indeed, for children, there appears to be support even for "indiscriminate" charity, "especially giving to the poor . . . for thereby boys and girls [and others in simple states]. . .are initiated into charity, for these are its externals whereby such are trained in the practice of charity" (TCR 426). "[P]ity for the poor and needy" in fact is explicitly specified as one form of remains instilled in childhood (AC 56 1). Since "Do as I say, and not as I do" is not an optimum parenting technique, more appears involved in even this one aspect than to just "suffer little children" to show charity.

     (To be concluded)

     FOOTNOTES

1 L.R. Soneson: Summary of the General Church Planning Seminar, NEW CHURCH LIFE, Oct. 1985, p. 453.
2 Rev. Stephen Cole cites and expands upon a fascinating editorial by Cairns Henderson in NEW CHURCH LIFE in 1952 that explains these developments spiritually from the internal sense of II Kings 6:1-7. The central theme is that "those who teach truths in the consummated church are given a general perception that the church cannot abide in interior truths or states, in which constraint is felt, for which reason there is a desire to descend into external truths and states and into a good that is obscure but congenial . . . . This inspired prediction [in II Kings], recorded centuries before the Christian Church was established, has been remarkably fulfilled in part by the development of what is known as the 'social gospel' . . ." (S.D. Cole, "From Your Pastor," The Precursor, April 1985, p. 2).
3 See, for instance, Marie Winn's Children Without Childhood, New York: Pantheon Books, 1983.
4 See, for instance, Sydney Parker's "Freedom, Order and Responsibility," NEW CHURCH LIFE, Feb. 1986, p. 78.
5 See Chapter 11 and Appendix I, particularly with regard to the Catholics and those represented by the churches of Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira and Philadelphia, in Evangelization and the New Church. A Manual of Missionary Work, General Church Extension Committee, 1979.
6 Ibid., p. 92.
7 James P. Murphy, 1983 Evangelization Survey, Final Report, November 1983, Table 9 and focus group comments, p. 22.
8 Ibid., Appendix D, Statistical Tables, p. 057.
9 Evangelization Recommendations, Final Draft, Robert Denney Associates, November 1983.

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BLOOD AS A BIBLICAL SYMBOL 1986

BLOOD AS A BIBLICAL SYMBOL Editor 1986

     In the first volume of the monumental reference work called The Interpreter's Bible (Abingdon Press, 1952) we find the following:

     "We need a new statement of Christian doctrine which will discard outworn imagery. . ."

     This is in the analysis of the 12th chapter of Exodus in which the blood of a lamb was put on the doorposts. Here The Interpreters Bible supplies an article on the subject of "The Belief in Salvation by the Blood." It begins as follows:

     "From the earliest records of primitive sacrifice man has been obsessed by the efficacy of innocent blood to save from disaster. Both the Roman Catholic and the Protestant churches have perpetuated this primitive tradition in all their ritual, in their hymns and sacred books. Realistically, shed blood is horrible beyond words; imaginatively, it has been used as a symbol of the omnipresence of sacrifice in human life."

     The article goes on to describe repugnant customs, and speaks of "an ancient superstition that there is some magic efficacy in the murder of the innocent. Man's vileness is in essence cruelty, and it has been felt that only by cruelty can it be atoned for. Murdering goodness must be paid for by murdering goodness."
     Finding this concept to be one of "horror" the article goes onto say: "Truth never wears out, but symbols do. The time has come when we can discard some of the imagery of blood which was entirely satisfactory to Paul and Augustine, as it was to Moses." It suggests that there are nobler methods of expressing the importance of sacrifice and that "we can guard against evil in more rational ways than by painting our doorposts with the blood of innocent lambs."
     Here is one more sentence from this article:

     An early races have been persuaded that there was something mystically potent about blood" (page 919, Interpreters Bible).

     On the one hand we would not agree with any suggestion that the word "blood" be discarded, as it is part of the letter of the Word. On the other hand we are in sympathy with what is being expressed here and a little surprised at an insight bold enough to put certain traditional concepts into question.

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     The Writings say that from ancient times there really was a perverse inclination toward human sacrifice. They say that the sacrifices to be found in Scripture were permitted rather than commanded, and that the reason they were permitted is that otherwise people would have fallen into the practice of sacrificing their own children (see AC 1241, 2812, 8080). The Lord did not will sacrifice but rather obedience, and this is clear in certain passages in the Bible, such as Jeremiah 7:22. The Psalmist rightly says that God does not desire sacrifice (51:16).
     Those who in simplicity believe that somehow they are saved by blood are not at all condemned in the Writings, even though the Writings say that we are not to take literally certain passages about blood (see AC 9410). The Writings do decry a cruel concept of atonement that has long existed in Christian thinking. We will continue this subject later but would now give one amazing example of an inclination to impose the concept of atonement onto the Bible without regard to what the passages actually say.
     Look up "atonement" in Cruden's Concordance. It is there said that it is a word "chiefly used of Christ's atoning death." For something to be "chiefly" used in this way would require it to occur at least several times. The fact is that the word only occurs once in the whole of the New Testament, and most modern translators say that even this one reference should not be rendered "atonement" at all.
PRAYER TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST 1986

PRAYER TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST Curtis McQueen 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor:
     In the May 1986 LIFE Kent Doering wrote of his hope that "we pray to Jesus Christ as to His Human Person in whom is the Divine Essence, and from whom proceeds the use of redemption . . ." This led me to wonder, "Why? Why Jesus Christ? Could it be that it is so fundamentally important to pray 'to Jesus Christ as to His Person in whom is the Divine Essence' because in so doing it is then possible for one's prayers to become real prayers, prayers for (or receptive of) something real and actual!"
     This question led to a few more thoughts. Could it be that one's prayers become more and more real, which is to say, more and more a receptive vessel of the Active, the Spirit of the Lord Jehovah, when that vessel, the thought in the understanding, is shaped according to all the attributes of Jehovah which flow forth and find their expression in Jesus Christ as to the Human Person?

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When our concept of the Lord Jesus Christ increases in its sense of His oneness, when we begin to really perceive that "the Lord our God is one Lord" and that it is through Jesus Christ that the power of the Divine Essence reaches out to enliven us, then our prayers take on a new, more receptive (thus redemptive!) quality according to that perception. In this increased reception there is a new sense of the power of prayer, a new sense that the Lord's is a real power which can become active in our lives.
     Take the harnessing of solar energy as an example. We know that as we develop our understanding of the sun itself as a functioning "whole," we are better able to design new technology to make use of its energy-filled rays. The furnace in the core of our sun creates a fiery outer surface (the photosphere) through which it radiates all its heat and light in an immense corona which actually reaches out to earth and beyond. How many of us think of the sun's rays or corona as part of the sun itself? (How many of us realize that we on earth actually dwell within that corona?) All good scientists know that the more they understand about the source of all this power, and the better they are able to see the wholeness of it in terms of a functioning system, the more they will be able to design technology which can receive, capture, or harness its power.
     So we also need to keep "tinkering" with our old concepts of the Lord, clarifying the image of the oneness of the God we pray to. This "as-if-of-self," the technology of the spirit, must be led by the affection of truth. Then each new and clearer insight will improve our "design," sharpen our reception, and bring us "closer" to Him in whom "we live and move and have our being"(Acts 17:28).
     The oneness of God is real. And as Mr. Doering has written in an earlier article in the LIFE, He is alive (March issue, 1984). In the Jesus Christ of the New Testament we see a living, visible image of the immense, hidden power of the Old Testament Jehovah. And it is through this image only that the power of His love shines into the lives of men, as each learns to pray with a clearer vision of His oneness and an ever-deepening sense of wonder at the radiant power of His Spirit.
     Curtis McQueen,
          Pittsburgh, PA
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

For anyone to be saved, the Lord Himself must be approached (Divine Providence 230:4).

380

REPORT OF THE SOUND RECORDING COMMITTEE 1986

REPORT OF THE SOUND RECORDING COMMITTEE Rev. Douglas Taylor 1986

     1985

     Throughout the church there are many quiet, unspectacular activities being carried out faithfully without fanfare. A case in point is the work of the volunteers who make it possible for the church to have tape recordings of a great variety of church events throughout the world. The committee depends upon the willingness and skill of these volunteers. The only paid employee of the committee is our Office Manager, Mrs. Joseph McDonough.
     In the year 1985 the circulation of tapes was up slightly, but the increase in the purchase of tapes that we noted last year was down by almost $1,508 worth. This seems to be accounted for by the Assembly the previous year (1984), which resulted in the sale of more tapes, mainly of the Assembly sessions.
     Our income for 1985 was $33,809 and our expenses were $19,215. The difference ($14,594) shows an increase of $1266 over last year. But this is deceptive, as the income includes some donations and interest from a previous year that were not made known to our Treasurer. In fact, contributions actually made in the year under review were down by $5000.
     The net worth of the Sound Recording Committee now stands at $77,536.45. The equipment owned by the committee has been valued at $13,124.70.
     A pleasing change in the past year has been that couples are now beginning to volunteer to record the cathedral church services. In Bryn Athyn there are now three couples regularly doing this work.
     Our Office Manager has completed an interim update of the 1982 catalog, bringing it up to April 1985.
     Rev. Douglas Taylor,
          Chairman
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

Those who believe good to be from the Lord turn their face to Him, and receive the enjoyment and blessedness of good (Divine Providence 93).

381

GABRIEL'S GIFTS 1986

Something New
and
Completely Unique
for
The NEW CHURCH

NYLON JACKETS
Bright Blue with Gold
New Church Emblem:
adult sizes S, M, L, X L
Lined: $19.95,
Unlined: $14.95.

     QUALITY T-SHIRTS
Dark Blue, with Gold
New Church Emblem:
adult sizes S, M, L, XL
50% cotton: $6.99.

     WINDOW DECALS
Bright 6" x 4" Images
on clear self-sticking
mylar for inside glass
applications; in SETS
of 3: 1 with blue and
2 with white printing
$2.99

IRONSTONE MUGS
Rich Blue with White
emblem on both sides,
SETS of two: $8.99

     HERE'S THE EXCITING NEWS!

     The Gabriel Church (the Los Angeles Society of the General Church) is pleased and proud to present for the New Church everywhere there quality products featuring the New Church emblem. The familiar "Glenview" emblem is the some on each product and is universal in its appeal. The items shown ore great morale boosters, conversation starters, society or team unifiers, and recognition awards! Used properly they can be real tools for doing the Lord's work, whether it be missionary or just routine in nature, proceeds from all soles will aid the use of evangelization in Los Angeles.

     HOW TO ORDER:

     Make a list of the items you wont, being careful to note sizes, quantities, prices on each item or set, and the total for all items. Each order over $25.00 will include a FREE set of decals. Please do all your calculations and make your payments in U.S. dollars. California residents add 6-1/2% sales tax. Give us your best guess on cost for shipping (e.g., 54.00 on an order of about 530 valve within the U.S.) and note the grand total to be enclosed. Now PRINT your name and a package delivery address, attach your check or money order, and send it oil to "GABRIEL'S GIFTS, 5027 New York Avenue, La Crescenta, CA 91214, U.S.A. Delivery time varies.

382

ORDINATIONS 1986

ORDINATIONS Editor 1986

     Announcements
     Buss-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 1, 1986, Rev. Peter Martin Buss, into the 3rd degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.

     Childs-At Kempton, Pennsylvania, June 8, 1986, Rev. Robin Waelchli Childs into the 2nd degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.

     Dibb-At Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, May 18, 1986, Rev. Andrew Malcolm Thomas Dibb, into the 2nd degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King, officiating.

     Rogers-At Baltimore, Maryland, May 25, 1986, Rev. Donald Kenneth Rogers, into the 2nd degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.
ONCE AGAIN IN PRINT 1986

ONCE AGAIN IN PRINT 1986

THE MORAL LIFE
Some Reflections
on Morality
and Its Virtues
by Hugo Lj. Odhner

Hardcover 142 pages Postage paid $4.45

     General Church Book Center          Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
Box 278                    Or by appointment
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                    Phone:(215) 947-3920

385

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI September, 1986 No. 9
NEW CHURCH LIFE

386

     Half of page 405 is devoted to the subject of smiling, but it is really in connection with the sermon on "Risks" that we offer an editorial on smiling at ourselves.
     We are pleased to be printing this month a major presentation on the subject of New Church education. The writer, Rev. James P. Cooper, is headmaster of the Kainon New Church School near Durban. Those who are presently working hard to sustain New Church elementary schools will find this presentation of particular value.
     The power of the Alcoholics Anonymous movement is mentioned on page 408. We have mentioned this movement before; for example, the editorial entitled "Getting Drunk" in the January issue in 1983. It is to be noted that our local church halls have in recent years been offered more often to help the uses of blood donation and such organizations as AA.
     Lavina Scott calls the first New Church Music Festival "a celebration of joy" (p. 411). We note that John Odhner devotes a paragraph in this issue to the enjoyment of music and speaks of the uplifting effect of songs from the Word. His wife Lori has written many songs from the Word, several of which are becoming widely used by children and adults.
     Mr. Ralph Synnestvedt reflected for a long time on what might be "just the right nugget of knowledge" to pass on to students on their day of graduation. What he chose to say in that brief commencement address touched a responsive chord for many people. Is his point not equally apt for the beginning of a school year as it was for graduation?
     We publish this month the declarations of faith and purpose of three men inaugurated into the ministry. Rev. William Ankra-Badu is now back in Ghana entering into the work at last for which he had been preparing. It was inspiring for him to have our elementary schools recently enter into the use of gathering books of the Writings for Ghana.
     We begin now to look to the Assembly in 1987 (see page 428). And we look beyond to the 1988 tricentennial celebration (see p. 429).
YOU AND THE OPPOSITE SEX 1986

YOU AND THE OPPOSITE SEX 1986

This 90-page book by Rev. Martin Pryke is now available. See the advertisement on page 436.

387

RISKS OF THE PROMISED LAND 1986

RISKS OF THE PROMISED LAND Rev. KENT JUNGE 1986

     "If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, 'a land which flows with milk and honey'" (Numbers 14:8).

     What will it take to make this Sunday afternoon a good one? We know basically what it takes to go to heaven, to have a good marriage, to live useful and productive lives. Certainly these things can't be accomplished overnight. Much work is required to reach such ambitious goals. There will be numerous setbacks for us along the way. Nevertheless, a happy life the kind of life which leads to heaven-is our ideal. We know what we're working for. But what about Sunday afternoon?
     The truth is, you can spend this Sunday afternoon in heaven. You can, if you dare. We are not talking about a sudden conversion, instantaneous salvation or suicide to get us into heaven ahead of schedule. We are talking about the fact that today is the only heaven you will ever have to work with. Yesterday was today while you were experiencing it. Tomorrow will still be today when you get there. It will be today when you die. Today can be heaven or hell.
     We read in the book Heaven and Hell about people who spent today making themselves miserable so that tomorrow would reward them with heaven. Unfortunately, they never reached tomorrow. They died. They were placed in the company of angels. Heaven was there for the taking. But, looking around, they realized that it was still today. Since these gloomy people were so practiced in being sad today they continued being sad after death. Possibly, it never fully sank in that they had been to heaven.
     The phrase ought to be familiar: "The kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21). This is in keeping with the teaching from Heavenly Secrets [Arcana Coelestia] which reminds us that the angels see all of eternity in the present. They don't dwell on the past. Future things don't worry them. They know that now is the closest they will get to eternity. They may as well be happy with it. This is what makes life heavenly for them.
     We know all this but, somehow, we identify not with the angels but with the Children of Israel who stood on the very borders of the land of Canaan-"the land of milk and honey"-refusing to go in. These people were actually willing to turn around, to endure the pains of the wilderness, and to go back to slavery in Egypt, just so that they could avoid the promised land. This kind of attitude is so absurd that it might seem funny to us if it didn't strike so close to our own fears in accepting the happiness which the Lord has to give us.

388

We are as likely as the Children of Israel to put off heavenly happiness until the latest crisis has passed, to take a project almost guaranteed to bring us success and sabotage it at the last minute, to join in the complaints about the state of the world rather than embarrass ourselves by being happy when others aren't.
     It takes courage to enter the promised land. As long as we don't have to go in just yet, we are safe. Anticipated happiness gives meaning to our misery. If heaven is in the future our bad moods now make sense. But to be happy right now . . . ? If you are willing to go home and be happy this Sunday afternoon it may be the most courageous thing you have ever done.
     When we come face-to-face with our land of Canaan we find that there are giants in the land. The fears we have in embracing heavenly happiness are immense.
     For one thing there is the giant of the unknown. Unhappiness we know. We are familiar with how it works. We are used to being unhappy. But what are the rules of happiness:, How can we moderate it? For all we know, heavenly happiness might rage out of control. We would never know what we were in for from one day to the next. Imagine what might happen if this afternoon you really showed appreciation for your spouse. What reaction might you get? Would you be believed? Would it be appropriate to the situation:, Would you be expected always to appreciate them? What would you do for an encore? It is not simply fear of failure which keeps us out of our land of Canaan. It is fear of an unknown success which we can't control.
     The giant of accepted mediocrity also lurks in our promised land. As long as heaven exists in the future we can look to it as a glowing ideal-something worth working for. We can say that we are not going to be satisfied with second best. After all, we are aiming for heaven itself. But if we are happy now aren't we being complacent-maybe giving up in our search for heaven? And what an anticlimax it is to say that the unaccomplished chores and grumpy children on a Sunday afternoon contain all the makings of heaven. A disappointed voice in the back of our mind asks, "Is this all there is?" No one wants heaven to be a reality if it's going to mean that reality has to be heaven.
     Most terrifying of all is the giant of undeserved happiness. If heaven is several decades away we feel we have a shot at earning it. We can accept our happiness proudly, knowing that it's been a long battle which we've finally won. But clearly, none of us can deserve heaven by this afternoon. To be happy before we have earned it goes against the ancient law of eating our dessert before we finish our vegetables. We like to see a connection between those times when we are happy and the good which we have done. It isn't that we are conceited.

389

We don't necessarily want to bask in the glory of heavenly happiness. We just want it to make sense. Happiness at the end of a week when we have accomplished very little of what we planned does not make sense. Such happiness is disconcerting-even frightening.
     The Lord knows our fear of entering heaven. He knows our legitimate concerns and our unfounded phobias. He is not about to force us into heaven all at once. In the Third Testament are stories of people who experienced heaven before they were ready and found it extremely disagreeable.
     Heavenly happiness does depend on our shunning our evils as sins against the Lord. This takes time, and it takes work. The land of Canaan needs to be conquered-a little bit at a time-and Jesus describes the kingdom of heaven in terms of treasure hidden in a field. Such treasure needs to be dug up. We need not be afraid that heaven will pour on us before we have been prepared to receive it. But often in our struggles to earn heaven we forget we are digging for buried treasure, and imagine that we are simply digging as a chore.
     We can approach the kingdom of heaven as an ongoing treasure hunt. We are looking for a treasure in a field, a pearl of great price, a net full of fishes. Each day contains small treasures and clues for finding greater riches. The kingdom of heaven is going shopping with restless children, being ignored by the woman behind the counter and managing to be polite anyway. The kingdom of heaven is cleaning up the newspapers which have accumulated in the living room over the past month. The kingdom of heaven is losing two pounds; it's realizing your mother isn't as much of a nag as you remembered; it's finally getting over the flu. The kingdom of heaven is going home this very afternoon and reading a book rather than watching television, or it's going ahead and watching television and really enjoying it. Even the most mundane experience can be a treasure from the Lord.
     We don't want to be unrealistic. Certainly, there are many legitimate reasons for being miserable. In the interests of realism, then, let us pace ourselves. We will be happy only today. Tomorrow we can go back to being as miserable as ever. We are simply harnessing our power of procrastination. Sooner or later we will run into genuine tragedy. If we ever reach tomorrow, then we can go back to feeling properly undeserving, inadequate and terrified of happiness. But as long as it's today, whether today is Feb. 2nd, Oct. 23rd, or Aug. 17th let us spend it in the promised land. "If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, 'a land flowing with milk and honey.'" Amen.

     [Lessons on next page.]

390

     LESSONS: Numbers 13:17-20, 25-33, 14:1-10; Matt. 13:44-48; Heavenly Secrets 1382; Heaven and Hell 360:1, 2

     Men cannot but confound the Divine Infinity with infinity of space; and as they have no apprehension of infinity of space except as of a nothing, which in fact it is, they do not believe in the Divine Infinity. Such also is the case with the Eternity, which men cannot conceive of except as an eternity of time, since it is presented by means of time to those who are in time. The true idea of the Divine Infinity is insinuated into the angels by the fact that they are instantly present under the Lord's sight, with no intervening space or time even though they were at the furthest extremity of the universe; and the true idea of the Divine Eternity is insinuated by the fact that thousands of years do not appear to them as time, but scarcely otherwise than as if they had lived only a minute; and both ideas are insinuated by the fact that in their present they have past and future things together. Hence they have no solicitude about future things; nor have they ever any idea of death, but only the idea of life; so that in all their present there is the Lord's Eternity and Infinity.
     Arcana Coelestia 1382

     I have spoken with some after death who, while they lived in the world, renounced the world and gave themselves up to almost solitary life, in order that by an abstraction of the thoughts from worldly things they might have opportunity for pious meditations, believing that thus they might enter the way to heaven. But these in the other life are of a sad disposition; they despise others who are not like themselves; they are indignant that they do not have a happier lot than others, believing that they have merited it; they have no interest in others, and turn away from the duties of charity by which there is conjunction with heaven. They desire heaven more than others; but when they are taken up among the angels they induce anxieties that disturb the happiness of the angels; and in consequence they are sent away; and when sent away they betake themselves to desert places, where they lead a life like that which they lived in the world. Man can be formed for heaven only by means of the world. In the world are the outmost effects in which every one's affection must be terminated; for unless affection puts itself forth or flows out into acts, which is done in association with others, it is suffocated to such a degree finally that man has no longer any regard for the neighbor, but only for himself. All this makes clear that a life of charity towards the neighbor, which is doing what is just and right in every work and in every employment, is what leads to heaven, and not a life of piety apart from charity; and from this it follows that only to the extent that man is engaged in the employments of life can charity be exercised and the life of charity grow.
     Heaven and Hell 360:1, 2

391

NEW CHURCH EDUCATION 1986

NEW CHURCH EDUCATION Rev. JAMES P. COOPER 1986

     A PAPER

Introduction

     "Then they brought young children to Him, that He might touch them: but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, 'Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.' And He took them up in His arms, put His hands on them, and blessed them" (Mark 10:13-16).
     The Lord had been teaching the crowds as was His custom. According to the account in Mark, He was at that time in Judea. He had been teaching the Pharisees His new doctrines concerning marriage. As He argued with them, the people from the surrounding towns and villages heard that He had come, and began to gather around. We can imagine that they were somewhat excited by the news of His presence, and brought the children to see the famous Teacher.
     Remember that the Lord had healed the sick and performed great miracles that were widely known. These simple people probably thought that His touch could bring good health or good fortune to their children, so they began to press in around Him, pushing their children toward Him. Like parents in any time and any place, they were eager for their children to receive something that might give them an advantage, something to help them do well.
     The disciples were not only students and ministers of the Lord, but they also tried to protect Him from the press of the crowds. They saw that this session of instruction and argument with the Pharisees was rapidly being turned into something else-the crowds with their children were distracting them from the argument with the Pharisees. So they rebuked the people, and began to send the children away. We can imagine that the parents would have begun to argue with them because they really wanted their children to receive the Lord's touch and eventually quite a commotion would have been stirred up until the Lord turned away from His discussion and used this opportunity to give another lesson to them all. He taught them that His teachings are not just for adults, but for everyone of every age. He also used this opportunity to teach the gathered crowds that the delightful states that we perceive when babies and little children are with us are states of heaven, of innocence, of willingness to be led by the Lord.

392

We find children delightful because, like angels, children want to learn about the Lord, they want to follow His teachings, they wish to be affirmative toward things that are from the Lord in the Word. The Lord taught us that we need to be like little children, innocent, curious, affirmative, and charitable, if we are to come into His heavenly kingdom.
     The Lord taught us in many ways and in many places that children are His gift to us, and we have responsibilities toward the children under our care. New Church education in its most general sense is the care and education of children according to means and forms set forth in the threefold Word.
     Many people identify New Church education with such things as personal growth, learning, a school that begins the day with morning worship, a school that adds religion classes to its regular curriculum, or perhaps a school that has all of these things and also teaches its regular courses with a distinctive philosophy. It is my hope that in this paper it will become clear that New Church education is all of these things, and much, much more.
      The Writings divide life into three distinct periods. For the purposes of this study we will use the divisions as given in Arcana Coelestia 2280. This passage defines infancy as the period "from birth to the age in which he is beginning to be instructed and to know something" or until about the tenth year. Childhood is defined as the period "while he is being instructed and is beginning to know something," or from 10 to 20 years. And the adult is defined as someone who "is able to reflect upon what is good and what is true," or in whom the rational is open from about the 20th year onward.

New Church Education in Infancy

     New Church education begins with the newly engaged couple as they begin to form their life together, as they begin to form their attitudes toward themselves and toward the Lord's part in their life together. The home that they will build, the attitudes that they will develop, their hopes and dreams for their own future and the future of their children yet to be born, will have a profound effect on the environment in that home, and the Writings are quite clear that the environment in which children are raised has a powerful effect on their spiritual growth. So profound is the effect that if parents are selfish and worldly, they can in fact shut the doors of heaven for their own children. And the Writings reveal the sad fact that this is not an unusual or exceptional thing, but that it is the result of the present spiritual state of the world. We read in the Arcana,

393

     The present quality of the men of the Christian Church was exhibited to my view by means of representations, . . . There appeared children who were being combed by their mothers so cruelly that the blood ran down; by which was represented that such is the bringing up of little children at this day (AC 2125).

     While we aren't told specifically what this scene represents, a reliable message can be worked out. We know that hair represents external matters, or external truths. Combing the hair signifies putting these external things into order, so this brutal scene, revealed to us to show the state of the quality of men in the world, tells us that there is an excessive or obsessive concern for external things, to the point of causing real harm to the child. What are these external things that cause this tension and cruelty today? Having the right signs of material success, the right clothes, the best grades, to be a top achiever in sports. We are being told by the Lord that by our obsession with external signs of success and material possessions we can cause serious spiritual harm to our children.

     I was in the street of a great city, and saw little boys fighting with one another. A crowd gathered and looked on with much pleasure; and I was informed that the parents themselves urge on their little boys to such fights. The good spirits and angels who saw these things through my eyes were so aver-se to them that I perceived their horror, especially at the fact that the parents incite them to such things; saying that thus in their earliest age they extinguish all the mutual love and all the innocence which little children receive from the Lord, and initiate them into hatred and revenge; consequently that they deliberately shut out their children from heaven, where there is nothing but mutual love. Let parents therefore who wish well to their children beware of such things (AC 2309; emphasis added).

     By extinguishing the natural states of mutual love and innocence by inciting them to compete so fiercely amongst each other that they are actually fighting, parents map initiate the children into the opposite states of hatred and revenge. This shuts them out of heaven, for heaven is a place of mutual love those who delight in revenge and hatred cannot live there. Parents teach hatred and revenge by teaching them to compete ruthlessly with others and make it much more difficult for them to enter heaven. We are given the warning: "Let parents therefore who wish well to their children beware of such things."
     And who among us does not wish well to our children? "Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (Matt. 7:9-11).

394

Even evil parents wish their children well. In this context, New Church education is the philosophy, the means, by which parents can provide the environment at home and in school which will nurture and protect those states of innocence and mutual charity that children are endowed with from birth.
     New Church education begins in the home and continues throughout life. It begins with parents who provide a home that is physically, mentally, and spiritually clean and fit for children. The signs of a healthy environment are parents who teach and encourage reverence, prayer, family worship, who remember the promises made at the time of baptism, who speak about the world and life with confidence in the Lord, His creation, His Providence, who speak to their children about the Lord frequently, openly, and without embarrassment.
     Again, the Writings tell us what it is that the Lord wants us to do for our children. We read from the Arcana, "From infancy until childhood, and sometimes till early manhood, by instruction from his parents and teachers a man is imbued with goods and truths; for he then learns them with avidity, and believes them in simplicity" (AC 5135). If we do our part by bringing the Lord and the Word into the daily life of our home, the children will do their part by learning to love the Lord and trust in His guidance. They will be preparing themselves each day for life in heaven, for everything that happens to us, from the day of our birth onward, has an effect on our spiritual life.
     We also know that there are particular things which we should teach every child. We are told that children are especially prepared to learn the following things, and our responsibility as parents and teachers is to see that they are taught them. We read,

The things which man as a little child in its first age learns eagerly or believes . . . are especially these:

     - That there is a God, and that He is one;
     - That He has created all things;
     - That He rewards those who do well, and punishes those who do evil;
     - There is a life after death, in which the evil go to hell and the good to heaven, thus that there is a hell and a heaven, and that the life after death is eternal;
     - That he ought to pray daily, and this with humility;
     - That the Sabbath day is to be kept holy;
     - That parents are to be honored;
     - That no one must commit adultery, murder, or theft
     And other like things.

     These things man imbibes and is imbued with from early childhood; but when he begins to think from himself and to lead himself, if he confirms such things in himself, and adds to them things which are still more interior, and lives according to them, then it is well with him (AC 5135).

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     The Lord has not asked us to become theologians, nor to give up all worldly pleasures. There is nothing too difficult for anyone in this list of things to teach his children, for it is essentially a restatement of the ten commandments with instruction about eternal life added. Anyone can, if he wishes, create a home environment based on the ten commandments, teach children to say the Lord's prayer each day, take them to church each Sunday, and regularly read to them from the Word. At stake is nothing less than the spiritual lives of our children.
     This is the real purpose of New Church education: to prepare children for a rewarding life in the world, followed by eternal life in heaven. New Church education is a lifelong process that begins before the child is born, and reaches its maturity when that child grows up and begins to prepare for his own children. But most important of all, New Church education is education based not upon the philosophies of men, but based first and foremost upon the Word of the Lord. If we as teachers and parents are doing our job of reading the Word and teaching from it as a guide, then the Lord Himself will be teaching our children, preparing them for eternal life. "What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (Matt. 7:9-11).

New Church Education in Schools

     Once, while Swedenborg was in the spiritual world, he was shown a tableau or representation of what the New Church was as to its spirit and life. The New Church was shown to him as a magnificent temple, its entrance a single pearl, the Word open and illuminated upon its pulpit, and with many other beautiful details. But perhaps most important to us are the words that were engraved over the doorway to this temple, the Latin words, nunc licet which mean, "now it is permitted." In describing this temple, Swedenborg goes on to elaborate what these two words mean, explaining that in the New Church it was permitted for each person to explore, think about, and understand such doctrines that had been held as mysteries in previous churches-that not only was it permitted, but intended that all men should read and understand the Word in its letter and spirit for themselves, without the need for priests to tell them what to believe.

396

     The Doctrine of Sacred Scripture tells us that, "the Lord teaches everyone by means of the Word, and He teaches from those truths which the man already has. . ." (SS 26:2). The more genuine truth someone knows, the more prepared he is to receive influx from the Lord, and so an education based on Divine truth derived from the letter of the Word makes the path to heaven easier.
     Here follows a passage from the work on the Sacred Scripture which is essential to our understanding of the importance of teaching children from the Word and about the Word from their earliest age:

The Word in the sense of the letter is in its fullness, in its holiness, and in its power; and as the Lord is the Word (for He is the all of the Word), it follows that He is most of all present in the sense of the letter, and that from it He teaches and enlightens man (SS 50).

     This is key to our understanding of the true nature of the Lord's New Church, for it tells us that an understanding based on knowledge of the doctrine of genuine truth as taught in the threefold Word is what the Lord asks us to acquire in this world. The Lord does not want us just to accept what others tell us, but to learn His truth for ourselves. The process of learning the Lord's truth as taught in the Word is a lifelong process, for the Word is a well of living water that can never be emptied. This lifelong process of learning how to serve the Lord by serving the neighbor is New Church education.
     In the Most Ancient Church men lived in small family groups. They lived in tents, and were shepherds and gatherers. They did not eat meat, but they kept animals for their various useful products such as wool, milk, and cheeses. These people were in open communication with the spiritual world, and they learned all they needed to know from the angels who were with them. They lived in the order of their lives, dying in the wisdom of old age. However, since they were in open, constant communication with the spiritual world, family members barely noticed the passing, and continued on much as before.
     The men of the Ancient Church also lived in family groups, but because they were much more external than the men of the Most Ancient Church, they were not in open communication with the spiritual world. Instead, an angel would appear to the father, the head of the family group, and instruct him. It then was his responsibility to give this information to every member of his family, and insure their obedience to it. Toward the end of the Ancient Church, writing was invented and many of these lessons were written down. Moses knew these ancient writings, and took the first ten and one half chapters of Genesis (from creation through the Tower of Babel) from them.

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     We can see the roots of our educational tradition in the forms of the Ancient Church. We have a leader who derives his information from some higher authority (in the Ancient Church an angel, today a textbook or professor), who then attempts to give this information to those in his charge in whatever way seems to him to be most appropriate, while at the same time teaching them how to learn for themselves. Herein lies the art and skill of the teacher.
     Let us briefly note as an aside that the Lord Himself came on earth to teach men, women, and children. He taught for about three years. Many of His lectures have been recorded and are available to us to study in the New Testament. A quick search of any part of the New Testament
will reveal many examples of different ways of teaching, such as by performing a miracle, by analogy, and by parable. The Lord frequently used parables to describe the new and unfamiliar spiritual ideas He was presenting in terms of what was common and known. He argued with and enraged the scribes and pharisees. He taught by example, by opposition, and asking questions. Every teacher and parent should search the Old and New Testaments for guidance in teaching the eternal truths to the children in their charge, rather than putting their faith in some faddish book picked up in the supermarket.
     The passages that tell us of the wonderful pastoral life in the previous churches, and those that tell us of the angel mothers and fathers who so tenderly love and instruct the children in their care in heaven, lead us to create an image of the ideal New Church home in our minds, a home where the children are kept in their states of innocence until they can be gently led out of them into wisdom; a home without strife; a home without fear; a home where the Lord is always in the heart, and the Word always on the lips. As beautiful as that may seem to us, it is simply not possible in the world we are faced with today. We have to cope with an information explosion that has introduced preschool children to international tensions and fears. We also have to face the fact that while it may be ideal for the mother to teach little children and girls, and the father to teach the young men (see CL 176), most of us are not qualified to teach the subjects that our children need to know to be able to make a living in this world. So, while we recognize the ideal of children being raised and taught in a New Church home, we also recognize the need for professional help in striving toward this ideal.
     This concept was developed in the early days of New Church education. The New Church school was to be an extension of the ideal New Church home, whether or not that ideal New Church home actually existed. What it really means is that the New Church school wants and needs cooperation from the parents in every aspect of school life.

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The school operates on the principle that the parents have placed the child in the New Church school because they want something special for that child, and are willing to make the extra effort to provide that kind of education.
     Quite frankly, the unhappy condition of the modern world has had its impact on all education. In some classrooms today, in New Church schools, more than half of the children are from single-parent homes. This has caused some to wonder if the New Church school should be an extension of the home. Perhaps for some, it has come to take the place of the ideal New Church home.
     This is a danger that we must face, the danger that parents feel that because their children are in a religious school they are therefore freed from the responsibility to teach them morality or discipline themselves. Again, it must be pointed out that the Word clearly teaches that parents are responsible for teaching their children the ten commandments, and about the reality of the spiritual world. New Church education set out to assist the parents in doing this, and desires to cooperate fully in this important job, but the school is not to take the place of parental responsibility. A school should do nothing without the parents' knowledge and consent. This obligates a school to inform the parents of its plans, and obligates the parents to pay attention to what is happening in the school.
     There is also the further obligation of public support of the school and the teachers. It is destructive of the use of education for students to hear their parents and others enthusiastically criticizing their teachers. It teaches them the false idea that proper adult conversation centers around finding fault with other people, and fosters this kind of discussion among the students. It is very difficult to teach children who have been taught by their parents' example to disregard their teacher and their school. In the same vein, teachers must try to support the various behaviors and characteristics that come into the school. If a child has a problem, this should be discussed privately with the parents rather than making a public issue of it. If all adults involved in a school, both parents and teachers, can keep their public stance one of support for each other in the important use of educating children, and make comments and criticisms in private to the appropriate individuals, then a New Church school can be an extension of the ideal New Church home, and it will benefit from the spirit of charity and cooperation that will be engendered.
     The threefold Word is the center of New Church education. For this reason, each school day begins with reading from the Word, for the beginning of a day qualifies and affects all the events that follow.

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It is also an important symbol that we order our lives around this simple ritual, to actually spend the time to reflect on the Word each day. It is our hope that this will establish a lifelong habit of daily going to the Word for comfort and instruction.
     Students also receive regular religious instruction from a pastor. These meetings provide opportunities for several important things to happen: there can be formal instruction in the doctrines of the church; there can be questions and discussion; there is the chance for the pastor to get to know the children as individuals, and for the children to know the pastor, for them to become friends, and for a pastoral relationship to begin and grow that will last for many years. However, the most important thing that happens in a religion class is that the students learn to read the Word with understanding. And as they learn from the Word itself, they begin to see things in it that apply to their own situation, their own fears, their own problems and they can speak freely about God and morality without fear of embarrassment. They learn spiritual laws, and find that they can answer their own questions by applying the spiritual laws that they know to the situation. Through religion classes they become people who know how to read the Word to find the answers to their problems; they learn spiritual laws that they can apply to their own lives; they become spiritually free because they have power through knowledge and understanding.
     Nunc licet. Now it is permitted to enter into the mysteries of faith with understanding. The purpose of the New Church school is to cooperate with the New Church home in preparing the student's understanding so that he may freely enter into the mysteries of faith in the light of understanding from the threefold Word.

New Church Education Throughout Life

     "All instruction is simply an opening of the way" (AC 1495:2). The Lord alone teaches and leads man. The Lord created the human mind. He opens it to celestial things from within. He depends on knowledges acquired in the world to be the foundation for this work, and the best foundation is made from truths from the Word. The Lord can work with any knowledge, but the human mind is designed by the Lord Himself to be built upon a foundation of truth from the Word. New Church education is a system of learning that tries to cooperate with the Lord's plan as revealed in the Word throughout our whole life in this world because learning does not stop upon graduation. Most of us realize that the end of formal schooling actually marks the beginning of the real learning when young people first take the responsibility of a career and a home on themselves, and that learning continues throughout life, eventually, hopefully, leading to wisdom.

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     Statistics on those joining the church in recent years show a considerable percentage of "newcomers." We notice that more than a third of the new members on the rolls of the church have come in as adult conversions, usually by marrying a church member or into a church family. This means that a large proportion of our adult membership has never attended a New Church school. They feel they have led a good life and are good members without going to New Church schools, and wonder why we go to all the trouble and expense.
     To the men who created New Church education our New Church schools were the obvious application of teachings found throughout the Heavenly Doctrines. It was like discovering a cure for a crippling childhood disease. It is not necessarily of direct benefit to adults, but would you knowingly withhold it from your children? Adults did not need the polio vaccine for themselves, but because adults saw to it that their children were vaccinated, we have essentially eliminated that disease in the past thirty years. Perhaps we might think of New Church schools as a vaccination against worldly ills. A vaccination is of no use if the patient then lives an unhealthy or dangerous life. In the same way, the head start a New Church education gives can be Lost if the student disregards it in later life as he begins to make life decisions for himself, as he begins to turn from his historical faith and build up the true faith that will be his own.

From infancy until childhood, and sometimes till early manhood, by instruction from his parents and teachers a man is imbued with goods and truths; for he then learns them with avidity, and believes them in simplicity. The state of innocence favors them and adapts them to the memory, but places them only at the first threshold . . . . But when the man grows older and begins to think from himself, and not as before from parents and teachers, he then takes up again and, as it were, ruminates the things which he had before learned and believed, and either confirms them, or doubts them, or denies them (AC 5135:2).

     The foundations of spiritual life are laid in infancy and childhood by parents and teachers working in concert to teach children goods and truths, that is, to teach them the correct way to behave, and to teach them about the Lord and His universe. Children receive these early lessons with gladness, and are affected by them for the rest of their lives. We see examples of the impact of these early lessons in the way people identify with certain products, activities, or ways of thought: "in our family we've always driven Fords." "We always go to the beach for our holiday." "Our family has been in the New Church for five generations." Every group builds up its own set of traditional practices that helps each member of that group identify with the group through shared experiences and commonly held opinions.

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These opinions go further than vacation traditions and brand preference, of course. They include the most basic feelings about each person's relationship with his God. This package of beliefs and feelings that each of us is comfortable with is called "historical faith." We all begin our adult lives with such a faith, but such a faith is not really our own, and must be changed into genuine faith, that is, the set of beliefs that we hold to because we have made them our own by living according to them from the conviction that they are what the Lord wants us to do.
We might think that this would be a simple process of replacing childish ideas with adult ideas, but the Writings tell us that it is not that at all, but that the transition from historical faith to genuine faith is a process of testing or doubting the things learned in childhood. If these things are rejected rather than made one's own, it is a sign that the person is in a negative sphere which is contrary to heaven, while those who affirm the truths taught by parents and teachers are in the affirmative sphere which prepares them for life in heaven. The Writings teach in many places how the things that we learn as children are the basis and foundation for our entire spiritual life, and the more things we know from the Word, the better and more secure that foundation can be. The more secure the foundation, the more secure the structure that can be built upon it. This process begins in earliest infancy and continues throughout life as we search the Word for new truths to apply in our lives.
Furthermore, we need to appreciate a very important point about the truths and doctrines that we learn from the Writings: they all make sense, not only in their own context, but in the context of universal knowledge. Many people are in the unfortunate circumstance where the truths they learn in church on Sunday contradict the truths they learn from the world the rest of the week. Such people are forced to divide their mind and put their scientific observations into a separate compartment from their religious beliefs lest they meet and cause confusion or force them into ridiculous excuses for the conflict. Just think how difficult it must be for someone who belongs to a church that teaches that the Bible is literally true in every verse, and who also believes that there is strong evidence that the created universe is more than 6000 years old. What happens when a man is forced to try to understand how light was created on the first day of creation, herbs, grasses, and trees created on the third day, and yet the sun, moon and stars not created until the fourth day? When people are faced with such a contradictory position, monstrous ideas are the result, such as the idea that fossils and all other evidence of the great age of the earth were put there by God to test man's faith in the Bible.

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     The New Church is blessed with a system of thought that works in both the secular and spiritual parts of our lives. We see every particle of the universe as the result of one Creator, one system of laws that everywhere apply. The universe is full of surprises, unexplored areas, and mysteries, but we can have confidence that even if we don't understand them now, we do know that when the answers are found, they will fit into all the rest in an elegant, reasonable way. A New Church biologist can delve into the microscopic structure of a cell and when he observes the amazing activity of the structures and organelles within the cell, he sees the soul at work, applying universal laws of order to provide for organic life. A New Church scientist knows that science will tell him what is happening in the world, but the doctrines of the church will tell him why-and they don't contradict each other. A New Churchman can continue learning to eternity, learning from art, science and philosophy, and everything he learns will build on what he already knows, making it ever more perfect.
     New Church education is a lifelong process, not just a sphere in the home or a church school, and by that is meant that all learning that goes on in life must be related to the way we actually live our lives. Perhaps the most important element in this learning process is the attitude behind the learning. If we go through life denying and doubting, always looking for the fault, for the problem, it is very likely that we will indeed find it and it will reflect our desire for what is disorderly and unhappy. On the other hand, if we can approach life with an affirmative attitude, with the heartfelt belief that the universe is an orderly place ruled by God in His heaven, then we are on the road toward heaven. If you doubt this simple statement, just ask yourself whether angels are affirmative or negative. Then ask yourself the same question about devils.
     The Heavenly Doctrines teach that the affirmative principle is essential to becoming spiritual men, for whatever is learned with avidity is then confirmed by knowledges already present in the memory and new things learned in the world; and this more and more until it is received in the mind with affection; and we know that only those things that are received with affection will actually remain with a man to eternity (see AC 2689:3).
     How the affirmative principle and the affection function in adult learning is illustrated by the steps of learning described in Arcana Coelestia 3518:2. First there is a simple delight in knowing new things. Everyone likes to find out new information just for the sake of hearing it, whether or not it will eventually be used. If this were not the case, there would be no market for newspapers, magazines, and trivia games; nor would gossip be a problem.

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The second reason for learning is for the sake of competition and profit. We actively seek out new information to give ourselves an edge over others. This is particularly true in today's business world where being the first with the new product can mean a tremendous marketing advantage. But as we mature and gain perspective on the world, the competitive drive becomes less important, and we begin to seek for truth for its own sake, to know the answers to the problems we are facing or are about to face. If we are in the affirmative principle, this leads to the fourth step where truth is sought for the sake of learning about new things that can be lived: the love of truth for the sake of good. In the fifth step, man seeks truth for the sake of spiritual ends-both for the sake of his own eternal life and also for the sake of others who can be influenced and led to a happier life through these new ideas. This leads to the sixth step, where truth is learned because of the delights that come from living according to spiritual truth.
It is known that a man learns many things in infancy and childhood for the sole use that by them as means he may learn those which are most useful; and successively by these such as are still more useful, until at last he learns those of eternal life; and when he learns these, the former are almost blotted out (AC 3982:2).
We were born into this world so that we might, from the materials and knowledges of the world, build for ourselves a unique personality with unique skills and unique loves that could serve an important use in concert with other people to eternity in heaven. The only real reason for education is to form the spiritual mind in freedom. The end and purpose of New Church education is to form the spiritual mind upon the knowledges from the Lord in the Word. This process begins before birth as parents build a home to receive the newborn child. It continues as the child begins to explore his world in the warm, protected sphere of his own home, and begins to move out more and more into the world. And if it is seen that the Lord rules the universe with compassion and mercy, and he learns to look for Him in His creation, then he will continue to learn spiritual truths, bring them into his life, and the Lord will open the way in his mind for it to become spiritual and heavenly.
QUOTE FROM EDUCATION FOR USE 1986

QUOTE FROM EDUCATION FOR USE Willard D. Pendleton 1986

"New Church education . . . is intended to direct the thought and affections of the child from self to the uses which self is intended to serve" (page 207).

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LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) 1986

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) JOHN L. ODHNER 1986

     Part V

     Build a Receptive Base in Your Natural Man.

     Most of us would like to see changes in our world. Often this involves material things-new clothes, a better house, another car, or perhaps just a cleaner kitchen or a better working environment. Usually we also desire changes in our relationships with people-we might like the boss to control his temper, or that certain friend to be more dependable, or a spouse to get his act together, or the family members to have more reasonable expectations. Finally, we might want to change ourselves-to be more attractive, to acquire a better education, more skills, more confidence, better health. These changes are primarily external ones, involving our environment, other people, and the more outward, visible aspects of our person.
     The most significant changes in our lives are always internal-changes in motivation, or in how we look at ourselves and the world. A real cure for our ailments must go beyond the superficial symptoms to the root of the problem, which affects us inwardly. Consequently, I have focused in previous articles on our new will and understanding and our relationship with the Lord. These inward changes are primary, yet they cannot take place in a vacuum. Our spiritual life can change in a permanent way only if it is reflected in our natural life. The life of religion is not only to have high ideals and good intentions, but also to bring one's outward life into correspondence with those ideals. The task of bringing the natural man into correspondence with the spiritual man can be easier or more difficult, depending on how much the natural man resists. When the natural is receptive, it makes the task easier, just as a midwife eases the labor of childbirth.

When the interior man is undergoing temptations, the natural is then like a midwife; for unless the natural assists, it is impossible for any birth of interior truth to take place; for when interior truths are born, it is the natural which receives them into its bosom, because it affords the opportunity for them to work their way out. It is always the case with the things of spiritual birth that their reception must be wholly in the natural; and this is the reason why when a person is being regenerated, the natural is first prepared to receive, and insofar as this is made receptive, so far interior truths and goods can be brought forth and multiplied (see AC 4588).

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     Below are some ways you might make your natural man more receptive to spiritual things.

35. Fill Your Life with Order.

     "The more a person goes against order the more force is required to reform him" (SD 2839). Essentially this order is a matter of keeping the Ten Commandments. It is primarily a matter of how we think and feel, but also involves our most outward conduct.

Divine order . . . is not completed except with man in his bodily things; namely, his gestures, actions, expressions of face, speech, external sensations, and in their delights. These are the extremes of order (AC 3632).

     This also involves such things as keeping order and peace in the home, without which the family is torn apart and a man's mental and physical health is ruined (see CL 283, 285).

     Part of the order that makes it easier is the routines and habits we develop. "When a person frequently does the truth, then it not only recurs from habit, but also from affection" (AC 4884:2).

36. Fill Your Life with Beauty.

     Love is beautiful. All the lovely sights in heaven, and all the true beauty in this world are reflections of God's love for us and our love for each other. When this beauty touches us outwardly, it can be the basis for a change in our mental state, giving us a taste of heaven. Some examples:

     a) Smile. A long face does not help you get to heaven. "There is no need for a person to walk around somberly, with a sad, mournful face and a bowed head-he can be cheerful and happy" (HH 358). In fact, evil spirits are happy to be with a person who mopes about his evils instead of fighting them.

What is easier for a person in trouble and agony than to utter sighs and groans from his lungs and lips, and also to beat his breast and make himself guilty of all sins, and still not be conscious of any sin in himself? Do the diabolical hordes who then occupy his loves depart along with his sighs? Don't they rather hiss at those things and remain in him as before, as in their own house? (TCR 529).

     Whether given or received, a smile can brighten your day. When we look at another person, the beauty we see is not so much the physical characteristics of the face as from the affection which shines from it. Seeing the face of an angel can "affect with charity the very inmost life of the mind" (AC 553).

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Certain good spirits try to get people to smile, in order to inspire them with peace and joy and drive away disturbing concerns and worries about the future (see AC 8113).

     b) Enjoy Music. Songs from the Word give people who sing or listen "heavenly gladness from the holy and blessed influence" of heaven. They stir a heartfelt gladness which bursts forth from inside a person and spreads even to his fingers and toes with a joyful, holy motion (see AC 826 1). Other kinds of music can have a similar effect. For example, by hearing instrumental music, even evil people can be as if carried outside themselves and can feel a kind of heavenly sweetness (see SD 2112). When Saul was troubled by an evil spirit, David played his harp, and "Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed" (I Samuel 16:23).

     c) Enjoy the Outdoors. All of nature is a theater representing the Lord and His kingdom (see AC 3000, 3483). In most ancient times, people would look at a sunrise and think of the Lord's coming; they would look at a mountain and think of His greatness (see AC 920, 1807, 3702). One passage suggests that we can avoid mental dullness and fatigue by going on "walks with the sight of palaces and houses, and trees and flowers, in gardens, woods and fields . . ." (Char. 189, 190).

37. Seek the Reviving Power of Worship.

     Often when people have come to church or classes with faces twisted by anger or worry I have seen those faces gradually softened by feelings of peace, caring and resolve.

A person is continually in worship while he is in love and charity; external worship is merely the effect . . . . But a person in the world should be in external worship also; for internal things are excited by external worship, and by it also external things are kept in holiness so that internal things can inflow; besides the fact that the person this way acquires knowledge; and is also given states of holiness (AC 1618-emphasis added).

     Also, worship brings together what was said previously about the powers of prayer, of music, of the literal sense of the Word and of remains.

38. Take Care of Yourself Physically.

     Your physical condition can influence the difficulty of your spiritual life. For example:

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Temptations are most grievous when they are accompanied with bodily pains; and still more so, when those pains are chronic, and no deliverance is granted, even though the Divine mercy is implored, hence results despair, which is the end (NJHD 196).

     Sometimes physical suffering is beyond our control; a freak accident may cause years of pain. If you have some ailment that cannot be cured, you can be sure that the Lord is permitting it for the sake of your spiritual growth. On the other hand, we can make things more difficult for ourselves by allowing ourselves to get run-down. Most of us can control our physical condition to some extent by the way we eat, sleep, exercise, etc., and this will have an effect on our spiritual state. For example, when I am lacking sleep I become much more irritable and susceptible to hellish spirits. I sometimes fool myself into thinking that I will benefit if I "rise up early," and "sit up late," forgetting that sleep is a gift from the Lord (see Psalm 127:2). In sleep we are especially guarded by the Lord, and then evil spirits can have no power over us (see AC 959, 1983), and perhaps it is the only time when the Lord can work on our minds without our interference (cp. SD 427, 3391).
     There are many passages which urge us to keep a healthy body for the sake of a healthy mind.

Everyone ought to be concerned for his body; . . . this must be the first thing, but for the end that there may be a healthy mind in a healthy body (AC 6936).

A person should take every care of his body, to nourish it, to clothe it, to let it enjoy the delights of the world; but all these things are not for the sake of the body, but in order that the soul in a sound body may act correspondently and rightly, and may have the body as an organ perfectly obedient to it (AC 5949:2).

When the body is sick, the mind also is sick, by removal from the world, if not otherwise . . . . It is therefore vain to think that anyone can do the work of repentance or receive any faith during sickness; for there is no action in that repentance and no charity in that faith (DP 142-emphasis added).

     On this subject the Writings especially point to the importance of a good diet. "Nourishment has for its end that there be a sound mind in a sound body. If a man deprives his body of its nourishment, he also deprives himself of the state which is the end" (AC 3951:3). If a person indulges his taste without regard for the use of the food, "the body is sickly, at the least it is languid inwardly, consequently so is the mind . . . . From this comes dullness in matters of thought and judgment, and quickness in those of the body and the world" (HH 462).

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     While we should keep in mind that being physically healthy can make it easier for us spiritually, we obviously should not become so absorbed by matters of physical health that our spiritual health is neglected. "However people are infected physically," the angels "rate it as nothing relatively to the soul" (AC 2380).

39. Get Help from Others.

     Each person's salvation ultimately depends on his own free choices. In this sense, religion is a private affair, between each individual and God. This wonderful truth becomes twisted, however, when we use it as an excuse not to get help when we need it. For there is another wonderful truth: we cannot get to heaven without the help of other people. We are led and taught by the Lord alone, yet He does this always through the work of angels and other people (cp. DP 154, 174).
     Our fight against evil is portrayed by the fight of the sons of Israel against the Amalekites. While Joshua led the army in battle, Moses stood upon a hill and raised his arms to the Lord. As long as his hands were raised, the Israelites would prevail. When Moses could no longer hold up his hands, Aaron and Hur helped him sit upon a rock and stood on either side holding up his hands. Moses represents the truths which come directly from the Lord as enlightenment. This inner truth must be supported by truth which comes indirectly through teaching by others and study (see AC 8603, 8611, 9424).
     The Writings encourage people to get help examining themselves:

It is impossible for those who are in the love of self to know what their ruling love is . . . and yet if they were willing they might know it from others who are wise, and who see what they themselves do not see (HH 487).

     Another passage suggests that talking to a minister about your evils can lighten your burden, while encouraging self-examination:

It does no harm for one burdened in conscience to enumerate his sins before a minister of the church in order to lighten his burden and obtain absolution, because he is thereby initiated into a habit of examining himself, and reflecting upon each day's evils (TCR 539).

     Even in the highest heaven angels need help in questions about daily living. "About these matters the less wise consult the more wise, and these consult the Lord and receive answers" (HH 214).

40. Get into a Support Group or Social Network.

     One way of getting help from others is to get into a support network.

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The power of the AA group to help alcoholics is well-known. The church can provide similar support for our spiritual life. In the early Christian Church their "social interaction consisted also in giving consolation to each other under the distresses of the church," and "the liberation of the imprisoned thoughts" (TCR 434). Even angels cannot function without the emotional support of their society (see AE 1147:2).

41. Express Your Good Feelings and Beliefs.

     There is tremendous power in "ultimates" (see AC 9835:2, 10044:3, DLW 2 17, AE 726); speech and gestures are ultimates of thought and affection. Sometimes negative emotions are expressed more readily than positive ones: complaining, criticism, depression, anger, cynicism. What about joy, affirmation, caring, peace? The affections which are expressed will be strengthened.
     Positive affections are not always happy. Grief is an aspect of love. Jesus wept. It is said that the Lord expresses His intense grief about the evil in the world by "crying with a loud voice, as a lion roars" (AC 471). We too need to weep, as an expression of love. One reason why the Lord asks people about their state (even though He already knows) is so that "people may have consolation from being able to express their feelings, which often proves a relief! (AC 2693).
     One way to express a positive affection is to make a commitment before witnesses. An example of this is the marriage covenant, which "holds the partners' minds within bounds" and "averts transgressions" (CL 307). In a similar way, a commitment before a spouse or friend to fight a particular evil may strengthen your resolve and elicit support.

42. Get Involved in Useful Tasks.

     When Hezekiah was "sick unto death," he was cured by laying a lump of figs over the infection (Isaiah 38). This seems like a strange remedy until we know that figs are a symbol of good works or usefulness. A simple effort to get busy and accomplish something useful can often bring us out of a spiritual low.
     Shunning evil enables us to be genuinely useful, and usefulness in turn enables us to shun evil.

If a person is to accept heaven's life, he must at all costs live in the world, involved in its functions, and dealings . . . . This is the only way a spiritual life can be formed in a person (HH 528).

While a person is in some study and business, that is, in some use, his mind is limited and circumscribed as by a circle . . . . From this as from a house he sees the various evil desires as outside himself, and from sanity of reason within, banishes them (CL 249).

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No one knows the blessed delights of conjugial love save he who rejects the horrid delights of adultery: and no one can reject these save he who is wise from the Lord; and no one is wise from the Lord unless he performs uses from the love of uses (CL 137).

43. Take Time Off.

     Repeatedly the Word emphasizes that we will be judged by our works (see Life 2), and that charity itself is to do the work of one's office or occupation sincerely, faithfully, and fairly (Life 114, TCR 422). Some people miss the point and think they can earn their way to heaven if they only work hard enough. After death, they make long lists of their good deeds, not realizing that it is not the quantity of works but the thought and feeling within the works that counts. They keep trying to work their way to heaven, and "when they are in their labor, and ale asked whether they are not fatigued, they reply that they have not yet done enough labor to be able to merit heaven" (AC 1110). "To bear a burden means to do works for the sake of meriting" (AC 6392:2).
     A similar attitude can be with people who feel they have to prove themselves to others through their work (see SD 6075), or who, like Martha, are too busy serving to listen to the Lord (see SD 1573, 1574). Too much concern with worldly business can make it hard for a person to be enlightened (see Faith 30, SS 59e, AC 6313, 6315, 9094), and can be like weights which drag him down and make him vulnerable to evil spirits (see AC 6210, 6315).
     The need for a day off is important enough to be included as one of the Ten Commandments, and although this should not be strictly applied by a Christian (see Matt. 12), even Jesus frequently took time away from His active ministry (Matt. 14:23, Mark 6:46, 1:35, Luke 5:16, etc.).

There is an affection in every employment, and it strains the mind and keeps it intent upon its work and study. This if it is not relaxed, becomes dull, and its desire flags (Char. 190).

44. Don't Let Evil Habits Get Started.

     Anyone who is addicted to drugs, alcohol or nicotine can tell you that it is much more difficult to quit than it is not to start in the first place. Evils are also addictive.

The case with evils is like that with downright thefts, which when committed of set purpose two or three times cannot be desisted from; for they continually cling to the person's thought (AC 6203).

Evil enters into the will by being kept in the thought, by consent; and especially by act and consequent delight (AC 6204 emphasis added).

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The difficulty . . . resisting what is evil increases as a person does evil things intentionally (HH 533).

The fight is not severe except in the case of those who have given free rein to their selfish desires, and have indulged them of set purpose (Life 97).

45. Enjoy the God-given Pleasures of This World.

     A person can enjoy fine food and clothing, go to the movies, become wealthy, enjoy the world's pleasures, and this will be no barrier to his entering heaven, provided he does not center his life in those things, and worships God and cares for his fellow man (see HH 358, 359). The object of the battle between inward delights and outward delights is not to eliminate worldly pleasures, but to subordinate them and properly enjoy them.

Evil is not mastered by the renunciation of the delights of the body: sometimes another evil is thus raised up, namely, merit on account of the renunciation (AC 1947:3).

     People who do this make things harder for themselves not only in this life but also after death (see HH 360).
     An example of the importance of external delights is in marriage. Angels claim that if physical pleasure is lacking "the love fails and grows cold." "Unless there were ultimate delights," they say, "there would not be any delights of conjugial love" (CL 44:8).
     So far in this series we have primarily focused on ways to fight evil by building up the positive aspects of our lives. You may be able to think of more ways to do this. Next month we will focus on ways to cut evils down to size.
1986 NEW CHURCH MUSIC FESTIVAL 1986

1986 NEW CHURCH MUSIC FESTIVAL Mrs. Lavina (Mrs. Kenneth) Scott 1986

     A Celebration of Joy

     Imagine, if you can, three long days (8:15 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. or later) packed with an incredible variety of musical performances, played on an incredible variety of instruments, including the human voice, in all shades and colors and tones and styles, spread out before you like a rainbow.
     If you can, imagine performers covering the full range of states from elementary school through young adulthood, parenthood, middle life to the returning gentleness and sensitivity of older wisdom, surrounding you like a panorama of seasons.

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     If you can, imagine an enthusiastic audience of people from the age of babies not yet walking, to great grandparents, with every age in between represented, and many, many New Church societies and groups represented.
     And then picture mixing these people (performers and observers, teachers and students) together in many different and constantly varying groups to play music together, to take workshops together, to enjoy concerts, programs and worship together in a wide range of beautiful and pleasant places from the cathedral, to Glencairn's great hall, to Benade Hall auditorium, to Pendleton Hall auditorium and Heilman Hall; and then bring them all together at noon every day to enjoy a delicious lunch, and another chance to meet and compare notes and talk with friends new and old, and listen to an interesting lunchtime speaker.
     Then you can begin to understand what an exciting, inspiring, and enriching experience was to be had for only $18.00 at the first ever New Church Music Festival that was held in Bryn Athyn this spring on June 8, 9, and 10th.
     There was literally something of interest for everyone who came from near or far in the New Church to join in this festival of joy.
     The festival began on Sunday with a children's service and then an adult service in the cathedral with extra music provided by guest musicians and singers. Lunch in Heilman Hall was made doubly enjoyable by the tribute speech of Mrs. Yardumian to her husband Richard who is now in the spiritual world. At 2 p.m. we enjoyed a charming concert of the children and young people of the Bryn Athyn Church School and the Academy of the New Church. Then after a few hours' break, we enjoyed a very professional and delightful concert of choirs and instrumentalists in Glencairn's great hall. The combined Bryn Athyn Church Choir and the Academy College Chorale was directed by Christopher Simons. This was followed by a very lively jam session (in Heilman Hall) which finished officially at 11:30 but carried on unofficially well past midnight.
     Monday and Tuesday mornings' activities began early with a short chapel service, and then a choice of six to seven workshops, but only time enough to attend two of them each morning, which made for difficult choices. There were workshops on choral singing, church music history, multi track recording, recording equipment and techniques, evangelization in music and composing songs from the Word, organists, music education in elementary school, ritual and music and the new liturgy development, and a composers' symposium. Monday's lunch-time speaker was Rev. John Odhner speaking about harmony and variety and the philosophy of music.

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This was followed in the Music Center by a very enjoyable concert of original songs written and composed and performed by New Church musicians. Much of this music was very gentle and touching as it expressed beautiful ideas both religious and philosophical. An orchestra and choral workshop rehearsal was squeezed in between that and a Mealtime Brainstorm supper at Maret Taylor's for New Church composers. At 8 p.m. in Pendleton Hall a very exuberant and lively program of original music for guitars, voice, keyboards and percussion especially delighted the younger audience and the young at heart. It was a very talented display of the creative use of the newer electronic instruments. This was followed at 10 p.m. by a beautiful devotional service in the cathedral, again with extra special music.
     Tuesday got off to an early start with a short worship service and then workshops all morning. While we enjoyed lunch, Rev. Alfred Acton, who had done a superb job of organizing and coordinating the whole festival, spoke on the developments in the new liturgy that is being worked on. The choral workshop group under Donald Dillard sang beautifully for us. By 2 p.m. we were in the Benade Hall auditorium enjoying a very lovely concert of classical music on a wide variety of instruments including guitars, recorders, flutes, piano and cellos. There was a very high degree of musicianship exhibited by the performers. The composers' symposium met again following this concert, leaving but a short time to catch your breath and a bit of supper (dinner) before the 8 p.m. concert by the Bryn Athyn orchestra with Richard Show conducting the beautiful offering of classical music. At 10 p.m. a band party was underway in Heilman Hall, of progressive rock, rock and blues, and mainstream rock, including original material which involved at least fourteen performers.
     In looking back on the tremendous amount of creative musical activity that was displayed at the festival, both in composition and in inspired performances, I am amazed at how much talent there is in the New Church; and also at how many people are finding useful and innovative ways of using these abilities. The festival has to be considered a resounding success! For those of you who were unable to come, let us look forward to this becoming a regular, recurring event. Don't miss the next one!
     As we return home to our own lives, I feel the Music Festival has inspired us to strive for excellence not only in the many fields of music, but in other creative endeavors as well.
     Lavina (Mrs. Kenneth) Scott

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MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (3) 1986

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (3) Rev. Lorentz R. Soneson 1986

I have now been in conversation with spirits and angels respecting reflection, to which I do not know whether men sufficiently attend, but if they do attend to it, they will find more arcana in the doctrine of reflection than in any other whatever (Spiritual Diary 733).

[Photo of Rev. Lorentz R. Soneson]

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     Though this passage does not get repeated in any other works of the Writings, it is implied. As it states in SD 737, "it may also be stated that the doctrine of faith effects nothing whatever with man except the Lord gives him to reflect"; and in SD 739, "Without reflection from the knowledge of truths, no one can be reformed." Surely, reflection is a crucial ingredient in the process of taking in truths from the Word, and integrating them into our reformation-that is, doing truths.
     Perhaps this number is so appealing because of the pressure of life today. Tight deadlines, instant gratification, fast-lane life-styles, and the constant barrage of information hitting us through the media-all of these seem to squeeze out any opportunity for unrushed reflection. Swedenborg recommended not only reading but mediating on the Word of God. It is so easy to lose sight of the nature of man-just a vessel for receiving life from the Lord. Without time to reflect, we will forget the ingredients of true happiness, who the neighbor really is, and the reasons we exist on this planet for a period. Stopping to "smell the flowers" reminds us that the gift of reflection should be used often if we are to see the Lord in His Word and feel His love emanating from our neighbor. Have you reflected today?
     Rev. Lorentz R. Soneson
COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS 1986

COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS Jr. RALPH SYNNESTVEDT 1986

     June 7, 1986

It has been forty years since I graduated from the Academy, and just to help you students pinpoint me chronologically, the Second World War had been over for almost a year, and two of my classmates were Dr. Grant Doering and Mr. Kenneth Rose.
     Our class had the distinction of being the largest to date, but I fear not the most distinguished. To be candid about the class of '46, we were not exactly showered with honors. No gold medals, no silver medals or even one of a lesser alloy were given to individuals to recognize excellence. As a matter of fact, K. R. Alden, our long-suffering principal, in casting about for just the right phrase to describe our class, could do no better than to say that we were "a happy class."
     A few souls of limited vision even said that the class motto on our banner, "Depart from Evil and Do Good," was particularly appropriate.
     I have been reviewing my experiences since that hot June day so many years ago for just the right nugget of knowledge to pass on to you graduates. Unfortunately, most of my experiences have been too embarrassing, costly and painful to repeat in front of so many witnesses.

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There is one thought, however, that I would like to dwell on for a few minutes.
     I have had the opportunity to work with a good many young and not-so-young people over the years. Each one of these individuals has had varying degrees of knowledge and skill. Their contribution, however, has not always been in direct proportion to their ability. Frequently, what set them apart has been "attitude." It is amazing to see how a person with modest talents can become a star largely through developing an attitude that is appreciated and respected.
     In all of your classes in the past or in the future, you never did, or will, receive a direct grade for attitude. There is no course labeled "Attitude 100."
     You have, on the other hand, since the day you were born been measured. As a baby, your parents noted when you first crawled, took your first step, and said your first word.
     In school, the measuring of progress took the form of grades, achievement tests, aptitude tests, I.Q. tests, PSAT'S, ACT'S, SAT'S, and maybe a few psychological tests thrown in for good measure.
     Even out of the classroom, on the athletic fields and in the gymnasium, the measuring continued, only the measuring took the form of competition against the stopwatch, other individuals and teams. The grades took the form of letters, team memberships, certificates and medals. Almost every accomplishment of your life to date has been quantified and compared with your peers.
     We are taught that all men are created equal. This is true, all right, if we are talking salvation. On the other hand, if we are talking "personal best," the "equal" part needs some serious rethinking.
     Only a few of you can get all A's, and probably none of you can run a four-minute mile. In other words, while there are no theoretical limits to what you can do, there are practical limits to each individual's ability.
     Fortunately, this does not apply to attitude. There are no limits to what kind of an attitude each one of us can develop.
     Attitude is a curious word. While it is a noun, the word by itself creates no mental picture. In order for the word "attitude" to mean anything, it must be modified by an adjective. Thus, as soon as we preface it with happy or sad, positive or negative, an immediate image is created.
     The reason that the image is so vivid is that attitude is both mental and physical. The set of a mouth, the glint in an eye, the angle of a head, the bearing of our body telegraphs how one feels. Fortunately, our true feelings are not as transparent on this earth as they will be in the spiritual world. Nevertheless, a false attitude is quickly discovered.

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     Dr. Karl Menninger may have overstated the case when he said, "Attitudes are more important than facts." But he did not overstate it by much! As you go on to higher education or into the job market you will find just how the proper attitude can open doors, and how a negative attitude can close them none too gently.
     What are some of the attitudes that you should develop?
     Certainly essential is a positive approach to life if you are going to succeed at anything-be it a job, a marriage or as a parent.
     Opportunity? A crude example might be the problem or a low grade on a midterm exam. If your attitude is that by studying hard you will not only erase that blot on your academic record, you will get an "A," then you will have turned a problem into an opportunity.
     Throughout life if you can approach a tragedy with the attitude that you will overcome the mental and possibly physical hurt, you will be better, maybe even happier, for the experience. For instance, the parents of a mentally retarded child may find satisfaction and happiness in helping other parents with similar problems.
     These three attitudes-the positive approach to life, the ability to see opportunities in problems, and turning tragedy into happiness-are some of the most valued traits that a person can develop.
     There is no universal attitude that can be cloned for all people. The introvert will not be happy as an extrovert. The outgoing, bubbly personality will be unhappy as the quiet plodder.
     One of the most important things, however, is to avoid a negative attitude. Nobody wants to work with the individual that automatically looks for what is wrong with an idea. These are problem-makers rather than problem-solvers, On the other hand, if you look for what is right with an idea before you start looking for the warts, solutions to problems come much more quickly and more easily.
     Ten years from now no one will care what your class standing was or whether you have a shelf full of athletic trophies. What they will care about is performance and attitude. So, for you C+ students and third-string athletes, there is hope, and that great American philosopher, Yogi Berra, probably expressed hope best when he said, "The game's not over till it's over."

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DECLARATIONS OF FAITH AND PURPOSE 1986

DECLARATIONS OF FAITH AND PURPOSE Various 1986

     (Ordination service June 15, 1986)

     I believe that our Lord Jesus Christ is the one God of heaven and earth. I believe that He has made His Second Coming through the instrumentality of Emanuel Swedenborg. The Heavenly Doctrines which the Lord revealed through Swedenborg unfold the internal meaning of the Old and New Testaments. This internal meaning is the glory within the cloud by which the Lord promised to make His Second Advent.
     This internal sense of the Word reveals to man today what was once clear to the men of the first church on earth. For they understood the science of correspondences by which heaven and earth communicate. Through the ages an understanding of these correspondences has been both perverted and lost through man's falling away from God. However, the Word being written by these correspondences has maintained communication between heaven and earth. Yet it was still necessary for the Lord to come into the world to become the Word made flesh, so that He could take upon Himself the infirmities of man and conquer them. In this way He conquered the hells, ordered the heavens and glorified His Human.
     The Lord has now revealed Himself to us in His glorified Human. The Lord in making His Second Advent reveals Himself to us as He promised-as the glory or the internal sense of the Word within the cloud of the Old and New Testament letters.
     I believe that I have been called to teach these truths about the one and only God Jesus Christ. These truths are for all who sincerely seek the truth. I pray to the Lord for His help and guidance in my ministry.
     Gene Barry

     I believe that Jehovah God is love itself and wisdom itself, or good itself and truth itself. I believe that as the Divine truth which was the Word and which was with God He came down and took on the human for the purpose of reducing to order all things that were in-heaven and all things in hell and all things in the church. I believe that by the assumption of this human Jesus Christ put on Divine omnipotence not only for subjugating the hells and reducing the heavens to order but also for holding the hells in subjugation to eternity, and thus saving mankind.
     There are three essentials of the church: acknowledgment of the Divine of the Lord, acknowledgment of the holiness of the Word, and the life which is called charity. Everyone's faith is according to the life which is charity. From the Word we have a rational perception of what life should be, and from the Lord we have reformation and salvation.

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     I believe that the priest who teaches truth from the Word and thereby leads to the good of life, and so to heaven, is outstandingly in the exercise of charity, because he is looking to the welfare of the souls of those who belong to his church. I, therefore, pray to You, Lord, to put Your Word in my mouth and strengthen me so that I can rightly perform the use to which I have been called.
     William Ankra-Badu

     I believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the one God of heaven and earth. He alone is the Creator and the Preserver of all things. I believe His love and His wisdom are infinite, and that He predestines every man to enter into His kingdom and there find heavenly happiness.
     I believe the Lord subjugated the hells and reordered the heavens by glorifying the Human He assumed upon the earth. The Lord did this to make salvation possible to all men.
     I believe, however, that salvation does not actually come to us until we shun our evils as sins against the Lord and seek to live according to His Word.
     I believe that the Word is the sole means of the revelation of the Lord and the life which proceeds from Him. I believe the Word has a natural sense and a spiritual sense. The revelation of the spiritual sense constituted the Lord's Second Coming, which He accomplished by means of His servant Emanuel Swedenborg. I believe that the Lord has established His New Church through His Second Coming. The New Church is the crown of all churches because it reveals life from the Lord by giving the doctrine of genuine truth.
     I strongly believe that the Lord has called me to be a minister of the New Church. I pray that the Lord may use me to help establish His church more firmly upon the earth. I pray that I will always look to the Lord for enlightenment in the instruction of truth, for love in the salvation of souls, and for wisdom in leading men to the good of life. My work will be fruitful only if I allow the Lord to guide my ways. The Lord is the only One who can give me the love and the wisdom to perform genuine uses toward His church. "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples" (John 15:5, 7, 8).
     Fred Chapin

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ON THE EVANGELIZATION OF CHARITY: 1986

ON THE EVANGELIZATION OF CHARITY: KURT SIMONS 1986

     A Proposal

     (Concluded from the August issue)

     Question 4: Even on a purely intellectual plane, will personal contact-our best missionary technique-be less effective if New Church men do not have distinctive thought from doctrine on issues beyond basic theology? Again, many other religions do, and we claim to be a step beyond them. To have no answers to modern life's many ethical dilemmas is to be dismissed by many potential seekers, who may need a mediate good leg up before they pay attention to deeper doctrines. This would appear to be a classic instance where that which is first in end is not first in time.
     Question 5: Does the principle of separation of church and state preclude all forms of involvement in civil and moral affairs by the organized church? Television evangelist-type politicking from the pulpit is not, to say the least, in keeping with doctrine. On the other hand, the church and Academy have long made major investment decisions, engaged in litigation, used tax deduction opportunities, and so on, all of which involve complex interactions with the world around us on the civil and moral plane. Nor would they hesitate to do this on a more extensive scale if the church were attacked, as in the Kramph will case. Well, in a broad sense, the church is being attacked, by the temptations to disorder so rampant in the culture of which its members are a part. Perhaps even more critically, many innocent church-universal people are being assaulted and allured by these temptations as well. Again, do the heart and lungs have no responsibility in responding to such poisons? The Lord said of His followers. "I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one" (John 17:15).
     Question 6: Is our traditional interpretation that there should be only individual, rather than organizational, support of charitable uses to the greater neighbor of the world adequate at a practical level? The kind of sophisticated analysis in light of doctrine of possible charitable uses we could support, and how best to carry them out, requires more study, and on a greater variety of subjects, than any individual New Church man could possibly do on his own. A legislator who devotes full time to work of this kind on the civil plane still has to have a staff to support him in considering issues, and even then will often specialize in only a few areas because of the mountain of information involved. A New Churchman has to assimilate all this and all doctrine tool-which means he's going to need all the help of other New Churchmen he can get.

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In Ben Franklin's words with regard to an earlier revolution, "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately."
     Question 7: Within the church itself is there a need for a broader concept of what constitutes a "church use" than his traditionally been the case, especially for young people? Even older people may feel frustrated in the midst of the extraordinary events of our day when the only use they can do in the church is something like usher duty, meal preparation or handing out a pamphlet. In the case of young people, we know from doctrine that they are in New Testament incarnation of charity states, a time of high ideals. Experience testifies to this as well. A diversity of religious and other groups, from the Mormons to the "cults" and the Peace Corps, have attracted young people by stressing the world's great spiritual or civil-moral problems and then providing a means via organizational uses to work to solve those problems. Whatever we may think of some of these organizations, their success in these appeals indicates that many young people feel a need to respond to these problems and will do so if given the opportunity.
     On the other hand, where uses are perceived as lacking, delight of use is also lacking. Do people, again especially the young, thus look to substitute delights from drugs, drinking, sex, etc. because there are so few delights of what they view as significant "real" use available to them? Education is of course a use, with its delights of acquiring knowledges, and it looks to the delights of "real" use-someday. Amidst the media's vivid presentations of the challenges and temptations of our day, however, those delights can appear pretty dim, even for the grownups in their "real" forensic uses. More vivid and challenging-appearing forms of charity might help provide a counterbalance.

     A Proposal

     If we are to actually do something to meet the needs of the world and the church discussed above, it seems important to emphasize three things: (a) the best approach will be to follow the doctrinal model of church-specific heart and lungs infusing truth + love = use into the church universal; (b) the church cannot match the expertise of long-established organizations in many of the areas needing attention; and (c) there needs to be full opportunity for as-of-self, for involvement of anyone anywhere in the church who is interested, laity as well as clergy, even church universal as well as specific.
     A first step that would meet these criteria would be to begin compiling an annotated directory of social, economic, political and religious church-universal organizations working in support of good and truth on the civil and moral planes. Those interested could then join forces with whichever of these organizations they liked, in uses to the greater neighbor.

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Such a directory would be useful, to begin with, because there are many such efforts, and you may never have heard of one that would be of great interest to you if only you had! More important, however, would be the exercise of trying to separate wheat from chaff, of winnowing out charitable undertakings that seem particularly worthy of participation and support in light of applied doctrine goals.
     A practical means of beginning work on such a directory in spiritual world style-i.e. with no limitations due to where you live or what your schedule-would be the "round robin" letter. This format for developing new ideas is at least as old as the Committees of Correspondence that laid the groundwork for the American Revolution and as recent and close to home as the ATKT. (Around the Kitchen Table) newsletter in the church. A central clearinghouse is needed to make a round robin letter work, to provide an address to write to and duplication and mailing facilities to send copies to all participants. The director of the newly established General Church Correspondence School (GCCS) has offered to provide such a clearinghouse. GCCS is also developing a new correspondence course of direct relevance to such an undertaking. Entitled "The New Church and Current Issues," it covers topics ranging from the general question of the relationship of church and state to specifics such as censorship, population control and "Am I my brother's keeper?" in this context.
     To offer input for the directory, then to obtain a copy of the course, or both, write:

     Rev. Alfred Acton, Director
     General Church Correspondence School
     Box 278, Cairncrest
     Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     What next step might be taken after the directory of organizations is compiled will be determined by the interests of those who participate in this first step. New uses, be they American Revolutions or Academy movements, seem to have a way of finding new forms for themselves!

     "Of the tribe of Asher were sealed twelve thousand," signifies mutual love, which is the love of doing good uses to the community or society with those who will be of the Lord's New Heaven and New Church. By "Asher" is signified the love of doing uses, which is with those who are in the Lord's celestial kingdom and is there called mutual love. This love descends proximately from love to the Lord, because the love of the Lord is to do uses to the community, and to each society in the community, and He does these by means of men who are in love to Him" (AR 353).

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     SALVATION BY BLOOD

     We are struck with the sympathetic way in which some passages in the Writings deal with the simple belief that one is saved by blood. Last month we mentioned some disturbing aspects of the concept of salvation by blood and the teaching that the Lord permitted (rather than commanded) the practice of animal sacrifice, because otherwise some would have inclined to human sacrifice. There are people who make much of the word "atonement" as part of Christian doctrine. Actually the word "atonement" does not occur in the New Testament. The one place where that word occurs in some English versions is Romans 5:11. Here the word is actually "reconciliation."
     Who needed to be reconciled, God or the world:, According to some Christians God had to be reconciled! They thought of God as needing to be appeased to change His attitude to the human race. But it is man or the world that needs to be reconciled, and this is apparent in 2 Corinthians 5:19 which says that God was in Christ "reconciling the world unto Himself." But let's get to those sympathetic passages which can help us relate to people who talk simply about being saved by the Lord's blood.
     A good Christian knows that the Lord is Savior. "it is known in the church that the Lord is the Savior and Kedeemer of the human race, but it is known to few how this is to be understood" (AC 10152). Some, we are told, believe in an external way that the Lord redeemed the human race by His blood "by which they mean the passion of the cross." Others have an internal view that the Lord subjugated the hells and glorified His Human and that "thereby He redeemed and saved all who suffer themselves to be regenerated by a life according . . . to His Word" (ibid.).
     What can the phrase "subjugated the hells" mean to someone who has no realization of how intimately we are connected with the spiritual world? We quote again from AC 10152-"But no one can know how man was saved and redeemed by the Divine through the subjugation of the hells and the glorification of His Human unless he knows that there are with every man angels from heaven and spirits from hell, and that unless these are constantly present with man, he cannot think anything, or will anything; and thus that in respect to his interiors man is either under the dominion of spirits who are from hell, or else is under the dominion of angels who are from heaven.

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When this is first known it can then be known that unless the Lord had fully subjugated the hells and reduced all things, both there and in the heavens, into order, no one could have been saved; nor likewise unless the Lord had made His Human Divine, and had thereby acquired for Himself to eternity power over the hells and over the heavens." Recall the saying at the end of the first gospel: "All power is given unto Me in heaven and on earth."
     Through the ages there have been Christians who approached the Lord in the Holy Supper and who believed in simplicity that He was the Savior. In one passage the Writings offer the advice to anyone who finds it too difficult to think more deeply about it when taking the Holy Supper and hearing it called the Lord's "flesh and blood": just think that this is the holiest act of worship and "bear in mind the Passion of Christ and His love for man's salvation" (TCR 709). We are told that when "blood" is mentioned some are unable to think beyond this symbol to the truth to which it corresponds. Some are unable, and some do not want to! (See AC 7850:2.)
     The Writings note that "blood" is mentioned many times in the Word and that one who reads carefully can see that something other than blood is meant. For example, in the twenty-ninth chapter of Ezekiel there is a reference to drinking blood. Here the Writings say, "By 'blood' here cannot be meant blood, because ii is said that they shall drink the blood of the princes of the earth" (AR 379). On the one hand the Writings emphatically teach the truth and urge the reader to consider it. On the other hand there is a wonderful spirit of patience in the Writings toward those who for the time being will only think according to the natural sense. They say, "Let this view of it be for the simple" (AC 4735:9). And at the end of a fairly long Passage about the internal meaning they say, "But let the simple remain in their doctrine that they are saved through the Lord's blood, provided they live in accordance with His Divine truth; for they who so live are enlightened in the other life" (AC 9410).

     SMILING AT OURSELVES

     When people awaken into the other life, the angels observe some of the strange notions and fallacious ideas they have. Although the angels do not mock or deride these ideas, we may picture the angels "smiling at them" (AC 180). Wise people do not mock, but "when they listen to ingenious reasonings from fallacies they wonder and inwardly smile" (DP 311). There are some absurd fancies that go on in human minds, and "no one who thinks rationally can help laughing" at them (see Divine Providence 279:6). Swedenborg was permitted to hear some who when in a state of wisdom were "laughing at their own insanity" (DP 223).

425

As we grow up, we regard some of our childhood thoughts as silly (see AC 4551).
How often it is observed that the ability to laugh at oneself is a precious one. Emanuel Swedenborg had this ability. He could smile at the doubts which engaged his mind before he undertook his mission. We see from the Journal of Dreams that once as doubts assailed him he sat and looked at the fire and thought to himself that he might as well doubt the existence of fire, and he comments, "I smiled in my mind at the tempter" (no. 50). An extremely serious time for him was the time when he was facing up to the vastly important work that lay before him. He saw that his whole life had led to this, and we note again in the Journal of Dreams, "I laughed at the other seductive thoughts. Thus as to pleasure, wealth, high position, which I had pursued, I perceived that all was vanity, and . . . therefore I laughed at all confirmatory reasonings, and thus by the help of God I came to a resolution. May God help!" (JD 164, 165).
It is by no means frivolous to smile at the thoughts that go through our minds. The sermon in this issue is an example of using the truth and the rational mind to help us smile at ourselves.
NCL 50 AND 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 AND 100 YEARS AGO 1986

In the September issue of this magazine fifty years ago, we notice that the General Church was looking forward to an Assembly in the summer of 1937 and was looking to provision of a new bishop.
An item in the September issue of 1886 begins as follows. "The New Church Herald is the title of the latest comer in the field of New Church journalism." That British publication continued for many years until it was supplanted by Lifeline. It is interesting that the Swedenborg Society Magazine has begun to appear a hundred years after the emergence of The New Church Herald.
CORRECTION 1986

CORRECTION 1986

In my report of the Publication Committee (May issue, p. 234) I implied that the book In The King's Service was written by Amena Pendleton Haines. The writer was in fact Gertrude Nelson Diem.
Lorentz R. Soneson

426

MARRIED OR SINGLE IN THE CHURCH 1986

MARRIED OR SINGLE IN THE CHURCH Heulwen M. Ridgway 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor,
     New Church Life comes seamail to Australia, so I have only just read Bethany Gruber's letter of two months ago (May 1986, "Newcomer's Viewpoint"). I am replying through the pages of NEW CHURCH LIFE as other single people may be interested to join in this issue.
     I feel very much for Bethany's situation as I too am single and have lived a great part of my life away from a church society in Zimbabwe, in England as part of the Letchworth group, and now as part of the Canberra group, most of whose seven members are close family.
     I have found that there is often a great strength of New Churchmanship in the smaller groups as, with little organized doctrinal leadership, one has to develop one's own understanding to advance in the purposes of the church; we have only three to four pastoral visits a year. We have tried hard to interest people in the New Church and now have one daytime and one evening reading discussion group each fortnight for interested people, so are a busy, if tiny, group.
     The temptations of the world are strong indeed for all who wish to regenerate and, when one faces temptation, ultimately one faces it alone, regardless of one's marital status or the size of one's New Church group. Each individual is led to face those evils and falsities that impede the reception of the corresponding goods and truths that lead to heaven. I have no doubt whatever that an individual would face the same evils and falsities whether married or single, as they are the stumbling blocks of character on the path to heaven. However, I do think that those evils and falsities may well be manifested in different ways, depending on the circumstances of one's life, including one's marital status.
     The state of the conjugial is a state in the mind which is shunning the lusts of adultery as well as other evils, regardless of marital status. In married people, and sometimes in only one partner, that conjugial state is manifested as conjugial love. In single people it is not, but I think it is felt, not as a love of a married partner, but as a love of maintaining the purity of one's future marriage (for all who go to heaven will marry, whether in this world or the next) and perhaps also as a love for the continuance and upward growth of the marriages of others.

427

     There are three common misconceptions in the church regarding the married and single states. One is that all who marry in the church are in conjugial love. We cannot assume this; conjugial love is a state of regeneration. Another is that married people are in a more complete conjugial state than are single people; however, the conjugial state is only in those within whom there is a marriage of good and truth, and this applies to single people as well as to married partners. The third misconception is that single people cannot be in a state of chastity. But they can be, equally with married people, if they shun adulteries of every kind (that is, the natural, spiritual and celestial adulteries set out in True Christian Religion 313-316). For then they come into the opposite of adultery which is the chastity of a marriage state, whether or not ultimated in marriage. For a New Church person to deny that a single person can come into a state of chastity is to deny that a single person can comply with one of the Ten Commandments in all three degrees, that is, the natural, thence the spiritual and finally the celestial degree.
     The temptation to seek bodily pleasures is not necessarily greater for single people than for married people. Even if married people do not stray from their marriages, they can stray from the purity of marriage. So the great challenge for all of us is to come to love a true marriage of two minds into one so deeply that nothing can sway us from that ideal. It matters not one bit if we are married or single for the time being in pursuing that purpose, for it is for the end that we are striving.
     It is lonely for single people to go through part or all of this life pursuing that end and not having it fulfilled for the present, and very often having to put up with unkind jibes, even from some New Church members. It is particularly lonely if one is both single and in a small group where most of one's associates are not in the church and cannot share all of one's values in life. All I can say is that, for me, there have been great advantages in living in a small group in the strength of purpose which one must necessarily develop, in the opportunities for talking about the church to non-New Church people, and in the appreciation of the really good values in the lives of so many of those people. Also, one must never lose sight of the Lord's promise that marriage is provided for all who enter heaven.
     I am sure that single people who are striving to lead the life of regeneration have a vital role to fulfill in the church. For instance, many single people have more time on their hands to read the Word and to devote to the natural uses of the church. Also, may not a single person be in a better position to love the marriages of others, and to love all children, than a married person who, of necessity, looks inward to his or her own marriage and offspring?

428

Perhaps, too, single people are needed by the Lord to fight those hells that would lure some to seek a liaison other than marriage. While parents have the joy of guiding their children toward an acceptance of the Lord's Second Coming, I do not think it is too presumptuous to feel that those without children can sense a very similar delight in helping enquirers to the church toward that same acceptance.
     So the way that I look at things is that the Lord provides a unique role for each individual New Church person to play in establishing His kingdom here on earth, and the circumstances of life in which we find ourselves at any particular moment provide all the opportunities for fulfilling that role.
     I hope this will be of some help to Bethany Gruber and that she has by now received help and friendship from others in the church.

     Heulwen M. Ridgway (Miss)
     7 Whalan Place
     Kaleen, Canberra ACT 2617
     Australia
30TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1986

30TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1986

     The 30th General Assembly of the General Church of the New Jerusalem will be held in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, from Wednesday, June 3, to Sunday, June 7, 1987.
     The first of six sessions will be an episcopal address Wednesday evening starting at 8:00 p.m. The second session will be a business session starting at 9:30 a.m., Thursday, June 4, during which the membership present will take action on the nomination of the Council of the Clergy to provide for the office of Assistant Bishop.
     Further details regarding registration, housing, fees, sessions and scheduled events will be issued in a general letter late in September or early October, 1986.

429

CHARTER DAY 1986

1986

     All ex-students, members of the General Church, and friends of the Academy are invited to attend the 70th Charter Day exercises, to be held in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, Friday and Saturday, October 10th and 11th, 1986. The program: Friday 10:30 a.m.-Cathedral service with address by Rev. Geoffrey Childs; Saturday, 7: 15 p.m. banquet; toastmaster: Dr. Gregory L. Baker; 9:30 p.m.-dance following banquet.

     Banquet Tickets

     Tickets can be purchased by contacting Mrs. Donald L. Rose at the Academy switchboard, Academy of the Church, P.O. Box 278 Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Tickets must be ordered by Monday, October 6th. They can either be mailed or held at the switchboard for pickup either by visitors or their hosts. Tickets can also be purchased in Bryn Athyn at the Development Office in Pitcairn Hall, the College Office in Pendleton Hall, or before doctrinal classes in the society building. Tickets are not sold at the door because of advance arrangements with the caterer. The banquet is Saturday, October 11th. Ticket prices are adults $7.00 and students $3.75. Checks should be made payable to the Academy of the New Church.

     Theta Alpha Luncheon Tickets

     Tickets for the Theta Alpha luncheon, preceding the annual meeting on Saturday, October 11th, must be purchased in advance no later than October 8th. This is to assure that no one will have to be turned away at the door. Tickets will be sold in the same fashion as the Charter Day banquet tickets. Price is $3.00 for adults and students.

     If you are ordering tickets for both the Charter Day banquet and the Theta Alpha luncheon, please send one check made payable to the Academy of the New Church to the attention of Mrs. Donald L. Rose.
     The deadline for picking up tickets is 10:00 a.m. at the Academy switchboard on Friday, October 10th.
TRICENTENARY NEWSLETTER 1986

TRICENTENARY NEWSLETTER 1986

An "unofficial newsletter" is now being published bi-monthly by Leon Rhodes. If you are interested write to him at Box 23, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. You can learn of budding ideas around the world about the 1988 Swedenborg anniversary. The second issue features on the front page Swedenborg Foundation plans for new films, a museum exhibit and a scholarly conference.

430

ORDINATIONS 1986

ORDINATIONS Editor 1986

     Announcements
     Ankra-Badu-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 15, 1986, Mr. William Ankra-Badu, into the 1st degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.

     Barry-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 15, 1986, Mr. Gene Barry, into the 1st degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.

     Chapin-At Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 15, 1986, Mr. Frederick Merle Chapin, into the 1st degree, Rt. Rev. Louis B. King officiating.
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

Correction: In the July issue, because the "Marriages" heading was not printed, three weddings there listed would appear to be betrothals. Please insert "Marriages" before these three, which are Allen-Synnestvedt, Draper-de Chazal and Hoekstra-Rogers.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

434

     DENVER
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone (303) 429-1239

     Connecticut:

     HARTFORD

     SHELTON
Rev. Glenn Alden, 47 Jerusalem Hill Rd., Trumbull, CT 06611. Phone: (203) 877-1141.

     Delaware:

     WILMINGTON
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 417 Delaware Ave., McDaniel Crest, Wilmington, DE 19803. Phone: (302) 478-4213.

     District of Columbia see Mitchellville. Maryland.

     Florida:

     LAKE HELEN
Rev. John Odhner, 413 Summit Ave., Lake Helen, FL 32744. Phone: (904) 228-2337.

     MIAMI
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 15101 N. W. Fifth Ave., Miami, FL 33169. Phone: (305) 687-1337.

     Georgia:

     AMERICUS
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee St., Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.

     ATLANTA
Rev. Christopher Bown, 3375 Aztec Road #72, Doraville, GA 30340. Phone: (Home) (404) 457- 4726, (Office) (404) 452-0518

     Idaho:

     FRUITLAND
(Idaho-Oregon border) Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Dr., Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.

     Illinois:

     CHICAGO
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     DECATUR
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.

     GLENVIEW
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     Indiana:
Contact Rev. Stephen Cole in Cincinnati, Ohio, or Mr. James Wood, R. R. 1, Lapel, IN 46051. Phone (317) 534-3546

     Louisiana:

     BATON ROUGE
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 1652 Ormandy Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Phone: (504) 921-3089.

     Maine

     BATH
Rev. Allison L. Nicholson, 897 Middle St., Bath, ME 04530 Phone: (207) 433-6410

     Maryland:

     BALTIMORE
Rev. Donald Rogers, #12 Pawleys Ct., S. Belmont, Baltimore, MD 21236. Phone: (301) 882- 2640.

     MITCHELLVILLE
Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Rd., Mtichellville, MD 20716. Phone: (301) 262-2349.

     Massachusetts:

     BOSTON
Rev. Grant Odhner, 4 Park Ave., Natick, MA 01760. Phone: (617) 651-1127.

     Michigan:

     DETROIT
Rev. Walter Orthwein, 132 Kirk La., Troy, MI 48084. Phone: (313) 689-6118.

     EAST LANSING
Mr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.

     Minnesota:

     ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS
Rev. Michael Cowley, 3153 McKight Road #340, White Bear Lake, MN 55110. (612) 770-9242

     Missouri:

     COLUMBIA
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 103 S. Greenwood, Columbia, MO 65201. Phone: (314) 442-3475.

     KANSAS CITY
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.

435

     New Jersey-New York:

     RIDGEWOOD. N.J.
Mrs. Fred E. Munich, 474 S. Maple Ave., Glen Rock, NJ 07452. Phone: (201) 445-1141.

     New Mexico:

     ALBUQUERQUE
Dr. Andrew Doering, 1298 Sagebrush Ct., Rio Rancho, NM 87124. Phone: (505) 897-3623.

     North Carolina:

     CHARLOTTE
Mr. Gordon Smith, 38 Newriver Trace, Clover, SC 29710. Phone: (803) 831-2355.

     Ohio:

     CINCINNATI
Rev. Stephen Cole, 6431 Mayflower Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45237. Phone: (513) 631-1210.

     CLEVELAND
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.

     COLUMBUS
Mr. Hubert Heinrichs, 8372 Todd Street Rd., Sunbury. OH 43074. Phone: (614) 524-2738.

     Oklahoma:

     TULSA
Mrs. Louise Tennis, 3546 S. Marion, Tulsa, OK 74135. Phone: (918) 742-8495.
Oregon-Idaho Border.-Se Idaho, Fruitland.

     Pennsylvania:

     BRYN ATHYN
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-3665.

     ERIE
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Rd., Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.

     KEMPTON
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: (Home) (215) 756-4301; (Office) (215) 756-6140.

     PAUPACK
Mr. Richard Kintner, Box 172, Paupack, PA 18451. Phone: (717) 857-0688.

     PITTSBURGH
Rev. Ray Silverman, 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: (Church) (412) 731-1061.

     South Carolina:- see North Carolina.

     South Dakota:

     ORAL-HOT SPRINGS
Rev. Erik Sandstrom, RR 1, Box 101M, Hot Springs, SD 57747. Phone: (605) 745-6714

     Texas:

     FORT WORTH
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 13410 Castleton, Dallas, TX 75234-5117. Phone: (214) 247-7775.

     Washington:

     SEATTLE
Rev. Kent Junge, 14812 N. E. 75th Street, Redmond, WA 98033. Phone: (206) 881-1955.

     Wisconsin:

     MADISON
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.
SWEDENBORG MOVEMENT CALENDAR 1986

SWEDENBORG MOVEMENT CALENDAR 1986

A 1987 "Swedenborg Movement" calendar has been produced in England. It is obtainable from the Swedenborg Movement, Melilot, Well Hill Lane, Chelsfield, Orpington, Kent BR6 7QJ, England.
News about price and availability in the U.S. coming soon.

436

You and the Opposite Sex 1986

     Martin Pryke

     For the Youth of the New Church

     $3.80 plus postage

     General Church Book Center
Box 278
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
or by appointment
Phone: (215) 947-3920

437

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI October, 1986 No. 10
NEW CHURCH LIFE

438

     In the sermon this month under the heading "God Does Not Cause Disease" we have a brief treatment of disease on the spiritual plane and disease on the natural plane. On page 442 is a section entitled "Cures," a subject also alluded to on page 447. Rev. Andrew Dibb resides in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, where he is assistant to the pastor.
     The "Favorite Passage" this month, number 43 of True Christian Religion, was actually named by nine ministers as favorite. This made it the second most chosen passage in the survey.
     The Charter Day address in the Bryn Athyn cathedral will be given this month by Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs, who next year will take on the duties of president of the Academy of the New Church. Mr. Childs has finished writing a book entitled The Golden Thread. We hope to announce the publication date in a forthcoming issue.
     In the May issue we began a series which we hoped would be "widely appreciated and genuinely helpful at the very heart of religious life." As we publish the final number in this series we have a communication from an appreciative reader which we are squeezing in at the end of the article (p. 469).
     We have had news of two dedications of church buildings. The new building in Detroit was dedicated on August 31st and the building for Twin Cities (St. Paul-Minneapolis) on Sept. 7th.
     Last month was our first notice of the General Assembly, and this month we have news of the art show to take place at that time (p. 443).
     The word "planning" has been deleted from the summer seminars (see p. 448). These annual discussions provide an opportunity for consideration of a variety of uses. The final use mentioned in the published summary is that of the Tricentenary celebration. As we go to press, Mr. Leon Rhodes is in Europe meeting with others who are promoting this celebration.
MUSICAL PIECE FOR THE SWEDENBORG TRICENTENNIAL 1986

MUSICAL PIECE FOR THE SWEDENBORG TRICENTENNIAL 1986

The New Church Music Festival Committee is offering prizes for winning musical pieces written in celebration of Swedenborg's tricentennial-a social song, hymn, anthem, inspirational song, work for a choir, work for choir and orchestra, sacred or secular. There will be cash prizes, and the publication of the prize-winning selections. Consideration for prizes will be given to entries in all categories. All entries should be submitted to Rev. Alfred Acton, Box 278, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Deadline for entries: July 1, 1987.

439

DON'T BLAME THE LORD 1986

DON'T BLAME THE LORD Rev. ANDREW M. T. DIBB 1986

     "He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses" (Matt. 8:17).

     Introduction

     Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, or AIDS "has become the leading cause of death in New York City for men between the ages of 30 and 39, edging out such traditional top killers as homicide and suicide . . . [it] is also the second leading cause of death, behind cancer, among women aged 30 to 34 in New York" (Kitchener-Waterloo Record, May 3, 1986). In the United States a university study estimates that there has been an 8% increase in the incidence of cancer, mostly caused by lung cancer (ibid., May 8, 1986).
     Throughout history there have been cases of diseases killing thousands of people. In 1348 one out of every three people in Europe died of the Black Death. In 1919 hundreds of thousands died of the great influenza plague. In western culture heart disease and venereal disease are epidemic causing incalculable pain and suffering to millions of people.
     Amid this suffering stands the New Church, the bearer of the Good News of the Lord's second coming, the crown of all churches. The teachings of the New Church show us the Lord Jesus Christ, the loving, gentle God of heaven and earth. We are told often that the Lord continually works for our salvation, that He constantly works to turn evil into good, that His greatest desire is for each and every person to be in heaven.
     How, then, do we reconcile this loving God with the pain and anguish we see caused by disease? How can a loving God allow people to suffer? Why does He not simply put a stop to all this pain and make the world a happy, healthy place to live in?
     There are a great many people who ask these questions, and, because they have no suitable answer, they prefer to believe in no God, rather than believe in one who willingly allows people to suffer. There is an answer: the New Church offers not only an answer, but also an explanation of disease in this world, and in the next.

440

     God Does Not Cause Disease

     To begin to understand the New Church teaching on disease, one has to start with the clear teaching that the Lord does not cause disease. All sick ness and illness arises from evil (AC 5713, SD 4858). The Lord spent a great part of His ministry healing people, so it is inconsistent to think that He could cause them.
     When we get ill, or see others with an illness, we are seeing the natural appearance, or effect, of a spiritual cause (AC 5711). In other words, there is something in the spiritual world that is showing itself on the natural plane as a disease; this something is evil, which when it descends into the natural world appears as sickness.

1. Disease on the Spiritual Plane

     All sickness begins in the evil loves of hell. The people there are motivated by "Intemperance, luxury of various kinds, mere bodily pleasures, and also feelings of envy, hatred, revenge, lewdness" (AC 5712) as well as "adulteries, strifes and cruelties" (SD 4590). Such is the nature of hell.
     All these evils are the opposite of heavenly loves, as revenge is the opposite of forgiveness. If we examine them, we find that the base in each one of them is self concern, or self love, which is the origin of all evil. From just looking at the world around us, we can see how envy, hatred, strife and cruelty tear the fabric of society; envy between nations causes war; strife between married partners destroys marriages.
     Evil seeks to destroy good by turning happy pleasant situations into little hells. This is true also with the interiors of people's minds. When people allow revenge, cruelty, strife or lewdness to exist in their minds, the interiors of the mind bean to break up. The connection between the person and heaven starts to disappear. This is precisely what the hells want, for they are in continual opposition to heaven (SD 4858 cf. AC 5713).
     In the spiritual world the sphere of this evil is felt as pain and disease. Swedenborg relates that he was often allowed to feel the sphere of evil spirits, and this sphere caused him agony. He was once allowed into the company of a spirit who in the life of the body "had made his highest delight consist in committing adultery with many women, whom he immediately afterward discarded and held in aversion. He persisted in such practices even to old age. Moreover, this man had also been devoted to pleasures and did not desire to do well to any one or do him a service except for his own sake" (AC 5714). When this spirit drew close to Swedenborg, he caused tremendous pain to his bones, and also to his loins.

441

     Swedenborg was also allowed to feel the sphere of hypocrites who caused very painful toothache (AC 5720, SD 4648m). He was allowed to feel these things so that he could be shown that if the evil spirits of hell were allowed to infest us bodily, they would cause diseases in us, and eventually death (AC 5713). So it is hell, by its opposition to the Lord that causes disease in the spiritual world.

2. Disease on the Natural Plane

     But evil spirits are not allowed to infest us bodily. They can be with us in the evils and falsities of our proprium; they can excite evil loves in us, but they "are not allowed to flow into the solid parts of the body"; in other words, they can't infest our organs or members (AC 5713, SD 4858). Evil spirits cannot of their own accord make us sick. This can be borne out by the fact that there are many people who live evil lives who live to great age without ever getting sick, while often people who live good lives get ill, and sometimes even die from it.

     So where does sickness on the natural plane come from? There are two types of natural disease: The first is disease that we bring on ourselves by the way we live our lives. The Writings say that disease is caused by "excessive indulgence of various vices, and from the number of them, as from the bodily delights, from lascivious practices, and from anxiety about the future" (SD 4592).
     The things we do obviously affect our body. Sexually promiscuous people are more likely to get AIDS or venereal disease than a faithfully married couple. A person who drinks heavily will have a greater chance of stroke or cirrhosis than one who only drinks moderately. People who worry about the future bring themselves into stress which in turn causes heart disease. These are all diseases that we have control over, that we can, within reason, prevent.
     The second kind of natural diseases includes those over which we have no control-the disease of the hemophiliac whose blood will not clot, or that of the diabetic who has to rely on diet and insulin to stay alive. These kinds of illness are an attack by viruses or bacteria that invade our body and have to be fought off with medicine.
     Natural diseases are not a spiritual judgment on a person. We cannot say that the person who has gum disease is a hypocrite, or one who has bone disease is an adulterer, because diseases in this world are not caused by spiritual things within the person's spirit, but from the body which in this world is separate from the spirit. In hell, on the other hand, the body and mind make one, and so the mind of the devil directly affects his body.
     Nevertheless, when we do get sick, from whatever cause, we are surrounded by evil spirits. Each part of our body corresponds to some part of the Gorand Man of heaven, and by opposition, to a part of hell.

442

When we are hurt or diseased, the evil spirits from the same part of the hellish body rush to that part of our body (SD 4571), and they flow into the disease and enrich it with the foul sphere of hell (AC 5713). There is no influx into the actual, physical organ, but evil spirits intensify the illness, making it worse, which they do with all sickness, from the most major, to the most minor, from terminal cancers to toothaches and headaches (SD 4591).

     Cures

     The evil spirits who infest our sicknesses enjoy not only the sphere of the disease, but also the pain and suffering they cause the person. They would never leave of their own accord, and so they have to be driven away by the Lord (SD 4572).
     The Writings tell us that all diseases, both natural and spiritual, are only cured by the Lord (AE 815:5). He does this by driving away the evil spirits, so that the power of the sickness is broken, and the body can recover. The fact that it is the Lord alone who cures us should not stop us, however, from using medical science as a natural cure (AC 5713). The Lord works through medicine, so that we are told that we "can be and also should be cured or made sound by natural means" (SD 4858). There is also the further teaching that when we appear to be cured by medical means, we are less likely to profane by at first attributing the cure to the Lord, and afterward saying that it was from nature (SD 4858).
     Nevertheless, regardless of the appearance, it is the Lord alone who heals us. "That a person becomes restored from the Providence of God, people know, for so they say, and some acknowledge it by attributing their restoration to God, and by giving thanks on account of it" (SD 4571e). For this reason, when we are sick, whether we are being treated by a doctor or not, we should still pray to the Lord that we may be restored, and declare ourselves healed by Him, without attributing our cure to nature (SD 4650m).

     Conclusion

     From these teachings it becomes very clear that it is not the Lord who causes disease or sickness, for He is the healer, as He has shown us many times in the Word. By His very nature He heals people, driving away the infesting evil spirits, and curing us of their influence.
     We can cooperate in many ways with the Lord, we can curb our physical vices, eating and drinking in moderation and doing things that are good for our bodies.

443

We can strive for spiritual health by shunning feelings of envy, hatred, revenge, and lewdness, so reducing our chances of catching some self inflicted disease. Or, if we do have an illness thrust upon us, through no fault of our own, we can help the Lord by cultivating peace of mind, knowing that we are in His hands, and that although our bodies may be influenced by evil spirits, our mind, the part of us that will live to eternity after death, is still securely in the Lord's care.
These teachings can be very comforting. It is especially important for us to know, and to teach, that it is not the Lord who causes illness, but that He takes them from us. The Lord is a God of love, of peace and health. If He had His way, there would be no disease, for a person "would wane, even to the utmost feebleness of age: and then; when the body could no longer minister to the internal man, that person would pass away from his earthly body, without disease" (SD 4592), for He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses. Amen.
THIRD ART SHOW AT A NEW CHURCH ASSEMBLY 1986

THIRD ART SHOW AT A NEW CHURCH ASSEMBLY 1986

     Sponsored by "Friends of New Church Art"

     This show is to be in Bryn Athyn, PA, during the time of the General Assembly, June 3-7, 1987. There will be a senior art show, and a junior art show for participants under the age of nineteen.
     Entry forms are now available. These and further information may be obtained from Helen L. Lee, 1015 Jefferson Heights Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15235. Phone: (421) 373-0209.
     Here are two paragraphs from the information sheet for the senior show:

     All categories of prints, paintings, drawings, sculpture, stained glass, pottery, photographs, needlecrafts, wood carvings, plastics, or unique combinations are acceptable as long as they relate to an idea from the Writings. Size limitation is no larger than 36" x 48". Three-dimensional work must be arranged for by the artist in conjunction with the committee.
     All work should look neat, ready to hang, with secure wire. Prints and watercolors should be matted and backed. Entries should be accompanied by a 3" x 5" card or cards (typed or hand-lettered) with the quotation or reference in the Writings on one side.

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TEACHING BY MIRACLES 1986

TEACHING BY MIRACLES Rev. J. CLARK ECHOLS 1986

     Suggested Reading: John 1:35-51 and True Christian Religion 501

     What is a miracle? Is the birth of a child a miracle? Is the progress of the seasons in their regular order a miracle? Was creation a miracle? Modern commentaries are confused on this point. Surely Jesus performed miracles. And we can classify them, separate them into groups, as being miracles over nature, or miracles requiring human means, etc. But these categories do not tell us why Jesus performed the miracles. We can be in awe of them and yet not really learn their purpose. The Divine plan, established from the beginning, was that Jesus would be the means of the salvation of all mankind. So all that Jesus did, all that He said, was for this sole purpose. And thus His miracles must be seen to serve this purpose of salvation. And further, the Heavenly Doctrine for the New Church isolates a working definition of miracles based on this premise.
     A miracle, we're told, is truly the finger of God reaching into the natural world. A miracle is the interaction of the laws of the spiritual world with the laws of the natural world. Thus, even the workings of nature are miracles which, in their order and regular procession, we do not notice as miraculous. However, there are specific actions which make the Lord manifest to us, which particularly reveal Him, and teach us about Him and His nature. Therefore, the miracles that are recorded in the whole of the Bible, the miracles that Jesus performed as well as the miracles of the Old Testament, are striking examples of God's power. And they were special actions in that, in this specific way, He revealed Himself.
     The question is, then, why did Jesus have to execute this power? It can only be that it was necessary as part of His plan to save mankind. Notice also that Jesus did not perform miracles from some other power source than Himself, as did Moses, Elijah, Joshua and others in the Old Testament. Jesus performed the miracles from His own power, which He was then able to pass on to the apostles. This is evidence that Jesus was Jehovah incarnate, for according to the Old Testament no mortal could have such omnipotence. Only God Himself could perform miracles from His own power.
     The first recorded miracle that Jesus performed is reported in John I, when He called Nathaniel to be an Apostle. He had seen Nathaniel and known who he was well before they had met, and well before He had physically seen him.

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By this Jesus demonstrated clearly His ability to know hidden things and silent thoughts. Compared to later miracles, this was not so astounding, but there was enough power in the act that Nathaniel was inspired to call Jesus the "Son of God." Therefore, the miracle had gained the desired result. It led Nathaniel to believe that Jesus was the promised Messiah. But notice the limitations of that first recognition. Nathaniel also called Jesus at that time the "King of Israel." Jesus was not come to establish an earthly kingdom, yet how true are Nathaniel's words when understood in their symbolic sense, their internal sense. For indeed Jesus would become the one true King of all mankind, would become the King of the church He would establish as represented by Israel. This is foreshadowed in Jesus' answer to Nathaniel, "You will see greater things than these"(John 1:50). Indeed, much greater miracles He would perform. In any case, by this first miracle Jesus established an initial trust and faith in Him. They believed that He was a man of God, who would lead them to freedom-at least, they thought, natural freedom from the dominion of Rome.
     The next recorded miracle is that of changing water to wine at the marriage feast at Cana. This miracle, like the stilling of the storm on the sea of Galilee, the repeated feeding of thousands, and the withering of the fig tree, demonstrated His omnipotence. These miracles over nature, accomplished as they were all over Palestine, introduced the Apostles to the fact that Jesus was the one God made incarnate. He was not just another God in a pantheon of gods, each of whom ruled a certain geographical area. He was the one God of all the earth, and He was omnipotent. This then increased their understanding of Jesus and who He was. He was gradually leading them to see that He was the Son of God, the Messiah, come to save mankind.
     Now while the Apostles' faith wavered-for instance, when they trembled in the boat and when they forgot His first feeding of the multitudes-still, His power over the wind and water and matter introduced them further into an understanding of who He really was. And this was the crux of His Divine plan: He gradually revealed His power so that the people would understand. His plan was not to astound and surprise them into humiliation. He could have done that without coming down to earth. Rather, He was working to establish a real faith within them. He would not blind them with His glory all at once-risking the people's unprepared refusal to believe in Him. Instead, He sought out believers-people who, while perhaps ignorant, were open to instruction and enlightenment.
     A further introduction to His powers were the miracles of healing that He performed.

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Most often, He touched the lame, the blind, and the diseased. But it was possible simply to touch His robe. And it was possible for Him to heal at a distance. However, all these different cases are brought together when we consider how Jesus invariably introduced them. He would question those who came to Him concerning their faith. Because they believed, Jesus could reach into them and heal them. If they did not believe, He could not heal them. He would have had to break their freedom to restore them to health. Jesus came to save mankind so that they could worship Him in freedom, by their own choice, not by making them robots or blind followers. Indeed, when two blind men beseeched Jesus again and again, He finally gave to them their sight. The conditions for their acquiring sight was not faith in an invisible God, but a new faith, a faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior.
     Perhaps many of those He healed expected little of Him that He would establish a merely natural kingdom. But they had the seed of faith which could grow in strength and understanding as they watched Him. As they saw more and more that He was their Messiah, a visible, immediate object to their faith, their God was finally given that last foundation of reality. God had lacked this in men's minds before, but now they could see Him. Indeed, in this sense, Jesus cured all men's blindness. And what they finally saw was the ultimate miracle of healing.
     Jesus first prepared them by showing them His omniscience, omnipotence, His rule over nature, and His rule over the human condition. He could then finally display life itself. Three times Jesus raised people from the dead. By these miracles people learned that Jesus not only had the power of health; was not only a good person, gifted of God, but that He had control over life itself. He was life, and the light God made flesh to dwell among us. In this way men learned ever more powerfully that they relied upon this visible God for their very lives. Herein is the understanding that Jesus sought to prepare them for. He was life, their living God, infinite and eternal, and yet He walked among them. He was the Word made flesh. God had miraculously bowed the heavens and come down.
     Jesus' everyday life was filled with the work of teaching and healing. We don't know why all the people followed Him. Perhaps some followed only to be assured of high places in the kingdom they expected. Many came because of the special power Jesus had over evil spirits which infested them. Many who sought Him out were spiritually beleaguered by the hells, at times bereft of their senses, sometimes tormented, sometimes so manipulated that the evil spirits inside them could make them try to commit suicide.
     And so the people were drawn to Jesus. And He drove out the evil spirits. He drove them into swine, or simply drove them away.

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The evidence confirms that the people were made whole, healthy, again. The Pharisees tried to defame Jesus by suggesting that He was in league with Satan. They saw His miracles as threats to their power over the masses. And yet, Jesus was able, by these miracles, to convince the people that His rule extended to the spirit world and even to hell. He had the command of goodness over evil. The people flocked to Him.
     Now while this popularity was itself an irritation to the leaders of the Jews, it was not enough to convict Jesus of any crime. However, a certain type of miracle gave them their ammunition: He forgave sins. This is not simply restoring health. It is not causing a demon to leave someone. It is not even bringing back to life. This forgiveness is the forgiveness that came from God alone. This forgiveness that Jesus gave people is often connected with the miracle of physical healing. That is so often the case that it becomes clear that all the miracles of healing included spiritual healing, or the removal of the blockage of the hells that had been established in a person's mind. So forgiving sins brought upon Jesus the greatest respect from some people, the greatest fear from many, and the greatest hatred from a few.
     And yet this is why He came. As the Heavenly Doctrine for the New Church points out, Jesus performed miracles not simply for their show, or for outward effect, but principally for their inward effect: the healing of the people's spirit; casting devils out of their minds; restoring their freedom to turn to Him; forgiving their sins.
     This was His plan, and that is why He had to have the power to perform miracles, and that is why He used it. That is why God Himself came to earth-the Divine soul, the Father, clothed in a mind and body on earth, Jesus Christ. And knowing how His miracles fit into the plan of His life gives us an understanding that will lead us to appreciate the miracle He continues to perform for each one of us: our salvation.
ANNOUNCEMENT 1986

ANNOUNCEMENT Louis B. King 1986

     The Reverend Geoffrey S. Childs has been called to serve as President of the Academy of the New Church, effective July 1, 1987.
     Louis B. King,
          Executive Bishop

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SUMMER SEMINAR #3-1986 1986

SUMMER SEMINAR #3-1986 Lorentz R. Soneson 1986

     On July 10, 1986, Bishop King welcomed fifteen laymen, five laywomen and ten ministers to Summer Seminar #3, and began an episcopal report with some history of the two prior seminars. He said that the purpose of the seminar in 1984 was to get more participation of General Church board members in the uses of the church and allow a forum for priests and laymen to discuss these uses together. A complete transcript was made of these meetings.
     He said the 1985 seminar formulated some action plans as a result of their deliberations and forwarded them to those organizations and committees immediately involved. There was some objection to developing action plans that might supersede the responsibilities of the General Church Board of Directors; therefore, the word "planning" was removed from the 1986 seminar. Furthermore, following a suggestion from last year, the 1986 Summer Seminar discussed fewer subjects but in greater detail, with smaller groups. Bishop King did observe that at least thirty-five proposals from previous seminars have been incorporated, in one way or another, into the policies of the General Church.
     The Bishop then reviewed the status of the clergy, noting that the development reviews were now in their fourth cycle and well received. Post graduate training continues with our priests. There have been some seminars conducted on a small scale for school administrators and for training pastors in the field.
     It is hoped that a pictorial summary of our council members, with biography will appear as a supplement in a future NEW CHURCH LIFE to acquaint the rest of the church with our clergy.
     The mechanics for career adjustments within our clergy are being reviewed and fine-tuned, and the Personnel Advisory Committee continues to assist the episcopal office in this area. The Bishop pointed out that we need to be more conscious of the role of the pastor's wife, preparing her for assignments, exigencies and offering general support for this important role. He said Bishop's Representatives will he reassigned after the 1987 Assembly and that the Consistory will he reappointed at that time as well.
     The Bishop then made a tentative proposal for the division of responsibility in the episcopal office after the assembly when hopefully there is confirmation of the Assistant Bishop's name. Bishop Buss will be asked to give leadership in evangelization uses and take on the title of Director of Evangelization. Alfred Acton, Director of Religion Lessons and Adult Education, and Frederick L. Schnarr, Bishop's Representative for General Church Schools, will also report to Bishop Buss, Douglas Taylor, as Chairman of the Recording Committee and in the office of Evangelization, will also report to Bishop Buss.

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     Bishop Buss will share in the services and classes now being conducted in Bryn Athyn by Bishop King, each covering the other when one of them is traveling. It is hoped that Bishop Buss, by means of more and more trips to General Church societies, will become better known throughout the church.
     Bishop King also noted new worldwide frontiers for church growth, such as in Japan, the Philippines, Korea, Ghana, the South African Mission (where a reorganization of the theological school is proposed), and that we will now have a resident minister in New Zealand.
     One of the goals set by Bishop King is to maintain ongoing freedom for external changes so that our internal principles can be applied effectively. Here he quoted Arcana 7298 that explains how truths receive various forms according to circumstances.
     Other challenges still facing the church are: Proper funding for our New Church elementary education in General Church societies, evangelization projects, placement of ministers in growth areas, and the all-important work of translation of the Word. There is still a need for a specialist in the field of printing and publishing. Also we must meet the challenge of finding further ways to strengthen marriages in the church. He appealed to the seminar to suggest ways to strengthen our vision of New Church education among our priests, our students, and our parents. Falling enrollments, difficulty in attracting effective teachers, rising costs, etc., should not deter us from our Divine charge to spread the Evangel to others, particularly our own children.
     Finally, he asked that both priests and laity study further the doctrinal issues involved concerning women serving on our financial boards, both in the General Church and in the Academy.
     In addition to recounting his own personal goals, the Bishop reviewed year by year his plan for an Assistant Bishop to take increased responsibility in preparation for a change in the office of Executive Bishop in 1991. He closed his presentation recounting the undeniable enthusiasm he observes in church centers around the world in his travels. The as-of-self he sees is very strong. Newcomers are in greater evidence than ever before, and there seems to be a special vitality in our church services and classes, as well as in missionary efforts wherever he travels. He sees an increasing affirmativeness among our parents regarding the Academy and the role it plays in preparing their children for a life of use. He and Freya hope, if health permits, to continue their travels to church centers, serving our organization in any way they can for the foreseeable future.

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     Following this, Bishop Buss shared with those at the seminar his proposed plans for assisting the episcopal office in the next few years. In addition to training for the executive post under the tutelage of Bishop King, Bishop Buss hopes to become more active in the field of education and evangelization. Besides continuing to teach at the Academy and writing educational texts, he plans to travel and become more familiar with the pastors in the field and the challenges facing them.
     In order to provide ample opportunity to discuss and reflect on these two reports, the seminar broke into groups of five for discussions and reported their reflections to the assembled group later on that day. Some of their observations included: How can we better appeal to the thousands of visitors to the Cathedral and Glencairn in our evangelization efforts: How can we improve our assimilation of newcomers? We need to be more acquainted with pastors in different societies, perhaps by means of videotapes, where a minister can share his feelings about evangelization, education, etc. There is a need that the whole laity feel they are participating more in decision-making, How can this be improved? One group felt that there is a diminishing respect for authority in our culture today, and this could be detrimental in providing an affirmative support of our pastors and their leadership. Several felt that the development reviews of our pastors are crucial in the earlier years of a pastor's career. There should be a full and mutual acknowledgment of any skills that might be lacking.
     In general the groups discussing the episcopal reports felt that the proposed division of labor is fine. Several requested that parents become more involved in the religious education of their children, encouraging them to share what they learn with others, which would strengthen our evangelization program. It was hoped that teaching priests and lay professional teachers will work together in seminars to draw on the two foundations of truth in their complementary professions.
     The question was raised, "How can societies starting schools ever achieve self-supporting status?" Are not grants and separate solicitations for funds necessary?
     It was mentioned that we should be specific in what we expect from our priests in the General Church and assist them in training their people skills wherever possible. Priests are not governors of people, but leaders who teach truths that lead to the good of life. It was mentioned that clergy enlightenment does not mean the priest is responsible for coming up with all the good ideas. It is more his responsibility to recognize good ideas when they are offered.

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Friday, July 11, 1986

     Following a short worship service by Bishop Buss, Mr. Bill Thomas was introduced to the seminar as an expert in the field of videotapes. Mr. Thomas has been teaching audio and video systems in local high schools for over two decades. He has recently been working with the Evangelization Committee and the Sound Recording Committee to initiate a library of video films for distribution throughout the church. Some of the potential uses of internal video productions for church organizations would include: doctrinal classes, worship services at the Cathedral and Pendleton Hall, New Church Day, Christmas and Easter services, Religion Lessons programs and Evangelization-type tapes for library distribution and cable television access.
     Mr. Thomas outlined various programs and the required funding to get the church started in this important phase of communication, both within the church and to the greater neighbor. Since nearly one-third of North American homes have a videocassette recorder, and that number is growing, any tapes we reproduce could be played in private homes. He recommended that we buy the proper equipment so that professional tapes could be produced for distribution. He recommended the 3/4" size tape, and proper hardware which would cost approximately $70,000.00. He felt that qualified manpower already existed for directing and technically editing any films we might produce, and that both high school and college students were ideal for training in this field.
     In the discussion that followed, it was recommended that a committee begin investigating not only the market for distribution, but what it would take for the church to begin producing tapes. The church might investigate distributing free videotapes door-to-door that describe our religious beliefs as a form of evangelization. Another suggestion was to take some of the 16 mm color films that have been produced in the past (such as the Noah film, the Sermon in Stone, Our Faith) and put them on videocassettes and advertise their availability through the Sound Recording Committee to test the market and reactions from our isolated members in the church.

Additional Secondary School Studies. Rev. Eric Carswell, presenting some of the advantages and problems involved in establishing a four-year high school outside of Bryn Athyn, first invited Jerry Fuller, a teacher in the Glenview school system, to describe something of the history of this project. They have had a two-year high school in Glenview for twenty years and have often investigated what it would take to add the next two years. Studies have shown that there should be a minimum of sixty students to undertake this project.

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     Mr. Karl Parker, current Principal of the Caryndale school, presented some of the factors involved in setting up a high school between Kitchener and Toronto. He felt there should be a minimum of twenty students for grades nine and ten to make the project work and forty or fifty total for the five school grades in Canada that would make the starting of a school possible. The Caryndale Society actually owns property that could be sold to start a high school endowment there, and Kitchener is the obvious location for such a school. At the present time there are not sufficient New Church families to support a high school in Canada, though they would dearly love to start one.
     Some of the advantages listed for another four-year high school would include: Local society members could keep their own high school age students as residents at home; it could possibly attract other high school students from nearby societies; it would allow the Academy to emphasize its college more and possibly even establish Academy campuses outside of Bryn Athyn, supplying funds and faculty, etc. Current growth patterns and review of high school graduates from the Academy in the last decade or two does not indicate a great need for another school. The Academy may have to expand its dormitories in the next ten years, but campus and other facilities are adequate for a larger student body.
     Professor Greg Baker, from the Academy faculty, gave his general affirmation for establishing another high school when needed.
     Small group discussions reviewed questions provided by Mr. Carswell, such as: Is there a minimum size for a high school? Is there a maximum desirable size for the ANC high school? Is there a maximum number of dormitory students we should try to handle? Given what we now know, what is the more likely site for another New Church secondary school-Glenview? Caryndale?
     In the discussion in small groups the seminar emphasized the importance of keeping our local elementary schools strong and growing as a number one priority, assuming that the younger grades are more effective in reaching our children than the later grades. It seems unlikely that another high school would start before 2,000 A.D., based on our current growth patterns. Sending teaching personnel into Canada from the States is becoming increasingly difficult.
     In the afternoon, Bishop King asked five of the headmasters present to give a short presentation on how they think we can keep the vision of New Church education alive in our local societies with schools. Rev. Cedric King from San Diego pointed to spheres as one of the chief reasons for maintaining a local school of our own. It allows us to protect what is procreated, those spheres of innocence and love to the Lord so imperative for our children.

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Mr. Parker from Caryndale said that many of the parents of his children are not alumni of the high school or the college at the Academy, and therefore do not have the experience and remains of this important phase in their children's lives. He asked that there be more sermons on the subject of New Church education.
     In response to the question, "What should we be teaching our children" the answer was to teach about the Lord and His wonderful creation -something they could not get from a public school education.
     Rev. Lawson Smith from the Washington Society recognized discouraging aspects of lower enrollment, turnover, change of faculty, etc., and yet there was no question in his mind that teaching about the Lord daily in the classroom, as an extension of the home, was the mandate of the Lord in His Word for fulfilling our baptismal responsibilities.
     Rev. Jeremy Simons, pastor at the Kempton school, wondered if the change in emphasis in our New Church culture was affecting our attitude about local church schools. In the 1960s the world seemed to be down on education, but two decades later it is now coming back in vogue and has a higher priority. He also observed that the school administrators attending the seminar were in their early thirties, getting advanced degrees in education and administration, and implementing the new ideas coming out of our Educational Council meetings, better curriculum and methodology. He felt that the vision is being rekindled, and that parents are turning to the local schools with more conviction about the need for our own New Church schools.
     Rev. Eric Carswell said in closing remarks that parents of our young children today are starting to see the importance of the Lord being the center of the classroom every school day. Parents also are becoming more involved with school projects, and he felt confident that the new generation in the church has seen the vision and will give its support to New Church education for the elementary school grades.
     On Thursday and Friday evenings, following dinner at Cairnwood Village, those attending the seminar, with their spouses, heard presentations by Walter Childs, Development Officer, on one night and Leon Rhodes the next night. Mr. Childs addressed the question of the isolated in our church and asked if there are ways in which we can serve them more effectively. He did this by first defining what an isolated person is, pointing out it is not from geographic location, but rather the state of mind. Someone might feel isolated yet reside in a larger society, while there are others who are geographically away from a church center, but close to other members because of their continual reading from the Word and genuine interest in the activities of our church centers through communication and newsletters.

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     Mr. Childs had a map of United States and Canada displaying the locality of our isolated families, demonstrating that they are in nearly every state of the Union and in many far-flung areas of the Dominion of Canada. He felt that we could do more to assist these people through Religion Lessons, adult correspondence courses, audio and videotapes and through our church publications.
     Mr. Leon Rhodes expressed his genuine interest in the coming Tri-centenary, the 300th birthday of Emanuel Swedenborg, in which he hopes the General Church can join with others in promoting this event. For some time now he has been developing a mailing list to stimulate new ideas and exchange projects with all church bodies, organizations and national groups that could and should be made conscious of this birthday of Emanuel Swedenborg. Bishop King has encouraged him to offer his talents and to seek what support he could from the General Church and the Academy and some of our local societies to further this cause.
     There are over two hundred on Mr. Rhodes' mailing list already and he plans to distribute a bi-monthly newsletter of ideas he can collect from those working on it. Even though there is a hidden agenda for evangelization of the Theological Writings of Swedenborg, he is trying to promote the name of Swedenborg, to at least acquaint everyone with this man, no matter where he lives. Mr. Rhodes had been working with the Swedenborg Society, the Swedenborg Foundation, some people in Australia, Terry Schnarr, the Information Swedenborg Center in Canada, Paul Zacharias of Convention and with Rt. Rev. Philip Odhner. He has contacted the Helen Keller Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution, the International Association for Near Death Studies and even some dignitaries at Uppsala University and in the Swedish government.
     The Seminar appreciated Mr. Rhodes' presentation and encouraged him in his endeavors.
     We can now say, having experienced three of these seminars, that they are proving themselves. Participants have expressed enthusiasm for their present and potential use. We expect their form to evolve and improve, but we expect them to continue, in the belief that when we turn our attention to needs and uses in a spirit of open communication, our sense of responsibility is quickened, our understanding increases and our usefulness grows.
     Lorentz R. Soneson

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MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (4) 1986

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (4) Rev. Lawson M. Smith 1986

     The Essence of Love is to love others outside itself, to desire to be one with them, and to make them happy from itself.
     There are two things which make the essence of God, namely, love and wisdom, and there are three things which make the essence of His love, namely to love others outside of itself, to desire to be one with them, and to make them happy from itself. The same three things also make the essence of His wisdom, because, as has been shown above, love and wisdom make one in God; while love wills these things, wisdom gives effect to them.
     The first essential, to love others outside of itself, is recognized from the love of God toward the whole human race; and for their sake God loves all things He has created, because they are means; for he who loves the end loves also the means. All persons and all things in the universe are outside of God because they are finite, and God is infinite. Yet the love of God approaches and extends not only to good persons and good things, but also to evil persons and evil things; consequently not only to persons and things in heaven, but also to those in hell; thus not only to Michael and Gabriel, but also to the devil and satan, for God is everywhere, and from eternity to eternity the same. He says also: "He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matt. v. 45). The reason, however, why evil persons and things are still evil is in the subjects and objects themselves, because they do not receive the love of God in its own quality and interior nature, but according to their own nature, just as the thorn and nettle receive the heat of the sun and the rain of heaven.
     The second essential of the love of God, to desire to be one with them, is perceived from His conjunction with the angelic heaven, with the church on earth, with every individual there, and with every good and truth which enters into and constitutes man and the church. Moreover, love viewed in itself is nothing but an endeavor toward conjunction; therefore, in order that this object of the essence of love might be attained, God created man in His own image and likeness by which conjunction might be effected. That the Divine love is ever directed toward this union is evident from the words of the Lord, that He desires that they may be one, He in them and they in Him, and that the Love of God may be in them (John xvii. 21, 22, 23, 26).
     The third essential of the love of God, to make them happy from itself is recognized from eternal life, or blessedness, happiness and felicity without end, which He gives those who receive His love.

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For as God is love itself so also is He blessedness itself, since all love breathes out from itself what is delightful, and the Divine love breathes out blessedness itself, happiness and felicity to eternity. Thus God makes angels happy from Himself, and also men after death, by conjunction with them.
     True Christian Religion 43

     The late Rev. Ormond Odhner introduced me to this passage in senior religion in high school. He said that this was one of his favorite numbers in the Writings because "it explains everything." Ever since it has been one of my favorites.
     This passage explains who God is. It outlines why He has created us and why we are here. It tells why there is a life after death, and both a heaven and a hell. It shows the nature of true love, and so it shows us how we should live with each other.
     I love this passage because it inspires love for the Lord, whose love is so powerful, wise, and kind. One interesting thing to note is that it does not say God "needs" to love us, but simply that it is the nature of love to love others.

     [Photo of Rev. Lawson M. Smith]

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     We can find other similar teachings, such as the familiar quotation from Divine Providence, "The Divine Providence has for its end a heaven from the human race" (chapter II), and DLW 47, which includes the striking statement, "To feel the joy of another as joy in oneself, this is to love."
     But TCR 43 seems more universal. It analyzes the nature of God, and shows why everything follows from His love and wisdom. It is a good example of the wonderfully analytical and at the same time warmly human character of the Writings, and of our God. It serves as a foundation for all our thinking.
     Rev. Lawson M. Smith
GENERAL CHURCH TRANSLATION COMMITTEE 1986

GENERAL CHURCH TRANSLATION COMMITTEE N. Bruce Rogers 1986

     Annual Report 1985

     The work of editing Latin manuscripts unpublished by Swedenborg but generally included in his theological works, translation of works of the Writings into English, and pursuit of other related activities, continued to go forward in 1985. Again, we were adequately funded to carry on our primary projects. Despite a gradual increase in support by the General Church, however, we are experiencing a gradual reduction in two of our other sources of funding, and we are going to have to find means of balancing this out in some way in the future. We hope we will not have to cut back on our activities.
     Experientiae Spirituales (formerly Diarium Spirituale). Preparation of a new Latin edition of this work, Spiritual Experiences, formerly published under the title Spiritual Diary, remains our primary project. Unpublished by Swedenborg himself, it has been published in the main only once before, by Dr. Immanuel Tafel in the last century. Since that time, it has become clear that Dr. Tafel missed some material considered by the author as part of this work, and a new, scholarly edition has been much needed as a basis for new translations that may be more accurate than the ones now available.
     Edited by Dr. J. Durban Odhner, volume I appeared in 1983, published by the Academy of the New Church. Volume II has been finally completed and is now in process of publication. Work on volume III still awaits review by consultants before it can be finally revised and readied for publication.

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And Dr. Odhner reports that his initial editing of volume IV has now been completed. This latter endeavor included a re-examination of several passages written in Swedish that occur toward the end of the work, and preparation of Latin translations to accompany them, which will appear as footnote material with those passages, in order to make them accessible to readers of Latin who are not at the same time able to read Swedish. Volume IV will be the last to contain the actual text of the work. Fifth and sixth volumes are also planned, which will contain Swedenborg's indexes to the work, as well as an appendix. Some initial work has already been done on the index material.
     Dr. Odhner' has been assisted in recent years in his editing of Experientiae by Mr. Jonathan S. Rose, who is now serving as his principal consultant. This past summer, Mr. Rose also undertook various other related tasks, including a good deal of photocopying and making searches for needed information. Since Mr. Rose is also pursuing a doctoral degree, he has consequently had limited time to give to this work. In order to try to speed up the consulting process, therefore, the services of Miss Kirsten Hansen, now Mrs. Edward Gyllenhaal, were also made available to Dr. Odhner, beginning last summer, in order to introduce her to the project. Lacking a full-time consultant, we are hoping that a combination of part-time consultants will help in future years to catch up this part of the process to the progress Dr. Odhner has been making in his work.
     De Verbo. A new Latin edition of this work, prepared by the Rev. N. Bruce Rogers, continues to await publication until it can be published with De Ultimo Judicio (posthumous) and other companion material found in the same coder (Codex 12).
     The Word of the Lord. A new English translation of De Verbo, also prepared by Mr. Rogers, likewise continues to await publication until it can be published with The Last Judgment (posthumous) and other companion material from Codex 12.
     De Ultimo Judicio (posthumous). The primary editing of this new Latin edition, first by Prof. Prescott A. Rogers and then by Mr. B. Erikson Odhner, was completed two years ago. Because of Mr. Rogers' other commitments in pursuing the Theological School program looking to ordination, however, final revision of this work in preparation for publication has remained temporarily suspended. Mr. Odhner was able to put most of the material into final order last summer, but final revision still awaits Mr. Rogers' consultation. As reported previously, certain decisions remain to be made as well over the placement of certain paragraphs and the handling of some miscellaneous material in the same coder (Codex 12).

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     The Last Judgment (posthumous). Mr. B. Erikson Odhner has now drafted a new English translation of most of this work. It awaits review by the consultant, Prof. Prescott A. Rogers. As with the Latin edition, certain decisions must also still be made over the placement of certain paragraphs and the handling of some other, miscellaneous material in Codex 12.
     Conjugial Love. The Rev. N. Bruce Rogers completed a first draft English translation of the second seventh of this work. Several chapters have been sent out to consultants and initial reviewers. Assisting in this process are Miss Chara Cooper (translation consultant), Prof. Robert W. Gladish, and Mrs. Kirsten R. Rogers (English readers).
     The Old and New Testaments in Latin according to the Writings. This collation of verses as quoted in the Writings remained in a state of suspension, due primarily to a lack of personnel to carry on the project, but also to limitations in funding.
     Swedenborg Lexicon. Compiled and edited by Dr. John Chadwick of England, this valuable Lexicon to the Latin Text of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg is being published in installments by the Swedenborg Society. Mr. Jonathan S. Rose continued to assist in producing it by verifying quotations and references, working through entries under the letter S. It appears that he has now begun work on the last installment.
     Selected Memorable Relations. As previously reported, several years ago Mrs. Lisa H. Cooper prepared nineteen simplified translations of selected memorable relations for the young. Seven are in final form. This past year, Mr. Jonathan S. Rose was able to review two more, looking toward final revision by Mrs. Cooper.
     Parallel Passages in the Writings. This project is nearing completion. The goal was to discover all those passages in the Writings which were either copied or rewritten by Swedenborg from one work into another. Mr. Edward Gyllenhaal was able to spend some time editing the lists previously researched and typing them into his word processor. The first installment of this work, edited by Miss Marcia Smith, was published in 1982 by the Academy of the New Church. Thanks to a generous special contribution, we already have the funds to publish the rest as soon as it is completed.
     "Translator's Corner." Edited by Dr. J. Durban Odhner, this special feature in The New Philosophy continued with its publication of the first English translation of one of Swedenborg's early scientific works, De Sale Communi (On Common Salt). This translation was made by Mr. Michael V. David, with Dr. Odhner's assistance, under the sponsorship of the Swedenborg Scientific Association.

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The last issue for 1985 contained the third installment, extending up to the 24th out of 60 chapters.
     Computerizing the Translation Committee. Thanks to a generous special contribution, the committee was able to provide Dr. J. Durban Odhner with an IBM personal computer plus printer for use as a word processor. Mr. Jonathan S. Rose continued with his research into computers and word processors, with special consideration given to most efficient and effective ways of interacting with the photo typesetting equipment belonging to the General Church Press at Cairncrest (though Mr. Rose reports his frustration in "struggling to understand computers and why they do not speak to photo-typesetters at all well"). Mr. Rose received especial assistance in this research from Mr. Geoffrey Odhner. It was on Mr. Rose's recommendation that the committee provided Dr. Odhner with the Word Perfect word processing program for use with his computer.
     Other activities. Dr. Odhner has been invited to Stockholm by the Scandinavian Swedenborg Society to make a presentation in January, 1986, in observance of Swedenborg's 298th birthday. Dr Odhner has chosen as his subject the new Latin edition of Swedenborg"s "diary" (Experientiae Spirituales): why this project was undertaken by the committee; why more material has been included in it than in Immanuel Tafel's edition; and why its title has been changed from Diarium Spirituale to Experientiae Spiritaules. Dr. Odhner has also prepared a number of overhead transparencies exhibiting previous erroneous readings in order to illustrate that aspect of the work.
     Conclusion. Progress has sometimes seemed slow, but it has been steady nevertheless. Scholarly work, by nature, requires painstaking attention to details, and the work of the Translation Committee is no exception. The satisfaction is in the quality of the result-even more satisfying because of what this work can contribute to the understanding of the church. We have been fortunate to find able and dedicated laborers in the vineyard, whose primary commitment is to serving the church.
     N. Bruce Rogers, Chairman
SWEDENBORG STAMP PETITIONS 1986

SWEDENBORG STAMP PETITIONS 1986

     More signatures are needed for the petitions to have stamps issued in January of 1988 commemorating Emanuel Swedenborg.
     Contact Miss Candace Frazee, 7 Thorborn Ave., Apt. #3. Toronto, Ontario, M6K 1C4, Canada.
     Petitioners must be at least 18 years old.

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LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) 1986

LIGHT BURDEN (Easier Ways to Shun Evils) JOHN L. ODHNER 1986

     Part VI (Conclusion)

Cutting Evils Down to Size

     When the Children of Israel were on the verge of entering the land of Canaan, their scouts came back with tales of the giants in the land. "We were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight" (Numbers 13:28-33). The people were so discouraged that they did not want to even try to conquer the evil giants in the land.
     Of course, this is just what the hells would like to do to us. They want to discourage us with the size, number and strength of our evils, with the complexity and ambiguity of the task, and with our own weak, ineffective efforts.
     Years later Goliath challenged the Children of Israel. The whole army was afraid and helpless because they did not know how to handle such a huge enemy. But David, with the Lord on his side, cut the enemy down to size, bringing hope, then victory.
     The fight against evil can be easier if we have ways of cutting the giants down to size.

46. Keep It Simple.

     Once a young man came to the Lord asking, "What good deed must I do to have eternal life?"
     "Keep the commandments," He replied.
     Apparently the young man felt this was too childish for someone as accomplished as himself. He said, "I have been keeping them ever since I was a child. What am I lacking?" It's as if he were looking for some more challenging task by which he could prove how worthy he was (see matt. 19:16, Mark 10:17).
     When Naaman came to Elisah seeking a miraculous cure for his leprosy, he was expecting something dramatic, unusual, amazing, but he was simply told, "Go wash in the Jordan seven times and you will be clean." Naaman was furious at being given such an ordinary answer, until one of his servants said, "If the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more than, when he says to you, 'Wash and be clean'?" (2 Kings 5:9-14)
     The Lord asks us not to do something great or complex, but simply to "wash and be clean," to repent. "What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6:8).

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     Is our religion difficult? People say that the New Church beliefs are complex, hard to explain. Some say that being a New Church person is more difficult than being a Catholic or Protestant because the New Church places more responsibility on the individual. I wonder whether these people have overlooked the simplicity of the New Church.
     How does the Protestant religion compare with the New Church? "In the Protestant world . . . repentance is a very difficult task . . . chiefly because of their belief that repentance and charity contribute nothing to salvation, but faith alone" (TCR 561). Faith alone is difficult to learn and retain in the memory (see BE 58). The religion of faith alone is too hard.
     Nor would it be easier to be a Catholic. "It is not difficult in the heavenly doctrine, as it was in Babylon destroyed" (SD 5793). The pious, secluded life of a monk may seem peaceful, but don't be fooled. "The life of charity . . . is not difficult. But a life of piety separate from a life of charity is difficult, and as much as this life is believed to lead toward heaven, so much it leads away from heaven" (HH 535).
     When Swedenborg was asked to explain his religion, his answers were brief (e.g., see Intercourse Between the Soul and the Body 20). Usually he mentions two essentials: 1) Acknowledge the Lord, and 2) Obey the commandments (see AR 9, 485ff, DP 326). Sometimes he put the same ideas in other words: 1) Love the Lord above all things, and 2) Love your neighbor as yourself (see AR 903, 915, AC 1121).
     There may be times when life seems complex and we may wonder, what is the good thing for me to do? Should I go along with what this person wants of me' or should I make my demands clear? Should I trust them to do what they say they will? or should I take care of things myself! Should I talk to this person about what I am feeling? or is this something I must work out on my own? Why does the Lord make-life so difficult? In fact, He doesn't. We make it difficult when we overlook the simple answers the Lord gives.

When a person shuns evils as sins he daily learns what a good work is, and the affection for doing good grows with him. . . . So stop asking yourself, "What are the good works that I must do, or what good must I do to receive eternal life?" Only cease from evils because they are sins and look to the Lord, and the Lord will teach and lead you (AE 979).

47. Keep in Mind the Steps of Repentance.

     Repentance is a simple step-by-step procedure. One passage lists six steps:

     1)      Know what evils are;
     2)      See them in one's self;

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     3)      Acknowledge them before God;
     4)      Take responsibility for them;
     5)      Pray for evils to be removed;
     6)      Begin a new life (see NJHD 160, 161).

     If you skip steps (for example, if you do not pray for help) it will be harder to resist the evil. It is easier to overcome evil with this step-by-step process than it is in a vague sort of way to suddenly make yourself good. (A fuller explanation of these steps can be found in DP 114-122, TCR 525-560, AR 224, 531.)

48. Tackle One Evil at a Time.

     Trying to get rid of all our evils at once by admitting that we are hopeless and begging for the Lord's help does not accomplish anything. "Those who confess themselves guilty of all sins, but do not search out anyone sin in themselves" lull all their sins to sleep and finally become blind to them (DP 278; cf. TCR 518ff).
     Sometimes we may be overwhelmed with the number of evils we see in ourselves. Of course, the hells would like us to give up in discouragement. The Lord's burden is light, however. He asks us to change one area of our lives at a time. If a person "abstains from anyone sin" which he finds in himself, it is enough to get him on the way to heaven (TCR 530-emphasis added).
     We can say that if you keep one commandment you have kept them all, "for as soon as one from purpose or confirmation abstains from any evil because it is a sin, he is held by the Lord in the purpose of abstaining from the rest." If the person then does some evil from ignorance or in a moment of weakness, it does not count, since he did not do it deliberately (CL 529, cf. TCR 523).

49. Talk Yourself Out of It.

     With self-examination, hidden evils are identified and can be overcome before they grow. For some people self-examination is frightening. These people can still fight evils by talking themselves out of doing evils as they pop into their minds.

Since actual repentance . . . is in the Reformed Christian world exceedingly difficult . . . . an easier kind of repentance is here presented, which is that when anyone is giving thought to any evil and intending it, he shall say to himself, "Although I am thinking about this and intending it. I will not do it because it is a sin." By this means the temptation injected from hell is checked, and prevented from entering further (TCR 535; cf. HH 533, AR 531).

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It is better to get to work on an active evil you can easily see than it is to delay repentance for fear of what you might find in yourself.

50. Chop Off Its Head.

     David killed Goliath by hitting him directly in the head with a stone. All evil is that way-if we can destroy the head, the rest is easy. At the head of all other evils is the selfish desire to control others. This love will lead a person to think primarily of himself, to make demands and take advantage of others, to get revenge on people who cross him, to be happy only when he gets his own way (see DP 216, CL 262). This evil hides itself; it is hard to recognize (TCR 533), but the effort is worth it.

The hardest struggle of all is with the love of dominating from the love of self; he who subdues this easily subdues the other evil loves, for this is their head (DP 146).

To enter upon the way to heaven is not so difficult as many believe. The sole difficulty lies in being able to resist the love of self and the world, and to prevent their becoming dominant; for this is the source of all evils (HH 358).

     It might also be said that adultery is the head of all evil (see CL 356, AE 981.2, 993:3). More specifically, each person has a different dominant love which is the head of all his other loves and controls all his thinking (see NJHD 54-64, AC 6690:2, HH 477-480, 487). The Writings ask us to focus our repentance on the more grievous evils (TCR 509), such as adultery, love of dominion, and deceit (SD 6053), and especially on our ruling love (HH 487, AC 3796:3, 1909:2).

51. Focus on Today.

     Friends who have quit smoking or drinking have told me that the thought of abstaining for a month or a week is discouraging. It helps to have the goal be just to get through one day or even one minute at a time.
     We can fight evil the same way. When Jesus said, "Do not worry about tomorrow . . . . Sufficient for the day is its own evil" (Matt. 6:34), He was talking not only about our natural life, but about our spiritual life (AC 9050). We cannot shun evils in the past or future. "Conjecture about what is to come, and the remembrance of the past, are what take away all life's pleasantness and happiness" (SD 2190). The present is the only part of our life we have power to change.

He who leads a life of faith does repentance daily . . . . For from himself man is continually falling, but is continually being raised up by the Lord (AC 8391; cf. TCR 539e).

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52. Keep the Power of Evil in Perspective.

     Good and truth together is everything, and evil and falsity is nothing (DP 19), just as warmth and light are something, while cold and darkness are nothing. Cold and darkness exist, but they have no energy in them. Likewise, evil exists (see CL 444), but it has no power.
     Evil spirits like to think of themselves as very powerful, and they like to give us the same impression. But this is actually an illusion. Evil spirits have power over those who are in evil and falsity, "but such power may be compared to the power of a mite against a mite, or of a flea against a flea, of dust against dust, or of chaff against chaff." They can "seem most powerful and mighty; but yet they have no power whatever against truths, and it is so completely none that it is nothing at all." An angel or person who has power from the Lord can scatter a thousand companies of evil spirits, merely by a look and an effort of the will (AE 783:2, 4; cf. 1083e).

53. Begin Now.

     I find that the easiest time to wash the dishes is right after the meal. If they are left until the next morning, the food gets crusty and hard. Eventually, the task becomes quite unpleasant, as the leftover garbage becomes slimy and stinks, and mold and grubs appear.
     Evil is the same way: the sooner you face it, the easier it will be. Resisting evil later in life is much more difficult for those who as young adults "plunge into evils without restraint" (HH 533). As soon as you start, the Lord will work with you, lightening your burden.

When a person has made a beginning the Lord brings to life all that is good in him, and causes him not only to see evils to be evils, but also to refrain from willing them, and finally to turn away from them. This is meant by the Lord's words, 'My yoke is easy and My burden is light' (HH 533; cf. Life 97).

     The sooner you begin the easier it will be, for "evils increase daily if not removed by actual repentance" (AR 836).

54. Expect Small Improvements.

     The miracle of rebirth, like the miracle of birth and growth, comes through an orderly process. Regeneration cannot take place in an instant any more than a person can spring full-grown from the womb immediately after conception (see TCR 583-586). We are regenerated "little by little" over most of a lifetime (AC 9336, AE 650:59, 60). Knowing this, we can avoid getting discouraged when progress seems slow, and on the other hand we can encourage ourselves with the thought that regular efforts soon bring changes for the better.

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For most people it is not difficult; resisting evils "just once a week or twice a month" will result in a noticeable change (Life 97). "When one has shunned a sin several times" it will no longer appear (Char. 41).

55. Remember That It Will Get Easier.

     One of the best ways to make the task easier is to keep at it. If you take up jogging, you may find that at first it is difficult to run a quarter of a mile. Once it becomes a habit, running five miles may be easy and enjoyable. "It is known that habit is a second nature, and that therefore what is easy for one is difficult for another; and this is true of self-examination and confession" (TCR 563). "Actual repentance is easy for those who at times practice it, but is extremely difficult for those who have not practiced it" (TCR 562).
     So keep at it! Go through the process regularly, and the Lord will remove the evils down to their very roots, "and always with less resistance and combat; and therefore with less effort than in the first attempts" (AE 973).

56. Do Not Judge Yourself by How Difficult Your Struggle Is.

     With all I have said about making the battle against evil easier, some people may find that it is very difficult, and wonder whether something is wrong with them. These suggestions will make the battle easier than it would otherwise be, and easy enough that you can overcome; it still requires "all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength."
     If the battle is hard, do not be discouraged. The greater your love is, the more fiercely the hells will attack it. The Lord's struggles were the most difficult of all, and He has overcome all the hells, and is now fighting for you (NJHD 200, 201).
     If the battle is easy, do not take this as a sign that you have done better than others. It is the Lord who has made it easy for you. Thank Him and pray that hell does not lead you into worse temptations.
     Comparing your life with others often just results in feelings of blame, resentment, or cockiness. The question is, Are you going through the process of repentance? If you are, you can know you are on the right path.

57. Remember That Anyone Can Do It.

     One of the most clever lies ever devised is that since God alone has goodness and power, a person can and should make no effort to change himself for the better (see TCR 503, 630).

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In its worst form, it is predestination-the belief that God has chosen (without regard to individual freedom) for some to go to heaven and others to go to hell (see TCR 487, DP 330). Although we are unlikely to accept the concept of predestination theologically, we may still feel at times that there is no hope for us personally to be saved.
     With the Lord's power, getting to heaven is easy enough that anyone can do it! It does not matter who you are or how horrible your past may have been; you can be regenerated if you choose.

Every person is made so as to be able [by the Lord's power, if he asks for it] to shun evils as of himself (Life 31e).

A knowledge of how to be saved is not lacking to anyone, nor power if he wants to be saved. It follows that all are predestined to heaven and no one to hell (DP 329).

Since everyone in every religion knows the evils . . . that must be shunned . . . . this is provided by the Lord as the universal means of salvation with every nation that has any religion (AE 1180).

Who cannot live a civil and moral life . . .? Everyone, whether evil or good, lives that life . . . . The spiritual person . . . can do so as easily as the natural man can (HH 580-Emphasis has been added to the above numbers).

Summary

     In the past few months we have considered a number of factors which can make fighting evils easier. Some of these factors will make a life-and-death difference. Others may help a little, and some may not apply to you at all. Then again, you may find some things that are helpful which I have not mentioned. Perhaps as you review this list you might check off the items which would make the biggest difference to your state right now, and plan to work on them.

Build Your Relationship with the Lord

1.      Let the Lord give you a positive motivation.
2.      Know Him, understand Him.
3.      Acknowledge Him.
4.      Pray to the Lord.
5.      Listen to the Lord.
6.      Remember that He is fighting for you.
7.      Trust Him.
8.      Look for evidence of His love, power, and wisdom.
9.      Obey Him.

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Build Your New Will

10.      Fight evil with love.
11.      Work to overcome your fears.
12.      Be afraid to hurt those you love.
13.      Call on your "remains."
14.      Develop a sense of inner peace and confidence.
15.      Hope.
16.      Keep your goals clearly in sight.
17.      Enjoy the love in your life.
18.      Take responsibility for your life.
19.      Make an effort.

Build Your New Understanding

20.      Think about the Lord.
21.      Think about heaven.
22.      Think about hell.
23.      Polish up your ideals.
24.      Learn what evil is.
25.      Think about shunning evil.
26.      Think good thoughts about your neighbor.
27.      Use the Word.
28.      Do not take credit for your good.
29.      Do not dwell on your failures.
30.      Work to overcome your doubts.
31.      Send away your worries.
32.      Keep an open mind.
33.      Look for confirmation of the truth.
34.      Put love in the first place.

Build a Receptive Base in Your Natural Man

35.      Fill your life with order.
36.      Fill your life with beauty.
     a)      Smile.
     b)      Enjoy music.
     c)     Enjoy the outdoors.
37.      Seek the reviving power of worship.
38.      Take care of yourself physically.
39.      Get help from others.
40.      Get into a support group or social network.
41.          Express your good feelings and beliefs.
42.      Get involved in useful tasks

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43.      Take time off.
44.      Don't let evil habits get started.
45.      Enjoy the God-given pleasures of this world.

Cut Evils Down to Size

46.      Keep it simple.
47.      Keep in mind the steps of repentance.
48.      Tackle one evil at a time.
49.      Talk yourself out of it.
50.      Chop off its head.
51.      Focus on today.
52.      Keep the power of evil in perspective.
53.      Begin now.
54.      Expect small improvements.
55.      Remember that it will get easier.
56.      Do not judge yourself by how difficult your struggle is.
57.      Remember that anyone can do it.

     There is only one way to get to heaven, and that is to shun evils as sins against the Lord (see Life 18ff, 92ff). But there are at least 57 ways to make that task of fighting evil easier than it might otherwise be. If your life is difficult, try some of these to see how well they work. And above all, keep in mind the fact that the Lord loves you and does not want your life to be difficult. He says, "Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest . . . . For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matt. 11:28, 30).
"LIGHT BURDEN" SERIES 1986

"LIGHT BURDEN" SERIES Hyland Johns 1986

Dear Editor,
     I have been enjoying the current series in NEW CHURCH LIFE by Rev. John Odhner. It is well organized, doctrinally documented, interestingly written, and should be read by everyone.
     This whole series should be reprinted and available for our continued use and reference. To me, really great stuff!
     Hyland Johns,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

[Photo of Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs]

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     THE CHURCH AND PHYSICAL HEALING

     The sermon in this issue brings out some teachings relating to disease. We would like in the next issue to look at some questions relating to this subject.
     The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments seem in the literal meaning to relate healing to the work of the church. In Luke, chapter nine it is said: "He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick" (verse 2). And in the following chapter the Lord tells the disciples that when they enter a city they should "heal the sick who are there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you'" (verse 9). We will take up the matter of whether this is to be taken literally or spiritually. The Writings point out that the Lord's miracles often consisted of the healing of diseases, and they give illustrations of the fact that "it is so often said that the Lord healed all disease and weakness" (AC 8364). The twenty-eighth chapter-of Deuteronomy beautifully describes the blessings of prosperity and well-being on those who obey the Lord. And there is also described the disasters which will follow the disobedient, including "sore sickness and of long continuance . . . every sickness and every plague" (verses 59-61).
     The one commandment of the decalogue which carries a promise is the one about honoring father and mother. It indicates that if we obey this our days will be prolonged upon the land. Are we to understand this literally to mean that we will have long life in this world by virtue of such obedience? Or is it talking of our life in the promised land of the spiritual world? We will speak more of this next month. You are reminded of the last two chapters in Dr. Hugo Odhner's book Spirits and Men. He there comments, "In our hearts we all pray for health when it eludes us" (page 203). Is our focus to be on the internal or the external? Reflect on the following passage from the Arcana Coelestia:

One who is in merely external pleasures makes much of himself, indulges his stomach, loves to live sumptuously, and makes the height of pleasure to consist in eatables and drinkables. One who is in internal things also finds pleasure in these things, but his ruling affection is to nourish his body with food pleasurably for the sake of its health, to the end that he may have a sound mind in a sound body, thus chiefly for the sake of the health of the mind, to which the health of the body serves as a means.

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One who is a spiritual man does not rest here, but regards the health of the mind or soul as a means for the acquisition of intelligence and wisdom-not for the sake of reputation, honors, and gain, but for the sake of the life after death. One who is spiritual in a more interior degree regards intelligence and wisdom as a mediate end having for its object that he may serve as a useful member in the Lord's kingdom; and one who is a celestial man, that he may serve the Lord. To such a one bodily food is a means for the enjoyment of spiritual food, and spiritual food is a means for the enjoyment of celestial food (AC 4459:6).
NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

     In the October issue of 1936 it was reported that the Academy school year had begun with 26 students in the college and 87 in the high school. The 1986 school year has begun with 124 in the college and 208 in the high school.
     Fifty years ago this month under the heading "Brought to the Light" an old man describes in retrospect how he came to the New Church. Here is a part of the story with "we" changed to "I" for the more modern reader.
     "I recall that in my teens I accepted the beliefs adopted in the family circle . . . . After a while the questioning attitude became pronounced, with the result that a period of agnosticism ensued. Then it was that I proudly proclaimed that I was engaged in the quest for truth. I was rather proud of my disposition; there was a good deal of youthful egoism in it. I like to think there was some genuine earnestness as well.
     "Then, by what seemed to be mere chance, but which I now recognize as Providence, some of the teachings of the New Church were placed in my hands. They were received with avidity, and it was not long ere I was given opportunities for proclaiming them . . . . I was glad to tell my associates that I had found the truth for which I had been seeking for some years, but was surprised that they were not particularly impressed by my enthusiasm.
     "I insisted that I had found the truth, and, according to the appearance of things, I had. But as I look back from the vantage point of a riper experience and maturer thought, I realize that what really happened was that the truth found me" (NCL, October, 1936, p. 313).

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UNIVERSAL FAITH 1986

UNIVERSAL FAITH CAROLINE HOTSON SULLIVAN 1986

A METRICAL INTERPRETATION OF TCR 2

The one, eternal Lord, Who Ever Was,
Whose Holy Hebrew Name is "Yeh-ho-wah,"
Was born onto our Mother planet, Earth,
That He might overcome the power of Hell,
And glorify, which means to make divine,
His mortal human: made immortal now.
If this had not been done, no earthly man
Could ever enter Heaven, Nevermore.
Those enter heaven now
Whose faith is in their Saviour, Lord and God.
His name? The Lord God Jesus Christ, the King!
Our Father and our Savior, Glory Thine!

Mrs. Sullivan has copies of True Christian Religion rendered in blank verse by her father Clarence Hotson. (A five-page selection was published in this magazine in April.) If you are interested you are welcome to communicate with her at the address below:

Caroline Hotson Sullivan,
1107 Princeton Drive, Madison, Alabama 35758
Phone: (205) 772-0074
ACCOMMODATION 1986

ACCOMMODATION Eric H. Carswell 1986

Communications
Dear Editor,
I think the author of the August article "Accommodation" would have been truly pleased to see the commitment expressed in the recent religion curriculum workshop to many of the ideas on teaching that were expressed in the article. Early on in our work, Prescott Rogers, speaking about the teaching of religion, said that the most crucial aspect of good teaching is the preparation of the teacher, the second being use of good teaching skills and third being selection of what should be taught. On the same day, Peter Buss stressed that the way in which we teach is most important and that we must use images that the student can receive as his own.

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     For myself, I am buoyed up by the commitment of many ministers to develop ever better styles of preaching and teaching. I have heard of several examples of older members of the church commenting on how much they appreciate "the new sermons," meaning the ones that are being preached in the last decade or so. They have a sense that these sermons are organized and presented in a way that it is much easier for them to genuinely hear the Lord speaking to them in their lives. Certainly all of us preacher/teachers can continue to develop our communication abilities, but I am feeling optimistic about what I see as the development that is already in progress.
     Eric H. Carswell,
          Glenview, Illinois
CORRECTION 1986

CORRECTION Richard Linguist 1986

Dear Editor,
     ". . . the dark thickets of sorrow and the tall oaks of pride are all burning up" (NCL Jan. 1978). In this quote from my article on yoga, the word "price" was printed instead of "pride." I would very much appreciate it if your readers would amend their copies.
     Why? I am not sure. Perhaps I make this request because my mind is not well. I may suffer from that common mental illness of refusing to look at my unregenerate affections and in panicky flight, look only outward, seeking to create a perfect external environment in which I can view my own creation and goodness. I suppose that is why amateurish as well as professional psychologists are fond of labeling perfectionists as sick people.
     They may be correct often, but let us consider Swedenborg. Surely he was a perfectionist. Yet what did he say when the Lord appeared to him? "Oh, Thou Almighty Jesus Christ, who of Thy great mercy deignest to come to so great a sinner, make me worthy of this grace!" Here are the words of a perfectionist who was acutely aware of his unregenerate affections.
     As you consider in NCL why and how one defines himself as being New Church, you may wish to consider the relationship of humility to perfectionism as potential New Churchmen struggle to enter the New Church. For they may see Him with their minds as clearly as Swedenborg did with his eyes, and their response can be . . . well, let me illustrate.

475

     My sister Bonnie occasionally looks out her window to see a bird fly or a leaf fall and says, "Thank you, Lord." Then she returns with the total concentration of feminine care for the details of her gifts for her loved ones. Beautiful needlework is created with the masterful, sensitive hands of a perfectionist. As multiple sclerosis cripples her body she prays, "Lord, take my leg. I don't care, but please don't take my eyesight and hands." So she sits, thanking the Lord for the ability to see and sew images of perfection for Him.
     New Churchmen are human beings, real people with real struggles as they seek to understand and apply the new truths to their minds. I would suggest that the state of New Churchmen is that they have the opportunity to be more aware of evils in their minds than do other people and therefore have the opportunity to be more active in approaching a state of order and perfection in their lives. Our life on earth should be an upward climb, like the steps rising to the tower of our cathedral. First they turn from left to right, then after a short, straight rise they turn from right to left, symbolizing man's progress from affections of truth for good, to affections of good for truth.
     Let us define New Churchmen as those among us who really do grow heavenward. They try to do precisely as the Lord teaches in His Second Coming, while knowing in their hearts that, "It appears to man that truth perfects good, when yet good perfects truth" (AC 3207).

     Keep climbing!
          Richard Linguist,
               Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

An editorial note in this magazine in October of 1886 reads as follows:

We of the New Church believe in a Visible God, and we each have an idea of Him as a man. Of His existence we should know nothing did He not continually present Himself before us as the Truth, and in no other form. Let us remember when we approach that Divine Truth, whether in the Word or the Writings, that we are drawing nigh to the Lord, and put our shoes from off our feet, for we are then in the Divine presence and on Holy Ground. This we do when we learn what the Lord teaches, for the sake of living a life of usefulness in the humble and teachable disposition of little children."

476

NOT POETRY 1986

NOT POETRY Yorvar Synnestvedt 1986

Dear Editor.
     I've been following the recent correspondence concerning the New Revelation as poetry. At first I was surprised, then interested, then skeptical and now-well, I'm ready to present a contrary view.
     "Now it is permitted to enter intellectually into the mysteries of faith." As young people growing up in the New Church, we were imbued with the idea that the doctrines revealed through Emanuel Swedenborg constitute a rational revelation. We learned that they were disclosed for the purpose of instructing man's understanding so that he could, by means of truth, shun evils as sins against God. Further, we were taught that the Lord chose the Latin language to express these truths because of its stability (being a "dead" language) and its clarity. I believe we were correctly informed.
     Loving Divine truth does not convert it into poetry, an essay, or a novel. It remains essentially expositional in nature regardless of how we may feel toward it. What we feel, hopefully, is the love of spiritual truth active within ourselves, but this is not poetry. Truth is inspiring, and absolute truth has the power to touch us deeply. It may even move us to write a poem-or paint a picture. But it is not poetry any more than a landmark discovery in science is poetry, or an invention, or a "beautiful" theorem in geometry.
     The memorable relations, as well as the few expositional passages containing comparisons (such as the one Mr. Warren David presented) do have poetic qualities. But they are the exceptions. For the most part, the New Revelation is a logical and analytical presentation-as one might expect of absolute truth. Poetry, on the other hand, is affectional in its thrust, utilizing imagery to appeal to the imagination. Poetry is found in the Psalms, in Isaiah, and in the book of John, just to mention a few examples of poetry in revelation.
     In our zeal let's not blur valid and useful distinctions. Call a spade a spade; keep round pegs in round holes; if the shoe doesn't fit, go barefoot. Instead of attempting to convert exposition into poetry, try creating a poem that includes truth. Or you might consider supporting the efforts of linguists such as Mr. David Gladish to produce translations in modern, forceful English. Perhaps the need for vivid, readable translations is a reason why some readers of the New Revelation have been moved to attempt the conversion into poetry.
     Yorvar Synnestvedt,
          Kempton, Pennsylvania

477

MINISTERIAL CHANCES 1986

     Announcements

     Reverend William H. Clifford has resigned from the active priesthood of the General Church, effective August 15, 1986.
     Reverend Cedric King will conduct a special evangelization program in Orange County, California, beginning September 1, 1986.
     Reverend John L. Odhner will begin an independent evangelization effort in Albuquerque, New Mexico, effective January 1, 1987. He will also provide services for the Albuquerque Circle of the General Church.
     Reverend Louis D. Synnestvedt has been called as the pastor of the Carmel Church Society in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, effective September 1, 1986.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

479

     AUSTRALIA

     CANBERRA
Mr. and Mrs. Barrie Ridgway, 68 Hilder St., Weston, Canberra, A. C. T. 2611.

     SYDNEY, N.S.W.
Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom, 22 Dudley Street, Penshurst, N.S.W. 2222. Phone: 57-1589.

     BRAZIL

     RIO DE JANEIRO
Rev. Cristovao Rabelo Nobre, Rua Xavier does Passaros 151, Apt. 101 Piedale, Rio de Janeiro, RK 20740. Phone: 021-289-4292.

     CANADA

     Alberta:

     CALGARY
Mr. Thomas R. Fountain, 1115 Southglen Drive S. W., Calgary 13, Alberta T2W 0X2. Phone: 403-255-7283.

     EDMONTON
Mr. Daniel L. Horigan, 10524 82nd St., Edmonton, Alberta T6A 3M8. Phone: 403-469-0078.

     British Columbia:

     DAWSON CREEK
Rev. William Clifford. 1536 94th Ave., Dawson Creek, V1G 1H1. Phone: (604) 782-3997.

     VANCOUVER
Mr. Douglas Crompton, 21-7055 Blake St., V5S 3V5. Phone: (604) 437-9136.

     Ontario:

     KITCHENER
Rev. Christopher Smith, 16 Bannockburn Rd., R.R. 2, N2G 3W5. Phone: (519) 893-7460.

     OTTAWA
Mr. and Mrs. Donald McMaster, 726 Edison Avenue, Apt. 33, Ottawa, Ontario K2C 3P8. Phone: (613) 729-6452.

     TORONTO
Rev. Geoffrey Childs, 2 Lorraine Gardens, Islington, Ontario M9B 424 Phone: (416) 231-4958.

     Quebec:

     MONTREAL
Mr. Denis de Chazal, 17 Baliantyne Ave. So., Montreal West, Quebec H4X 281. Phone: (514) 489-9861.

     DENMARK

     COPENHAGEN
Mr. Jorgen Hauptmann, Strandvejen 22, Jyllinge, 4000 Roskilde. Phone: 03-389968.

     ENGLAND

     COLCHESTER
Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh, 2 Christchurch Court, Colchester, Essex C03 3AU Phone: 0206-43712

     LETCHWORTH
Mr. and Mrs. R. Evans, 111 Howard Drive, Letchworth, Herts. Phone: Letchworth 4751.

     LONDON
Rev. Frederick Elphick, 21B Hayne Rd., Beckenham, Kent BR3 4JA. Phone: 01-658-6320.

     MANCHESTER
Mrs. Neil Rowcliffe, 135 Bury Old Road, Heywood, Lanes. Phone: Heywood 68189.

     FRANCE

     BOURGUINON-MEURSANGES
Rev. Alain Nicolier, 21200 Beaune, France. Phone: (80) 22.47.88.

     HOLLAND

     THE HAGUE
Mr. Ed Verschoor, Olmenlaan 7.3862 VG Nijkerk

     NEW ZEALAND

     AUCKLAND
Mrs. H. J. Keal, Secretary, 4 Derwent Crescent, Titirange, Auckland 7. Phone: 817-8203.

     NORWAY

     OSLO
Mr. Eyvind Boyesen, Vetlandsveien 82A, Oslo 6. Phone: 26-1159.

     SCOTLAND

     EDINBURGH
Mr. and Mrs. N. Laidlaw, 35 Swanspring Ave., Edinburgh EH 10-6NA. Phone: 0 31-445- 2377.

     GLASGOW
Mrs. J. Clarkson, Hillview, Balmore, Nr. Torrance, Glasgow. Phone: Balmore 262.

     SOUTH AFRICA

     Natal:

     DURBAN
Rev. Geoffrey Howard, 30 Perth Rd., Westville, Natal. 3630. Phone: 031-821 136.

     Transvaal:

     TRANSVAAL SOCIETY
Rev. Norman E. Riley, 8 Iris Lane, Irene, 1675 R. S. A., Phone: 012-632679.

     Zululand:

     KENT MANOR
Mrs. D. G. Liversage, Box 7088, Empangeni Rail, 3910, Natal, South Africa. Phone: 0351- 23241

     Mission in South Africa:
Superintendent-The Rev. Norman E. Riley (Address as above)

     SWEDEN

     STOCKHOLM
Contact Mr. Rolf Boley, Arvid Morners Vag 7, 161 59 Bromma. Phone: efter kl. 18.00, 08- 878280

480

ARCANA CAELESTIA 1986

by
Emanuel Swedenborg

     of John Elliott's New English Translation
will be published on
October 24th, 1986

     Hardback $10.70 (95?? postage)

     General Church Book Center
Box 278
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009

     Hours: Mon-Fri 9-12
or by appointment
Phone: (215) 947-3920

     Volumes 1, 2 and 3 are also currently available and the remaining eight volumes are scheduled for publication at regular intervals of about one year.


Attractive subscription rates are still available. Apply to the Swedenborg Society for details.

481

Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI November, 1986 No. 11
NEW CHURCH LIFE

482

     A striking passage in the first volume of the Arcana Coelestia reads in part as follows: "Looking to the Lord . . . while hating the neighbor amounts not only to standing a long way off, but also to having between himself and the Lord a hell-like chasm into which the person would fall if he wished to go any nearer. For it is hatred toward the neighbor that constitutes that intervening hell-like chasm." This is from the translation by John Elliott, the fourth volume of which is being published as we go to print. We confess to a very external curiosity about what color the dust jacket will be this time.
     The passage quoted above makes the starting point of the sermon in this issue by Rev. George McCurdy. Mr. McCurdy is a chaplain and instructor of religion in the Academy high school. He also serves as a chaplain in the United States Air Force.
     We are indebted this month to seven letter writers for a considerable portion of our contents. We would thank in particular Miss Lyris Hyatt who persevered in completing her letter in spite of grave illness, and thank an anonymous writer for a powerful letter about divorce. We expect that people will want to share this letter with young people who are not as yet readers of New Church Life.
     When we analyze the ways in which the church organization can be improved the matter of increased lay involvement frequently comes up. There is an ongoing investigation of this matter of lay involvement, and we are publishing a particular example in this issue.
     The "favorite passage" this month consists of only three lines from number 508 of True Christian Religion.
     As we are publishing this month a fine review of Rev. Martin Pryke's new book, this is an apt time to call attention to a New Church Parental Guide to Sex Education produced several years ago by Rev. Jan H. Weiss. A number of Parents have expressed appreciation for this helpful booklet. Others may not be familiar with it. It is available at the General Church Book Center.
     We refer on page 504 to some books about to be published, and on page 523 we report on a new occasional periodical, the first copy of which we have just received.

     A booklet by Rev. Daniel Goodenough on human freedom and Divine Providence has been published by the Swedenborg Scientific Association. This is now available from the General Church Book Center.

483

ARROGANCE, HUMILITY, SELF-WORTH 1986

ARROGANCE, HUMILITY, SELF-WORTH Rev. GEORGE MCCURDY 1986

     "The presence of the Lord is predicated according to the state of love to the neighbor. For a man to look up to the Lord . . . and at the same time to hate his neighbor is not only to stand afar off from [the Lord], but is also to have an infernal gulf between himself and the Lord . . ." (AC 904).

     It is a well-known teaching in the church that "love is the life of man." Love is our very life. Take love out of life and all thought, speech and action grow cold in the measure love grows cold (see DLW 1).
     Love follows us everywhere and it enters into all of our uses. The Writings teach us that love has a constant endeavor to conjoin itself with wisdom. Like a bird, love soars above wisdom looking down over the options. When it sees that wisdom which it favors, it comes down to conjoin itself in a form of marriage.
     In general, all love falls into two categories. There is love of God and the neighbor, or love of self and the world. A goal of regeneration is to put these loves into their proper priority. Daily we struggle with minor and major issues to curb or restrain self-love so that we won't overestimate our own worth and suffocate love of the Lord and the neighbor. "The presence of the Lord is first possible with a man when he loves the neighbor" (AC 904).
     The tendency to love ourselves is not an easy task to restrain or to understand. From birth, we are taught, we love nothing but ourselves and the world. This tendency to love self is part of the inherited tendencies passed on from our ancestors.
     When we were infants, that love of self appeared good and necessary. Such appearances are excused because of childish ignorance, and self-love is kept somewhat harmless because of the presence of innocence (see AC 1667).
     But as a child grows, and enters into periods of instruction and illustration from the Word, it becomes clear that parents, friends, society, and the Lord will not abide with, nor tolerate, the uncontrolled nature of self-love.
     Having learned enough times the painful consequences or punishments that result from the outbreak of proprium, self-love covers itself up and seeks to find fulfillment in a more "acceptable" form. Once underground, self-love establishes networks and connections so intricate that we can hardly trace them or find their end.

484

     The Lord knows their location and hiding places and He works unceasingly to defeat this enemy of the soul. In proportion as evils are shunned as sins and we work to control self-love in our external conduct, the Lord works on the internal defeat of their power.
     To impress us with their heinous effects, the Lord, through His Word, gives us some direct and, to all appearances, stern teachings. Self-love is described in terms that shock and perhaps offend us. A man who remains in his corporeal desires and remains uneducated in spiritual things is likened to a worm, or he is described as lower than a savage beast. In other places, the self-righteous are seen as crocodiles, poisonous snakes, or wolves.
Add to this the teachings that self-love is like a fountain out of which pours forth all kinds of disorders such as: hatred, adultery, revenge, murder, cruelties, unmercifulness, love of dominion, ridicule, and the arrogance of self-righteousness.
     Man, in the state of self-love, will tolerate the Lord so long as he feels the Lord favors him with power to control others. But if the Lord fails his expectations, his anger flares up and he burns to destroy the Lord and the Word (see AC 9348). In a word, these examples teach us that hell is self-love out of control.
     While hearing these excerpts from the Word about self-love, our minds might have been fighting back with rebuttals, anger and disdain for such morbid information. Human reason and the best of psychological experience might warn that such thinking in the minds of some could draw or lead people into dangerous assumptions. If an aggressive, competitive, self-assured self-love is destroyed, they argue, what are we left with?
     Or one could reason that this is just what he doesn't like about religion. Such doctrine thrives on guilt-producing techniques that immobilize our feelings, producing neurotics with low self-esteem. Given this view of self they say: "Is it any wonder that people of the church have difficulty enjoying life and relaxing? Is it any wonder we lose our youth?"
     If the Word ended with only this theme of man being totally corrupt and hopelessly lost, their objections or protests might have some validity. But there is more to the Divine solution. There is hope offered and accessible for man to find and have spiritual sanity. The control or ordering of self-love is the beginning of reality-realness as opposed to the fantasy one is left with if he pursues the path of self-righteous arrogance.
     How often have we found passages in the Word that clearly vindicated the down-trodden, the humiliated person?

485

Such is the case of the publican. That mistrusted, humiliated, speechless tax collector that the Pharisee found so unworthy and unlovable emerges as the hero and the worthy one:
     The Pharisee, with his strict adherence and care for outward form and ceremonies, struts into the temple of the Lord and announces his good works. With proud arrogance he recounts his fasting twice a week, and giving tithes of all that he had. Then turning his eyes to the publican he thanks God that he is not like that sinner. He ends up being the one who loses.
     Amazingly, the Pharisee's prayer never asked for help or forgiveness, nor did he hint or speak of any human weakness. He was well trained to see and observe the faults in others, to the exclusion of his own.
     The publican, hearing the words of the Pharisee, could not raise his eyes, and with his chin on his breast said: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner."

The Lord said: ". . . This man went down to his house justified . . . he who humbles himself will be exalted."

     The power of this parable in the literal sense is clear, and it helps us to see that the Lord does not intend to destroy the love of self and leave us with nothing but guilt and low self-esteem. Consider what does come to the one who controls self-love:

. . . in proportion as the heart is humbled, so does the love of self and all the evil thence cease; and in proportion as this ceases there inflows good and truth . . . from the Lord . . . (AC 2423:2-emphasis added).

To the extent that anyone is without the love of self he can become wise in Divine things (HH 272).

The presence of the Lord is first possible with a man when he loves the neighbor (AC 904).

If man studies the neighbor and the Lord more than self, he is in a state of regeneration . . . (AC 3570:2).

     What is clear in these teachings and many others is that arrogant hatred of the neighbor leads to the loss of the Lord's presence. That in itself leads to an eternity of nothingness, misery, spiritual insanity, emptiness-pure fantasy.
     Humility, on the other hand, opens the door for the restoration of innocence. Humility and innocence will activate our conjunctive love to seek out the deeper truths of the Lord's wisdom. A humble love will then reach down and conjoin itself with wiser truths that will bring about a true sense of self-worth.

486

     As we look forward to and prepare for the beauty of Christmastime, we consider the theme of love coming into a world filled with darkness and confusion. He came to a world in which people had the inns of their minds filled or preoccupied with themselves.
     The message of the angels proclaimed: "Peace on earth, food will to men . . ."
     What better way is there to enter into all of these representations than to empty out self-love and learn to study "the neighbor and the Lord more than self . . ." for "the presence of the Lord is first possible with a man when he loves the neighbor." Amen.

     LESSONS: AC 904 (2-3); AC 3993 (8-9); Luke 18:9-17 KINGDOM OF THE HEAVENS IS AT HAND 1986

KINGDOM OF THE HEAVENS IS AT HAND Rev. CHRISTOPHER BOWN 1986

     At Thanksgiving and Christmastime, our hearts and minds are deeply touched as we experience anew the kingdom of the heavens.
     We hope our children will experience the sphere of the heavens. We know they will, as they forget about themselves, perhaps just momentarily, and have the joy of giving to others and helping out at the holiday season. And we also know they will as they respond with wonder and delight to the stories found in the Lord's Word.
     That's why we have them enact the thanksgiving offering made each year by the ancient Israelites at the time of first-fruits. That's why we present the magical scenes of that first Christmas with Gabriel, Mary, Joseph, the heavenly host, the shepherds, the wise men and others, rejoicing at the birth of Jesus Christ.
     The angels are present with our children as they enjoy these things in their innocent and childlike way. And unknown to our children, close ties of friendship are made that will remain for years to come.
     Our hope isn't just for our children, though. Each year don't we deeply desire to experience the life of heaven for ourselves?
     We begin to do so by following the pattern of holiday traditions that are special to our family and by sharing in our children's wonder and delight and joy. But that won't do the trick for us adults entirely-there is something else that we need in addition to directly experience the real thing for ourselves.

487

     To experience heaven is to be in touch with the living God. It is to experience the Lord's life from deep within ourself. It is to be uplifted by the love and faith that we receive from Him.
     For this to happen, what we adults have to do is very simple. The Lord began His public ministry by saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens is at hand" (Matt. 4:17) and "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the Gospel" (Mark 1:15)
     To repent is to work with the Lord to establish heavenly order within our life. We need to look at how we are living our life to see if there is any way in which we are hurting or injuring the Lord and other people-whether it is by what we say or do, or what we think or feel. We need to make a real commitment and a real effort to change. And we need to believe the Gospel-that Jesus Christ, our Lord, is present with us with His infinite love and power and that He alone is really able to remove our evils and forgive our sins.
     This is at the very heart of why the Lord came into the world. This is at the very heart of what we celebrate during the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, just a few short weeks away.
     In fact, the spirit and life that will be experienced by ourselves-and even by our children during our festivals in the coming weeks will be as deep and as rich as the experience within ourselves of the kingdom of the heavens.
     It's very simple. The kingdom of the heavens is at hand. Let us repent, and believe the Gospel.
NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

Think of a "modern" translation of Divine Love and Wisdom coming out a hundred years ago. The November issue of this magazine in 1886 reviewed it. There was praise, but there was caution. Was it too bold to use the word "transparent" instead of the word "diaphanous" in nos. 245 and 255? Nowadays we are entirely used to the word "transparent." In 1886 there seems to have been concern that we use words in English which sound like the Latin words, in this case the Latin diaphanus. When the Writings speak of a transparent object (as in TCR 34 and 216) they use the Latin word diaphanus. Unfortunately several of the translations we use are quite old and incline to too many Latin-sounding words.

488

REPORT OF THE BISHOP OF THE GENERAL CHURCH 1986

REPORT OF THE BISHOP OF THE GENERAL CHURCH Louis B. King 1986

     September 1, 1985 to August 31, 1986

     The new angelic heaven, for which we long, is an eternal dwelling place with the Lord. The Lord's Divine Providence, from the beginning of creation, has worked for the establishment and preservation of this heaven, truly His kingdom in the spiritual world and in the natural world (see DP 27). Since the Lord's kingdom in the heavens could not subsist without His kingdom of the church on earth, it is comforting to realize that the Lord's providence is working continually for the welfare and strength of His church on earth (see AR 533, AE 665).
     Reflecting on the events of this past year, one can sense the presence of the Lord's love and wisdom guiding the affairs of His church, reaping the harvests of past efforts while planting seeds for new growth. We, the laymen and priests of His organized church, must conscientiously try to oppose our propriums so that we can faithfully and sincerely do our best with the daily responsibilities which challenge us. Without the Lord we can do nothing. Unless we, however, endeavor to do His will, He can accomplish little for us or through us. With God all things are possible; without Him what is left but the chaos of self-intelligence? Sometimes it seems as though man is as insignificant as he is essential.
     In the past twelve months we have seen an unusual number of ordinations, including the three degrees of the priesthood: A candidate for the office of Assistant Bishop has been nominated. Several men have left the active priesthood of the General Church to pursue other professions or focus their attention on evangelization efforts. A new beginning for the church has taken place in Ghana with the return of the Reverend William Ankra-Badu. Also, the General Church Circle in New Zealand will be strengthened when its first resident pastor, the Reverend Robin Childs, receives clearance to take up residence in that country.
     Now we look forward to the next General Church Assembly, to be held in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, June 3-7, 1987. Please plan to attend this historic, gathering and participate in the selection of your next Assistant Bishop. In addition to the doctrinal instruction and discussions to be offered, you will be asked to consider new challenges in carrying forth the uses of evangelization, New Church education, and translation of the Word. The peace and joy of worshiping the Lord together will, of course, be the culminating joy of our Assembly.
     Freya and I thank you for your support and cooperation in carrying out the uses of the General Church.

489

     Statistical Activities

As Bishop of the General Church:
National Assembly
Episcopal visits-25
Annual General Church in Canada meetings
Board and Corporation meetings-5
Joint Council-1
Bishop's Council-3
Annual Council of the Clergy meetings
Bishop's Consistory-weekly
Bishop's Representatives-monthly
Worship and Ritual Committee-monthly
General Church Summer Seminar-2 days
Ordinations into the first degree of the priesthood-4
Ordinations into the second degree of the priesthood-3
Ordination into the third degree of the priesthood-l

     As Chancellor of the Academy:

Faculty worship
Opening church service for students and faculty
Commencement service
General faculty meetings-2
Theological faculty meetings-monthly
College chapel-9
Secondary school chapel-l
Board and corporation meetings-9
Joint meeting of the board and faculty
Glencairn Awards Committee-1
Teaching Assignment:
Theology I (Doctrine of the Lord)-l term

     Ministrations in Bryn Athyn:

Total services conducted-52 (festival, public and private)
Society doctrinal classes-4
Arcana classes-Tuesday evenings
Cairnwood Village classes-Wednesday mornings
Joint Council meeting
Semi-annual meeting of the Bryn Athyn Church
Bryn Athyn Church School worship-9

     Louis B. King,
          Executive Bishop

490

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (9) 1986

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (9) Rev. William H. Burke 1986

     . . . When I drew near, I saw this inscription above the door, Nunc Licet-It is now permitted-which signified that it is now permitted to enter understandingly into the mysteries of faith (True Christian Religion 508).

     When I think of this wonderful agreement, that It is now permitted, my heart is overwhelmed. It brings to mind a saying in the Word: "Whereas I was blind, now I see" (John 9:25). In this passage in the True Christian Religion we are promised that if we truly want to, we can now understand the things that have so long been in darkness. We can actually know the Lord and live in His kingdom for it is now permitted, because of what is now revealed in the Word for the New Church. This passage constantly reminds me of the gift we have in the New Church. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
     Rev. William H. Burke

     [Photo of Rev. William H. Burke]

491

LAY PARTICIPATION COMMITTEE REPORT ON BRYN ATHYN 1986

LAY PARTICIPATION COMMITTEE REPORT ON BRYN ATHYN GARY AND KARA TENNIS 1986

     (Those who worked on the committee to increase lay participation in the church are concerned that the impression conveyed by the following report could be overly negative about Bryn Athyn. The report, by intent, details the particular problem of why many church people aren't involved in church activities, so its thrust is the criticisms and areas of need unearthed in the discussions. The committee's purpose would not have been met if the report focused on the ways the Bryn Athyn community is healthy and thriving. The pastoral staff in Bryn Athyn has given the report its recognition and support, and is exploring ways to continue meeting the needs of the huge variety of parishioners under its care.)

I. Background

     In March, 1983, the General Church Corporation proposed that the Bishop appoint a committee to study ways of increasing lay participation in the church. After meetings, letters and discussion by committee members, we decided to involve the whole church in discussion of what lay uses should be and what stands in the way of people participating in them. The process of asking and trying to answer the questions is itself an invigorating stimulus to self-examination and to the desire to contribute. With the corporation's approval, we invited everyone connected with the Bryn Athyn Church to join in small discussion groups that gave each person a chance to talk on specific questions. As stated in Conjugial Love 183, "unless the hearer think of [a subject] from himself and ask questions, it does not remain." The very positive response from participants leads us to conclude that we fulfilled our two-fold mission. First, people generated specific worthwhile suggestions, which are outlined below. More importantly, the experience itself of wrestling with this problem helped many participants feel more inspired to give of their thought and energy to the church.
     Our hope is that this work, concluded now in Bryn Athyn, can be carried on in any other societies that feel their laity could be more involved. We propose to seek leaders from each society to organize similar discussions throughout the church, and to present the results of their efforts to the committee for compilation of a church-wide report.

492

II. Methodology in Bryn Athyn

     We attempted to invite to a discussion group every adult in Bryn Athyn and surrounding areas who is associated with the church. The discussion leaders, each assigned one hundred people, extended invitations by letter or telephone, and usually both. The maximum number of participants in each discussion group was ten.
     It took a little over a year to contact every reachable person on the congregation list. Approximately 450 people, ranging from the dedicated to the alienated, attended discussions. The discussions were conducted according to guidelines established, after trial-and-error development, by the committee (Guidelines are attached as an Appendix).
     In compiling the information, we rejected the statistical analysis approach. The format (discussion groups rather than oral surveys) brought out needs and feelings that aren't easy to categorize. The concerns and suggestions evolved organically as part of the honest discussion process. The ideas that surfaced form a continuum of subtle shadings rather than rigid, quantifiable conclusions. Therefore, the dominant themes and suggestions were gleaned from the discussion leaders' reports, and reflect their sense of the messages they heard most often.

III. Response of participants to the discussion groups

     A common response to the invitation to spend another night out was a feeling of reluctance to bother. In spite of our thorough effort to explain our purpose through letters, phone calls and the Bryn Athyn Post, a lot of people were not informed about the project. However, most of the participants walked out afterward glad to have taken part in a meaningful small group discussion that included people of different ages, interests and walks of life. Many expressed appreciation for the chance to hear the views of people they normally wouldn't speak to. Some felt uncomfortable talking about personal experiences with "strangers"; others felt that the informal sharing of feelings about the church was the most valuable aspect. Getting together to hear what others in the church care about, rather than just for intellectual stimulation, filled a neglected need for many of those involved. Some wrote that the people who didn't attend the discussions might have benefitted the most. The majority were eager to have a report that would formally record the trends and suggestions that surfaced. This eagerness reflects the dominant response expressed after the discussions were over: "Someone official cares about me as an individual, and I feel heard by the church."

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IV. Dominant themes

     The most prevalent theme was the sense of isolation many people feel in our large community. This did not come, predictably, from the people who run committees, are asked to serve in important positions, and are generally perceived as having mainstream influence. But it came repeatedly from students, newcomers, older people, the geographically isolated, and from a vast group of quieter individuals, many of whom have lived in Bryn Athyn for years, who feel their input is not needed, wanted or sought by those in power. These people felt that the church is rich and sophisticated and that their small-scale input wouldn't be perceived as valuable. Many said that we rely too heavily on the clergy for answers, and that the lay influence that matters in decision-making tends to come from successful businessmen. Others said they sense that people in charge of committees don't want their authority challenged. It's important to remember that whether or not these perceptions are true, they exist in many people's minds and need to be heard. Some said they feel inadequate and therefore fearful of volunteering. They don't speak up, and then retreat even more because they feel guilty about not being more involved. Many people want to be needed to help, and personally asked if they would work on specific jobs, not necessarily just for positions of responsibility. Yet people spoke also of the need to be left in freedom to accept or reject a specific request since everyone wants to spend time on what he loves.
     An interesting theme to juxtapose with the above is the feeling that came up repeatedly that many people are far too busy already, either with their jobs or with church work or both. Far more women work outside the home than used to, so both spouses tend to be busier filling the gaps in the family caused by absence of a full-time homemaker. Young parents particularly spoke of being overwhelmed by the responsibilities of raising young children and starting out in their careers. They feel guilty about not doing more for the church (and feel bad for what they're missing out on as a result), but don't have the energy and time to give. Some people expressed that too many of the activities in Bryn Athyn work against family life, and several couples pointed out that they had time for evening family worship before they moved here, but don't have time now. Many expressed a desire for family-oriented social life that wouldn't divide us so much into age strata and wouldn't require parents always to get babysitters or be away from their children.

     Some of the common criticisms we heard are as follows:

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     1.      A lot of people are concerned that as a church we neglect elderly and sick people. We could involve all age groups in defining and meeting their needs.
     2.      Some older discussion group participants tended to sit back and blame "young people" for not enthusiastically carrying on the responsibilities of the church.

     3.      There was heavy criticism by the 40-and-under age group of certain church social functions (particularly Friday Supper) that are perceived as not meeting the attitudes and states of a variety of people. More varied events are needed, they felt.
     4.      Academy graduates from the 60's and 70's often have bad feelings about the Academy, which they associate with all church functions. It's easy to say that this is irrational, but that doesn't change the intensity of their feelings.
     5.      Some felt that changing lifestyles, precipitated by more working women and by mass media, have lowered the degree that people get involved in the church.

     The following are areas of appreciation that came up frequently.

     1.     Many gave recognition to the hard work done by ministers and the love they show for their jobs.
     2.      There was great appreciation expressed for the church's strong new emphasis on evangelization.
     3.      The Bryn Athyn Church School is seen by many as a strong and positive force in our church.

V. Suggestions

     The most commonly-voiced suggestion for increasing lay participation in the Bryn Athyn area was the creation of a computer file of the abilities and interests of everyone (starting with high school age) connected with the church. (We realize this is in progress, but it's strengthening to hear how many people feel the critical need.) Most discussion participants agreed that ministers and committee heads looking for help need a source to consult for fresh talent. People looking for volunteers should branch out and ask for help from those who don't participate as much, or from people who aren't necessarily their friends. Many church members want to feel needed, and need to be personally asked to do specific jobs that might appeal to them. The talent file would help overcome the problem of lesser-known members not being assimilated into uses, because people in charge wouldn't have Lo get to know them first before knowing their interests.

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They could approach them on the basis of their professed talents, and then get to know them while doing a job together.
     The other side of increasing involvement is greater awareness of the jobs to be done. A suggestion was made that the church hold a "Use Fair" (similar to a job fair), possibly as part of an existing event that already draws a lot of members (e.g., church on Sunday or the 19th of June picnic). All society uses could be represented, volunteers could sign up, and everyone would learn more about how our community functions. People looking for volunteers could also request them as part of Friday Supper announcements, or hand out flyers there or at other meetings. A paid lay leader who organized all volunteer involvement in the church could chart new directions and could ultimately save the church money.
     Another concern that stimulated suggestions was the welcoming of newcomers. (An example of' the pressing need for this was one woman who said it took her over five years to feel integrated and welcome. The first time anyone noticed her officially was when their second child got a red ball from the church.) We could have a regular feature in the Bryn Athyn Post that introduces people who have moved to town or who are getting involved in the Bryn Athyn Church. Anyone aware of newcomers should report to the pastor's office. An interview or profile could help us get to know them, and different outreach efforts could help them feel valued: pastoral welcome visits (with follow-up visits), an up-to-date brochure about Bryn Athyn, a Women's Guild "Welcome Wagon" visit, an invitation to list their talents, and maybe periodic calls from all established resident that would show that we care.
     Many people who feel the family gets fragmented in Bryn Athyn suggested we have more social events that families could attend together. Two popular events are the June 19th picnic and the July 4th celebration, both of which are for families. The success of the pre-school church services, it was surmised, was their potential for whole family involvement. Many people want to volunteer for jobs the family can work on together.
     Discussion participants made a host of other suggestions, some of which follow here in list form.

     1.      We need a task force for troubled marriages, led by well-trained professionals. This could be open to needy Christians in surrounding areas as well.
     2.      Ministers could promote more Bible study for the purposes of evangelization.
     3.      A New Church hospice could be of great service to our own members and could also minister to both the physical and spiritual needs of those now outside the church.

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     4.      Many families need specific instruction and suggestions on how to give family worship, and support for the difficult issues worship sometimes raises in the home (e.g., the father being apathetic).
     5.      We need more small-group doctrinal classes, for all ages, during the summer.
     6.      People in emotional or physical need should be visited by a pastor without having to necessarily ask for this. Friends of those in need should help the pastors stay aware of them.
     7.      We could use more information/counseling for couples with one spouse in the church and one spouse out.
     8.      We need more care for the elderly, transportation for shopping, visits by pastors and others, Cairnwood Village teas, etc.
     9.      Sponsoring a marathon or a race for a charitable cause, open to surrounding communities, would give a friendly impression of Bryn Athyn and could be of use to the larger world. Good communication with our neighbors is vital.
     10.      A New Church bookstore in a busy area (similar to the Toronto Society's) could be a superb tool for evangelization.
     11.      We could serve punch instead of alcohol at church functions, to help those with a potential drinking problem, to protect our image, and to move away from condoning a lifestyle that revolves around drinking.
     12.      We need an informal "coffee house" or drop-in center for socializing, with no alcohol served.
     13.      Mothers with young children could participate more easily in rummage sale set-up, classes, etc., if we provided nursery services.
     14.      We need a list of at-home volunteer jobs that young mothers could do without getting baby sitters.
     15.      Ministers writing pamphlets on evangelization or working on marketing the church could consult laymen with experience in these
     16.      The college could benefit from a religious assembly similar to the one done in the high school.
     17.      Let's have lay participation discussion groups for college students.
     18.      Dessert or supper after Friday class would encourage visiting and discussion.

     Conclusions

     One reaction to this report may be to "preach" at the concerns and points of view expressed by the participants: for example, "if you don't feel a part of things and want to get involved, just choose something and jump in.

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You can only blame yourself, so don't try to rationalize your apathy." If this kind of condescension is the main reaction the report produces, then our efforts won't go beyond the value the discussions had for those who took part. We hope, however, that this report will meet the need so many expressed to be heard by those who run our organization. We hope it will stimulate fresh, creative approaches to helping more people find the fulfillment and communion they want from taking part in the uses of the church.
     In general, we got a strong sense that people want to rely less on the clergy to develop all the church's doctrinal applications to life. Laymen want to see themselves, and be seen, as active seekers for answers from the Word about their work, problems, and families. Most people felt that our ministers should preach and pastor, providing spiritual guidance and counsel, and leave many more of the important administrative and physical functioning duties to lay people. Some expressed a desire that the members of the church develop more trust of each other's ideas-to try new ones before prematurely assuming they're bad or impractical. We don't all need to agree, or always look to ministers to solve the disagreements.
     A laity as involved as these ideas suggest has to be deeply informed, of course, which leads to a central truth that was voiced often in our meetings: true lay participation is going to the Word to learn, reflecting individually, and discussing in a meaningful way with our families and our friends what the Lord wants us to do.
     Thank you to the dedicated group of discussion leaders who showed their love of the church by donating hours of time to the committee.
     Anyone who is interested in working on this effort in church societies should contact Gary Tennis at Box 274, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.

     APPENDIX

     LPC DISCUSSION GUIDELINES

     (Followed by All Group Leaders)
I.      Introduction (3 minutes)
     A.      Introduce self, acquaint others with each other (names only).
     B.      Thank you for coming.
     C.      The church is you.
     D.      Purpose of this meeting: GC Corporation wants to know what participation you are interested in. Personal input is important because we need to hear from each of the laity about how you feel, from the most alienated to the most staunch supporters.

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     E.      You have the right to pass if you don't want to discuss a question.
     F.      Results of this meeting-report and personal talent survey.
     G.      Explain time restrictions in questions for discussion.

II.      Discussion Questions
     A.      Warm Up-choice of: "How was your day?" "In thirty seconds or less tell us the best thing that's happened to you all week." "What did you have to go through (or give up) to get here"' (3045 seconds each 7 minutes overall)
     B.      Think of a time when you've participated in the church. Was your experience satisfying? (What have you learned about serving and filling needs that you would like us to know about?) (3 mins. each + 10 mins. open 5 40 mins. overall)
      C.     Looking at your life in relation to the church, what would you like your role in the church to be? Are there talents or contributions you'd like to be known and available for? (3 mins. each + 10 mins. open = 40 mins. overall)
     D.      What do we, as a group, want to say to the rest of the church about lay participation? (20 mins. open discussion. Write down 2 or 3 main points for group report.)

III.      Cards/Critiques
     A.      3x5 card for talents-explain idea that some day soon we hope to have a computer and a programmer available for networking reference of all talents and contributions in the church. This printout would be available to laypeople and clergy alike.
     B.      Critiques of the discussion-do here.
NCL FIFTY YEARS AGO 1986

NCL FIFTY YEARS AGO 1986

It is a special pleasure to look at the news notes about Detroit in this magazine in November in 1936. Rev. Norman Reuter had just made a visit, holding a service in a private home attended by twenty-six adults and eleven children. There was a mood of optimism, and the little group held a business meeting observing that they were getting big enough to rent a hall for their services. They also wished to increase the number of visits from their traveling pastor. The reason this is such a pleasure to observe is that the Detroit church has come a long way. This year saw the dedication of a fine new church building. They have their own school and two resident ministers.

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REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF GENERAL CHURCH RELIGION LESSONS 1986

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF GENERAL CHURCH RELIGION LESSONS Donald L. Rose 1986

     1985

     Last year we reported mailing out 213 regular religion lessons. This year it is 217, which grade by grade are as follows:

Kindergarten-35
Grade One-28
Grade Two-30
Grade Three-30
Grade Four-18
Grade Five-27
Grade Six-15
Grade Seven-17
Grade Eight-11
Grade Nine-2
Grade Ten-2
Grade Eleven-2

     During the year I produced a set of 9th grade lessons as an alternative to the ones we continue to offer. Information on the nature of these lessons and the reasons for producing them may be obtained upon request.
     The weekly Task Force described in my last report (NCL 1985, p. 227) continues to function, and because we are productive we have an excellent spirit.

Festival Lessons

     The festival lessons have been arranged of late by Mrs. Thomas Kline. We send out lessons each year for five occasions: Thanksgiving, Christmas, Swedenborg's birthday, Easter and June 19th. Mrs. Kline has used not only her own imagination but has solicited input from various talented people to keep these mailings of a high quality.

Coming Retirement of Mrs. Boyd Asplundh

     For many years we have relied on the devoted work of Mrs. Boyd Asplundh, and we have wondered with real concern what we could possibly do without her, as there are precious few people, if any, who would put so much time, energy and talent into it. Someone said, "We would need a whole army of volunteers." Well, that is what we have been recruiting. And Myra herself has been most helpful in helping us to find individuals for this army of people to gradually take over specific elements of the work that she has been doing.

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     We are delighted in the force that is beginning to emerge and we are more conscious than ever of what we owe to Mrs. Asplundh.
     Many hours of volunteer work go into the use of Religion Lessons. We thank those people who give it so cheerfully and so well. General Church Religion work seems to be gathering momentum, and it is a privilege to be associated with it.
     Donald L. Rose,
          Director

     Note: As of July 1, 1986 the directorship of Religion Lessons is in the capable hands of Rev. Alfred Acton.
REVIEW 1986

REVIEW Rev. Douglas M. Taylor 1986

You and the Opposite Sex: For the Youth of the New Church, a 90-page booklet by Martin Pryke, published by the General Church Publications Committee.

     This is an excellent and much needed addition to our literature. No wonder that the senior high school students who have read it have warmly applauded and welcomed it. There is a fundamental honesty and sincerity about this booklet that conveys a most important message to the young readers, namely, that the author, a senior pastor and former President of the Academy of the New Church, has their welfare at heart, that he believes in (and can demonstrate the relevance of) the Writings, and that he is well-informed and realistic. While looking always to the highest ideals set forth in the Writings, and thinking from them, he gives sensible and practical suggestions for attaining them. He warns in fatherly tones of dangers and pitfalls. In other words, this is a very balanced treatment of several difficult subjects. Mr. Pryke is to be congratulated on his courage and candor in addressing them in such a "down-to-earth" manner.
     The expression "down-to-earth" implies a descent from some elevation. It is not the same as "earthy," which suggests no elevation at all. Mr. Pryke demonstrates an unusual ability to think from the highest ideals and bring them down to earth, to apply them realistically and clearly to precisely the situations that are of considerable interest to a young person.
     This is confirmed by a glance at the table of contents. After a brief first chapter explaining "The Problem and the Purpose," the following subjects are discussed, under the heading "Reaching Adolescence": Puberty; Years of Preparation; Social Life; Going Steady; Courtesies; The Temptations of Youth; Habits; and Homosexuality.

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     Chapter 3 ("Physical Relations Before Marriage") considers these important subjects: The Sexual Act in Marriage; Premarital Sex; Sex Without Love; Where There's Love; Freedom; Consequences in Marriage; After Betrothal; Trial Marriages; Virginity; Fornication; Petting; What Are You Doing to Each Other?; Some Practical Suggestions; Repentance.
     The fourth chapter introduces the subject of "The Nature of the Sexes," under the following headings: The Thinking of the World; Differences Between the Sexes; Masculine and Feminine Roles; Physical Differences; Preservation of Masculinity and Femininity; The Origin of the Sexes; The Purpose of the Two Sexes.
     There is likewise much wisdom in the fifth chapter on "Finding Your Partner." After showing that "Marriage is a Mature (or Adult) Decision," the author discusses: Mutual Freedom; the Man Makes the Approach; Similarities and Differences; and Selecting Your Partner. He answers the question, How Do You Know It is the Right One? and concludes with a brief treatment on engagement or betrothal.
     The sixth chapter is the conclusion, which ends with the paragraph: "Everything that God gives us can be used properly or can be abused we have the choice. But the fact is that whatever we may at first think, abuse does not bring the deep and lasting delight that proper use brings. God offers us the joy, the eternal joy. We make the decision. Will we accept the offer or reject it? When we are young we have the chance to set our course in one direction or the other." Then the author modestly adds: "Perhaps in some small way this book will help you in making that choice."
     We fully expect that it will be of considerable help. Mr. Pryke's well-known concern (love) for young people results in great understanding of the age of puberty and adolescence. He maintains a good rapport with his audience, sometimes identifying with them, sometimes speaking directly to them, but never failing to keep them in mind.
     As to format, the booklet is very attractively presented, with an appropriate "yin-yang" cover design by Elisabeth Alfelt. It is very pleasing to note that the author generally uses "love of the opposite sex" in place of the more usual but more misleading "love of the sex." Modern readers, with the present-day connotation of "sex" in mind, can easily misread "love of the sex" as "love of sex." "Love of the opposite sex" undoubtedly conveys the idea intended in the Writings by amor sexus much more accurately and precisely.

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     Here are some random samples of the sage advice to be found in this booklet:

These changes are not easy for young people. The back and forth process leaves us confused. At one time we want to act like adults, at other times we don't want that kind of responsibility and would rather be thoughtless children.

There will be a period of years in which we are physically capable of becoming parents, but are not ready for marriage or parenthood.

We cannot help the temptations coming, but we can help how we respond when they do come. Don't feel guilty because some terrible and evil thought comes into your mind. So long as you throw it out and refuse to let it stay with you, then it will do you no harm. It becomes a problem when you put out the welcome mat for these thoughts: that is when you dwell on them and revel in them.

The fact is that there is no such thing as a "trial marriage"-a couple is either married, which means that they have made a lifetime commitment to one another, or else they are simply "living together.

     There is a vast difference between these two.

Making a home and performing domestic duties are a basic part of marriage. Every job has its equivalent of cleaning and doing the dishes. A teacher has a long list of chores which have to be done. We do not "put down" teaching by saying it is just a matter of keeping a bunch of kids quiet and grading papers. These may be necessary parts of the use, but the real use and delight is in instructing and guiding (and inspiring) young minds.
     Is it not the same for the home maker?

Anything that is wrong about sex is something that mankind has introduced into it; our job is to understand the real gift that the Lord has given us.

Try to imagine what life would be like for us if there were only one sex. It would be a dry and lifeless existence with little joy. You see some reflection of this fact when many of one sex are gathered together without the influence of the opposite sex.

Real love uses its head!

Do not count on changing or correcting weaknesses or faults in your partner after marriage. This seldom works. Figure on living with them. You can change yourself, but you can never change someone else-each has to do it for himself. The person who marries in the expectation of reforming the other one is likely to be disillusioned.

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This booklet would make an excellent gift for Christmas, a birthday, graduation, or some other special occasion. But it should not be limited to such occasions. Give it now. It is needed now. We might suggest also that parents read this book themselves before giving it. They will surely find it refreshing and inspiring. No doubt many will wish that they had been given this book when young.
Rev. Douglas M. Taylor
APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH COLLEGE 1986

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH COLLEGE 1986

     Requests for application forms for admission to the Academy College for 1987-88 should be addressed to Dean Robert W. Gladish, The Academy of the New Church College, Box 278, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Completed application forms and accompanying transcripts and recommendations should be received by April 1, 1987, if the applicant is to avoid a $40 late fee.
     It should also be noted that the college operates on a three-term year and that applications for entrance to the winter and spring terms of any academic year can be processed, provided that they are received by Dean Gladish at least one month prior to the beginning of the new term.
     Catalogs describing the College programs and course offerings are also available upon request at the same address.
APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY BOYS SCHOOL AND GIRLS SCHOOL 1986

APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO THE ACADEMY BOYS SCHOOL AND GIRLS SCHOOL 1986

Requests for application forms for admission of new students to the Academy Secondary Schools should be made by March 16, 1987. Letters should be addressed to Mrs. Sanfrid Odhner, Principal of the Girls School, or Mr. Burt Friesen, Principal of the Boys School, at The Academy of the New Church, Box 278, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Letters should include the student's name, parents' address, the class the student will be entering, the name and address of the school he or she is now attending, and whether the student will be a day or a dormitory student.
Completed application forms and accompanying material should be received by the Academy by June 30, 1987 if the applicant is to avoid a $20 late fee.

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BOOKS SOON TO BE PUBLISHED 1986

One hopes that the following will be published in time to be purchased for Christmas: 1) A book on the life after death by Mr. Bruce Henderson, to be published by the Swedenborg Foundation under the title Window on Eternity; 2) a book by Rev. Geoffrey Childs entitled The Golden Thread, combining New Church teachings and psychology: 3) a major commentary by Dr. Wilson van Dusen on Swedenborg's Journal of Dreams.
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

Mr. and Mrs. Leon Rhodes have returned from their European visit in which they promoted the celebration of the Tricentennial of Swedenborg's birth. A newsletter on this subject is obtainable from Mr. Rhodes, Box 23, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.
President of the Scandinavian Swedenborg Society, Rev. Olle Hjern, conducted Judy and Leon Rhodes on a tour of Stockholm, including the public park at Swedenborg Street with its monument to Swedenborg, September 18, 1986.
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

On the opposite page are [two] photographs of the church building of the Twin Cities Circle. Located on 5th Avenue of South St. Paul, it was dedicated on September 7th of this year. We will be publishing in a later issue news about Twin Cities and about the "Oak Arbor" church in the Detroit area. The date of the dedication of the new building in Tucson, Arizona is March 14, 1987. Some may wish to contemplate a visit for that occasion.

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[Photographs of the exterior and interior of the Twin Cities Circle church.]

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Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     SMILING AT OURSELVES II

     When a man "becomes an adult, and his judgment has attained its maturity, he then regards the judgments of his childhood as vain and absurd" (AC 4551). "A man puts off his state of infancy with its toys when he passes into the state of youth" (AC 4063:4). As Paul said in his letter to the Corinthians, "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man. I put away childish things."
     It is fun to recall some of the mistaken notions of our early years; however, there is a sense in which the child in us has the last laugh. We can sometimes reach levels of childlike simplicity in religious conviction, and then perhaps we can smile at the clever and sophisticated skepticism we have known. The learned believe in life after death less than do the simple (see AC 4760), and they can smile after death at their sophisticated incredulity. When the learned "recall what they had thought about life after death, the soul, spirits, and heaven and hell, they are ashamed and confess that they thought foolishly, and that the simple in faith thought much more wisely than they" (HH 313).
     In a September editorial we quoted some examples of Swedenborg's smiling at his previous thoughts as recorded in the Journal of Dreams. Here is another sampling. At one point he found that he came to accept certain things "without reasoning." "I then saw my own confirmatory thoughts as it were beneath me; I laughed at them in my mind, and still more at those thoughts which offended and opposed" (JD 149). "A person must laugh at himself . . . when he thinks in opposition" (Ibid.). "How difficult it is for the learned-more, indeed, than for the unlearned-to come to such a faith, and thus overcome themselves so as to be able to laugh at themselves" (JD) 151). "We must be like children toward our Lord . . . . Like a child we must cast all our cares upon our Lord" (JD 220).

     THE CHURCH AND PHYSICAL HEALING (II)

     We raised the question last month as to whether the Word teaches that physical healing is a work of the church. Healing is certainly often mentioned, but let us look closely.

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Verse eight of the tenth chapter of Matthew speaks of four things the Lord sent the disciples to do. One was to heal the sick. The other three were to cleanse lepers, raise the dead and cast out demons. Surely the raising of the dead is to be taken in a spiritual sense, and are not all four of them to be taken so?
     When the Word speaks of healing and sickness the subject is the spiritual things to which natural healing corresponds. One might suppose that the Word is talking about both spiritual healing and physical healing with the idea that these are merely two aspects of the same thing. But we find teachings which say plainly that the subject is spiritual healing and not natural healing. For example the following: "Diseases and sicknesses, and also healings and medicines, are not said in the Word of the natural life; but of another life which is distinct from the natural life" (Ac 9031:5).
     One should not assume that a spiritually healthy person and a physically healthy person are one and the same. The two things are distinct from each other. Spiritually advanced people can appear weak and sickly "but they are strong and healthy; whereas they who are merely natural appear to themselves strong and healthy, and also are so as to the body, but as to the spirit they are quite weakly" (AC 7217).
     Do we take certain sayings about long life naturally or spiritually? Last time we raised the question of whether one who honors father and mother will literally have a long life here in the natural world. Do we not observe that people who honor their parents sometimes die young? As the Writings put it, "Many of those who honor father and mother in the world do not life there long" (AE 304:43). "That thy days may be long upon the land" is not talking of this natural life but of spiritual life. Well then, is it wrong to take the teaching quite literally and think that it is talking about life in this physical world? The Writings answer this beautifully, using it as an example that applies "in a thousand other instances."

Take as an example one who believes that he will enjoy a long life if he loves father and mother, according to the commandment of the Decalogue. If he loves them for this reason and lives well, he is accepted just the same as if he had believed the truth itself, for he does not know that "father and mother" mean in the highest sense the Lord and His kingdom [or that] . . . "length of life" signifies happiness to eternity.
     Apocalypse Explained 375:3

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     A TOUCH OF GOLD

     We have received a delightful suggestion from Susan Aye Matchett of Los Angeles and Nora Cranch Cooper.
     Why don't we open the pages of New Church Life for the celebration of golden wedding anniversaries?
     They supply the title "A Touch of Gold," and to initiate the idea they present two golden anniversaries of 1986 that are most close to them.

1) Rev. and Mrs. Harold C. Cranch (Jean Smith) married on June 20, 1936 in Glenview, Illinois by her father, Rev. Gilbert Smith. They are now residing in Glendale, California.
2) Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L. Aye (Mary Otte) married September 5, 1936, in Tarentum, Pennsylvania by Rev. Davies, a Presbyterian minister. They are now living in San Jose, California.
     We are giving this suggestion a trial, as it surely fits with the teaching that the marriage of one man and one woman is the precious jewel of human life and the repository of the Christian religion (see CL 406, 466, 512, 531).
NOT POETRY 1986

NOT POETRY Lyris Hyatt 1986

     Communications
Dear Editor,
     When examples of the Writings presented as poems appeared in New Church Life, I struggled to repress my too-characteristic "wet-blanket reaction. Now I want to thank Yorvar Synnestvedt for his well-reasoned consideration of this subject (October issue) dear to my mind and heart. His forthright discussion deserves more than one reading. Although my situation now prevents my providing proper documentation I venture another point.
     We can't define poetry. Still, we can recognize something true of all poetry: it is made up of lines; the last word of each, by virtue of its position, has a slight extra stress of both sound and sense.
     When responsible people quote a passage and want to indicate their individual concerns by italicizing, they acknowledge their emendation of the original prose.
     When someone divides the Writings into lines to make a "poem," he is, unwittingly or purposely, adding stresses that are lacking in the original Latin or translation. These "additions," though slight, seem significant to me.

509

     Anyone who wants to pursue this subject can do so in How Does a Poem Mean? by John Ciardi, poet, translator, and editor, and from his excellent discussion (on an undocumented cassette) a friend lent me recently.
     Lyris Hyatt,
          Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

     P.S.      Of the recent wealth of useful and enjoyable contributions to the Life I also especially appreciate Miss Heulwen Ridgway's realistic and positive view (September issue) of a single woman in the church.
YES, POETRY 1986

YES, POETRY Linda Simonetti Odhner 1986

Dear Editor:
     In response to Yorvar Synnestvedt's letter in Oct. NCL: I had to summarize the first volume of TCR for one of my ANC college courses. To do this I extracted the purely doctrinal points and cut out all the illustrative comparisons. I'm sure this exercise slanted my perception of TCR toward the idea that there were "few expositional passages containing comparisons" in the Writings. But the fact is that many expositional passages are filled with picturesque examples. The section in TCR on "The omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence of God" (nos. 49-70) is a good example (and not unique in that respect, I'm sure). Do we get the idea that the Third Testament is predominantly "a logical and analytical presentation" because we tend to skim over these appeals to the imagination as nonessential? I certainly have. But the whole approach of the Writings, even apart from purely illustrative comparisons, is at least as much analogical as logical. And natural images and symbols embodying spiritual truths are an important element of poetry as well as doctrine.
     The Writings are much closer to poetry than a scientific discovery or a geometrical theorem, not only because they abound in such comparisons, but also because of their subject matter: man, his loves, his struggles, his relationship to the Lord and his neighbor. Furthermore, the analogical relations of correspondence and representation are central to the doctrines Swedenborg sets forth, such as the internal sense of the Word and the Gorand Man of heaven. All this is not to imply that a treatise on poetry should be regarded as poetry, but simply to show that the Writings are not primarily logical.
     Another thing the Writings are not is absolute truth. Those long strings of printed words are a presentation of truth accommodated to our understanding. They contain absolute truth, but they cannot be equated with it, for absolute truth is far beyond our limited comprehension.

510

Swedenborg admits that many ideas and experiences cannot be adequately expressed in earthly language. But since the Writings are the Word of God, all truth is contained within them, even when it cannot be literally stated. Similarly, reading poetry can give us experiences we can't describe, and in this way poetry can transcend the words that make it up, by evoking affections that defy expression in words.
     Truth is the form of good; ideas embody affections. Even when we isolate truth as much as possible, its associated affection lies bound up within it, longing to burst forth. The things we feel about a particular truth are not merely subjective reactions on our part, but reflect a real relation between truth and good. If a statement of truth strikes us with the power of poetry, we may be experiencing the affection within it. The way it affects us is relevant to whether it is poetry.
     The poems that LeVan has produced from the Writings argue for their own legitimacy as poetry far more forcefully than I can. For me, they illuminate ideas and bring out their affections just as poetry does, and they have enriched my whole outlook on the Writings. Since they manage this feat without a single word being changed. I conclude that the poetic element was intrinsic to those passages to begin with, merely obscured by the prose format and inadequate translation. I think the verse arrangement does something to offset the defects of translation-and I think better translations will generate better poetry.
     I'm much less impressed with attempts to cast the Writings in the mold of blank verse. Imposing an arbitrary form, in these cases, doesn't enhance the meaning of the passages. In contrast, LeVan's poems take their form from the structure of the truths they manifest. As a new and powerful way of seeing the New Revelation they have great value, and I believe they will inspire our artistic endeavors rather than substituting for them, by giving us a wonderful example of how full of poetry the world is.
     Linda Simonetti Odhner,
          Phoenixville, Pennsylvania
RETROSPECT ON A DIVORCE 1986

RETROSPECT ON A DIVORCE Name Withheld 1986

Dear Editor,
Please let me share the following experiences with your readers.
I said "Goodbye" to my lawyer and he headed down the dirty steps into the labyrinths of a subway tunnel. Minutes earlier, I had heard a divorce judgment against myself.

511

I walked to my car through a misty spring rain, contemplating the day's events, and beginning to wonder about my new future. For the past ten months, I had desperately held onto hopes that my wife and I would be able to reconcile our differences and rebuild our marriage, but now there was no reason for hope.
     By most human expectations, I should have been extremely depressed. But my legs felt energetic, and my mental state was sound. I was not happy to have been unsuccessful at rescuing our marriage, although I did by this time realize that there had not been strong consent on my wife's part. Nevertheless, I was pleasantly startled at how well I felt. My puzzlement lasted only a moment, because I remembered that I had done my best at giving my wife a chance to change her mind, and that possibly my well-being was provided as a reward by the Lord.
     As I drove home, I mulled over how blissful it would be to be remarried to a woman whose conscience was formed in an environment more like my own than my now "ex"-wife. Reflecting now on our short marriage, I recall how I had assumed that my wife had admired spiritual virtues as much as I did. On the other hand, I had made my marriage commitment based on my own natural desires, and did not acknowledge my error until it was too late to heal the damage it had caused.
     I was raised in a New Church community during the '60s and '70s. Now that I look back, this time was crucial in my spiritual development, even though it was also a time of revolt against authority. (I feel this in itself was not necessarily evil, but many actions condoned by my generation were hostile to the Ten Commandments.) During my elementary years, I now believe, many "kernels" were implanted in my mind through study of the Word that later in life I had the option of allowing to grow. These kernels do play a part in spiritual development, because they can be made to flourish if we want them to. Unfortunately, I practically extinguished their growth upon graduation from high school.
     The causes of colds and separations in marriage are plainly and clearly outlined in the book Conjugial Love. I now believe that these causes are unquestionably true. In our marriage, neither of us was more than superficially religious. One of the causes listed in Conjugial Love is a lack of religion in either partner. We did not say the Lord's prayer together. We did not pray or study the Word, although we did occasionally attend church services both in her church and in mine. Soon after our separation, I began saying the Lord's prayer and realized that could not even recite the verses in their correct order!
     Current trends ignored the religious factors in our marital problems. A marriage counselor had indicated that our problems were seated in conflicts between my "traditional" values and my wife's "more modern" values.

512

The divorce decree on record for my case states that my "extremely cruel behavior" was the cause of separation. In the state in which the trial took place, a vehement argument initiated by one of the partners can be grounds for divorce! Even if our marriage counselor's statement and the legal judgment were not entirely false, Swedenborg's outline of the reasons for divorce is irrefutable in my eyes. In comparison to "modern" analyses I've read since our separation, Conjugial Love has infinitely more merit than any psychological research, church law, or civil law!
My hope for this letter is simply that more people will pray harder and more often. I've seen many faltering marriages and a few strong, happy marriages since our separation and divorce. The characteristic I admire the most in the stronger marriages is the virtue of humility before the Lord by both the husband and the wife. Drawing on the Lord's power to reform our spirits is not an insurmountable task. If you're unhappy, try sincerely praying for the Lord to show you His providence. You will be amazed at your newfound spiritual peace and answers to your previously unsolvable problems.
(Name withheld by request)
NEW AGE 1986

NEW AGE Kent O. Doering 1986

Dear Editor:
     Ruth Goodenough's letter about the "New Age" movement touches upon a subject that deserves to be approached with cautious skepticism on the one hand, and serene serendipity on the other.
     In its infancy, the first Christian Church was also plagued by, and confused with, a lot of "New Age" esotericism of the day: Gnosticism, Manicheism, and other forms of spiritist, thrill-seeking cults. The case has been utterly no different with the history of the New Church. Since its inception, a brand of shallow "New Age" esoterics with a profound lack of Christian salvationist interests have swarmed around Swedenborg like flies, often falsely adapting some of the Writings' concepts to some pretty bizarre scenarios and claiming them for their own. Along the same line, much of the public image over the last two centuries has been that of an esoteric cult. My reaction to both is, "So what?"
     Most esoteric spiritists eventually discard Swedenborg's Writings because, as England's leading spiritist writer, Colin Wilson, so poignantly complained: Swedenborg isn't adequate to escape the here and now. But, the temporary occult fringe and the bad image are something we can serenely live with if our confidence in the Writings is strong enough.

513

     More serious problems arise with converts coming to the New Church from the esoteric movement and bringing their spiritistic mysticism with them to such a degree that everybody becomes confused as to what the Writings teach and what they don't. It has repeatedly happened in Europe. The other danger is that New Churchmen may be so intimidated by the charge of being just another occult sect that they bend over backwards so far to become acceptable as orthodox dualist Christians that the core of what the Writings teach regarding Christology, cosmology, and salvationism become nearly indistinguishable from that of acceptable, respectable, conservative, orthodox country-club Christianity. And that seems to have happened in some American suburbs!
     "New Age" bookstores now open faster than McDonalds' franchises. Many carry Swedenborg. On the other side, there is the umpteenth "great awakening" of fundamentalism, only all too eager to condemn the main bodies of the New Church as esoteric sects and hence the work of the devil. Pressures from both may seriously aggravate over-reactions mentioned in the previous paragraph.
     That is why I would like to refer readers to a classic analysis by Baron Henri de Geymueller: Swedenborg and the Supernatural World, first published in France during the 1920's-must reading for any New Christian who wants to seriously discuss the "New Age" movement.
     A first-rate psychologist, philosopher, and New Church mind, de Geymueller brilliantly captures the shallow substance of most "New Age" esotericism, drawing a neat line between that and what the Writings teach. Since the substance of most clash courses in special interior enlightenment offered by bubble-gum colleges of spiritology hasn't changed since de Geymueller's day, this over 60-year-old book remains timelessly relevant to this problem.
     Underlying this; we find a precise and terse analysis of just how the Writings' cosmology differs from dualism. Thus we ourselves don't have to retreat into quasi-orthodox dualistic deism either when we are pressured by graduates of some fundamentalist university of charismatic kooks.
     De Geymueller demonstrates just how central cosmology is to the discussion of the "New Age," showing where the Writings' cosmology differs from dualism and monism, and what it has in common with both. The following is basic to the discussion.
     Monism's basic cosmological principle is that God created the universe out of His own substance, undifferentiated.

514

Thus, the material universe, man included, is basically a part of God and thus good. This is the primary assumption of much pre-Socratic philosophy. This cosmological remnant of the falling Ancient Church is still the common root of the great religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Tao'ism. It is also common to some modern scientific schools of thought, starting with Leibnitz. Further, its concept of God is as one basically immanent in a good world. Monistic thought further describes eternity as timelessness, and infinity as spacelessness. God is not perceived as transcendent, but immanent in nature and with man.
     Dualism's basic cosmological principle is that God created the universe by fiat out of nothing, not His own substance Because nature and man are not from, or the same as, the substance of God, they must ipso facto, either-or, teritum non-datur-be in opposition to God and thus intrinsically evil.
     First formalized in Mithraism of the sixth century, it immediately impacted on the west through the mystic schools of the Pythagoreans. Judaism picked it up during the Babylonian captivity. Manicheism and Gnosticism further reinforced dualistic tendencies already existent in patristic Christianity through Judeo-Greek influences, thus Mithraic cosmology was incorporated into Christianity and western thinking almost lock, stock, and barrel.
     The cosmology was secularized by Descartes with the allegory of the remote Divine Watchmaker fashioning the universe winding it up, and watching it run like a clock, with very little interference except for minor adjustments in the machine. While the move enabled western minds to explore nature in a pathological and mechanistic way, it only reinforced western dualism with a foundation of mechanistic reductionalism. The criticism I would make of it is that whereas monistic thought makes God all immanent and loses sight of transcendence, dualism, common to Judeo-Christianity, Islam, reductionalist science, and Marxist-Leninism, simply banishes God out of the created universe by making Him totally transcendent, to the exclusion of any and all immanence in the world! Once so banished, it's only a short step to materialism Communists and conservative, fundamentalist Christians agree on one basic idea: that God is definitely not in the world, not immanent to any degree at all. Common to both is the dualistic definition of eternity as unending time and infinity as unending space. These definitions make it rationally impossible even to conceive of any sort of immanence of the Creator at a particular point in time and space-let's say the right here and now of where you are at the moment.
     Basic cosmological outlooks have a determining character, as they shape the way men relate to the world and each other, and thus mold human history itself.

515

Western thought banished God out of the created universe, and in so doing caused a lot of misery and cruelty to human beings. The purer the dualism, the greater the "cruel to be kind" morality which would take away freedom to preserve it. And, the greater the suffering under it, the more intense the human rebellion and revolt.
     Understanding this, we can comprehend the "New Age" movement to be but a part of the rebellion and revolt against dualism which has been occurring since its inception.

     If we want to understand the relationship of the New Church to "The New Age," analyzing what of the various movements we can accept and agree with, and what not, then a clear understanding of New Church cosmology becomes essential.
     It is to de Geymueller's credit that he clearly showed the relationship of the Writings' revealed cosmology to both monism and dualism-precisely pinpointing where it has points in common with both, and where it strongly differs.
     I would like to present later a discussion of this analysis of the Writings' cosmology and how it can relate to legitimate factors in the "New Age" movements.
     In the meanwhile, readers are asked to ponder the following set of cosmological questions:

     1.      What is the relationship of the Creator God to the created universe and nature?
     2.      What is the relationship of the Creator God to mankind?
     3.      What is the relationship of man to mankind?
     4.      What is the relationship of man to nature, which includes the relationship of one's own soul and mind to the body?
     5.      Is eternity unending time or timelessness? Or is it both?
     6.      Is infinity unending space or spacelessness? Or is it both?
     7.      What do we think the Writings teach on these questions?
     8.      What set of attitudes influence our perception of the Writings teachings here basically conservative deist, or tending more toward liberal monism? Or a balanced mixture of both?
     9.      What cognitive operations are used in the logical understanding of the above?
     10.      When was the last time we asked all of the above questions?

     Kent O. Doering,
          Munich, Germany

516

CONJUGIAL 1986

CONJUGIAL Rev. Kurt P. Nemitz 1986

Dear Editor:
     Like a novice sailor misreading his ship's compass calibration by a few degrees at the outset of a long voyage, the English-speaking New Church has been somewhat misled for almost two centuries by a faulty understanding of the word "conjugial." Because in the late 1700s a translator began rendering Swedenborg's Latin word conjugialis as a new English term-not realizing that albeit an uncommon word it was precisely the form of the adjective meaning "of or pertaining to marriage"-many readers ever since have gotten the mistaken idea that conjugial refers to a spiritual love between husband and wife that is so sublime and special that it has little relation to the everyday marriage relationship of normally imperfect people like themselves. But as Rev. Frank Rose indicates in his article, "Reflections on Compiling a Dictionary" (NCL, Aug., 1986, P. 353), Swedenborg's Usage of conjugial shows that its originating Latin counterpart does simply mean "of or pertaining to marriage." Realizing this can make many important teachings far more intelligible. It explains, for example, why in the Writings one frequently meets the somewhat unusual expression, "love truly conjugial," as when it is asserted that "as yet no one on earth knows what love truly conjugial, in its origin and essence, is"(CL 42). What the author was actually saying is, "as yet no one knows what true (or genuine) marriage love . . . is." Indeed, by the Latin title itself, De Amore Conjugialis, Swedenborg was straightforwardly announcing a book of Divine wisdom about the love pertaining to marriage.
     If Frank Rose's newly published dictionary, Words in Swedenborg results in the correction of just this one misconception, the effort and cost of producing it will, I think, haw been richly rewarded. Are not the words themselves of God's revelations like keys whereby our minds are opened so that what is Divine may enter and begin to make new men and women of us? But these keys cannot possibly turn unless our minds correctly grasp their fitting meaning. And this, one cannot but conclude, seems to be a compelling reason to leave behind the misunderstanding of the past and improve future translations of the Writings by replacing the traditional "conjugial" with the more accurate term, "marriage." It is this word which correctly conveys the Divinely intended, original meaning.
     Rev. Kurt P. Nemitz,
          Bath, Maine

517

"I OWN THY SWAY" 1986

"I OWN THY SWAY" Rev. Grant H. Odhner 1986

Dear Editor,
     I read Jeremy Rose's article "I Own Thy Sway" with both delight and dismay. It is delightful to read something that expresses so clearly what one has often felt and wished someone would say (publicly). The dismay comes from my feeling that what Mr. Rose says is very true: much of our church music is antiquated in vocabulary and sentence structure, and negative in tone. I would add that much of the music itself strikes me as being plodding and stilted, and not as conducive to stirring affections as it might be.
     As a minister, I find it difficult to choose hymns each week that are uplifting and meaningful. The language, as Mr. Rose points out, is out-of-touch with the way most of us think and feel. Fortunately for those who have been raised in the church, affections can ignore words and find edification despite them. As one who is forced to look at the words, however, I find it harder and harder to soar.
     Like Mr. Rose, when a newcomer turns up in church, I feel embarrassment at much of our music (even though it be nicely sung). It does not have to be this way. I have attended other Christian churches, and have found their updated music much more accessible, universal, uplifting (even when the tunes are old ones shared by us).
     Recently I have been starting to prepare an index to the music for the new Liturgy. The main purpose of this index would be to help ministers select appropriate hymns for worship services. (Ideally the music should be chosen to enhance the theme and flow of the service whenever possible.) As I've been doing this, I've found myself wishing very hard that many hymns will not be in the next Liturgy-and I've even left out twenty-five of them, hoping that I won't have to index them all for the reasons Mr. Rose mentions!
     One problem that I see in a number of our lyrics is that they tend to talk about doctrine rather then springing from doctrine. The authors were undoubtedly trying hard to get distinctive New Church ideas into the hymns. The net effect is that they touch the thought but not so much the life. Have you ever noticed how few of our hymns express an affection for the neighbor, or a desire to serve the neighbor better, or a desire that it be well with others? Isn't this what most of us need inspiration in-getting us to look outside of ourselves and care about others?
     There is a lot about shunning evils and temptation in our Liturgy. We need to have hymns that touch this very real aspect of our life. On the other hand, there is something so morbid and inward-looking about an overemphasis in this area.

518

Moreover, due to the limitations of musical lyrics, many of the confessions of sin contained in the hymns tend to be too general (something which the Writings warn against).
     I write to add fuel to Mr. Rose's complaint, in the hope that it may help inspire new and better music and the acceptance of this need.
     Rev. Grant H. Odhner,
          Natick, Massachusetts
SILENT NO LONGER 1986

SILENT NO LONGER Rev. Grant R. Schnarr 1986

Dear Editor,
     I can't sit back and remain silent any longer. There have been some extremely thought-stimulating articles and letters in the Life the last couple of months. I've got to reply to a few of them.
     I may not have felt as strongly as Jeremy Rose about some of the depressing music and words in many of the songs in our liturgy if I were preaching in a cathedral type church. But if he thinks these songs are depressing in a regular New Church setting, he should try leading a group of newcomers through these songs in a cafe in downtown Chicago!
     And what's this about New Church singles having a hard time? Come to Chicago. Singles outnumber marrieds there 10 to 1.
     And when it comes to evangelization, is it really an evangelization of good versus truth or truth versus good? I wish people would spend more time doing it rather than theorizing over it!
     And way back, someone suggested in a letter that ministers turn down performing some marriage ceremonies in order to protect themselves. I think this is completely false. The hardest thing a minister can do is tell a couple he feels he cannot marry them because of their particular situation. It's for the couple's sake, not the minister's. And that kind of charity takes a lot of courage.
     Rev. Grant R. Schnarr,
          Chicago, Illinois
ANGELS WONDER AND SMILE 1986

ANGELS WONDER AND SMILE 1986

The angels wonder and smile when they hear anyone say that the understanding is to be held captive in obedience to faith.
Apocalypse Explained 837:10

519

PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES 1986

     Announcements

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
RIGHT REV. LOUIS B. KING, BISHOP
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, 19009, U. S. A.
PUBLIC WORSHIP AND DOCTRINAL CLASSES
Information on public worship and doctrinal classes provided either regularly or occasionally may be obtained at the locations listed below. For details use the local phone number of the contact person mentioned or communicate with the Secretary of the General Church, Rev. L. R. Soneson, Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009, Phone (215) 947-4660.

     USA addresses only

     UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

     Alabama:

     BIRMINGHAM
Dr. R. Shepard, 4537 Dolly Ridge Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Phone: (205) 967-3442.

     Arizona:

     PHOENIX
Mr. Hubert Rydstrom, 3640 E. Piccadilly Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85018. Phone: (602) 955-2290.

     TUCSON
Rev. Frank S. Rose, 2536 N. Stewart Ave., Tucson, AZ 85716. Phone: (602) 327-2612.

     Arkansas:

     LITTLE ROCK
Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Holmes, Rt. 6, Box 447, Batesville, AR 72501. (501) 251-2383

     California:

     LOS ANGELES
Rev. Michael Gladish, 5022 Carolyn Way, La Crescenta, CA 91214. Phone:(213) 249-5031.

     SACRAMENTO
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Ripley, 2310 N. Cirby Way, Roseville, CA 95678. Phone: (916) 782-7837

     SAN DIEGO
Rev. Nathan Gladish, 7911 Canary Way, San Diego, CA 92123. Phone: (619) 268-0379. Office: (619) 571-8599.

     SAN FRANCISCO
Rev. Mark Carlson, 4638 Royal Garden Place, San Jose, CA 95136. Phone: (408) 224-8521.

     Colorado:

     COLORADO SPRINGS
Mr. and Mrs. William Reinstra, 708 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, CO 80829. Phone: (303) 685-9519.

     DENVER
Rev. Clark Echols, 3371 W. 94th Ave., Westminster, CO 80030. Phone (303) 429-1239

     Connecticut:

     HARTFORD

SHELTON
Rev. Paul Schorran, 21 Creswood Rd., Stratford, CT 06497

     Delaware:

     WILMINGTON
Mrs. Justin Hyatt, 2008 Eden Rd., N. Graylyn, Wilmington, DE 19810. Phone: (302) 475-3694.

District of Columbia see Mitchellville. Maryland.

     Florida:

     MIAMI
Rev. Daniel Heinrichs, 15101 N. W. Fifth Ave., Miami, FL 33169. Phone: (305) 687-1337.

     Georgia:

     AMERICUS
Mr. W. H. Eubanks, Rt. #2, S. Lee St., Americus, GA 31709. Phone: (912) 924-9221.

     ATLANTA
Rev. Christopher Bown, 3795 Montford Drive, Chamblee, GA 30341. Phone (Home) (404) 457- 4726. (Office) (404) 452-0518.

     Idaho:

     FRUITLAND
(Idaho-Oregon border) Mr. Harold Rand, 1705 Whitley Dr., Fruitland, ID 83619. Phone: (208) 452-3181.

     Illinois:

     CHICAGO
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

522

     DECATUR
Mr. John Aymer, 380 Oak Lane, Decatur, IL 62562. Phone: (217) 875-3215.

     GLENVIEW
Rev. Brian Keith, 73 Park Dr., Glenview, IL 60025. Phone: (312) 724-0120.

     Indiana:
Contact Rev. Stephen Cole in Cincinnati, Ohio, or Mr. James Wood, R. R. 1, Lapel, IN 46051. Phone (317) 534-3546

     Louisiana:

     BATON ROUGE
Mr. Henry Bruser, Jr., 1652 Ormandy Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Phone: (504) 921-3089.

     Maine

     BATH
Rev. Gene Barry, Middle and Winter Station, Bath, ME 04530.

     Maryland:

     BALTIMORE
Rev. Donald Rogers, #12 Pawleys Ct., S. Belmont, Baltimore, MD 21236. Phone: (301) 882- 2640.

     MITCHELLVILLE
Rev. Lawson Smith, 3805 Enterprise Rd., Mitchellville, MD 20716. Phone: (301) 262-2349.

     Massachusetts:

     BOSTON
Rev. Grant Odhner, 4 Park Ave., Natick, MA 01760. Phone: (617) 651-1127.

     Michigan:

     DETROIT
Rev. Walter Orthwein, 132 Kirk La., Troy, MI 48084. Phone: (313) 689-6118.

     EAST LANSING
Mr. Christopher Clark, 5853 Smithfield, East Lansing, MI 48823. Phone: (517) 351-2880.

     Minnesota:

     ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS
Rev. Michael Cowley, 3153 McKight Road #340, White Bear Lake, MN 55110. (612) 770-9242

     Missouri:

     COLUMBIA
Mr. and Mrs. Paul Johnson, 103 S. Greenwood, Columbia, MO 65201. Phone: (314) 442-3475.

     KANSAS CITY
Mr. Glen Klippenstein, Glenkirk Farms, Maysville, MO 64469. Phone: (816) 449-2167.

     New Jersey-New York:

     RIDGEWOOD. N.J.
Mrs. Fred E. Munich, 474 S. Maple Ave., Glen Rock, NJ 07452. Phone: (201) 445-1141.

     New Mexico:

     ALBUQUERQUE
Mrs. Howard Leach, 4215 12th N. W., Albuquerque, NM 87107. Phone: (505) 344-6735.

     North Carolina:

     CHARLOTTE
Mr. John deMaine, 3509 Highridge Rd., Matthews, NC 28105. Phone: (704) 846-4058.

     Ohio:

     CINCINNATI
Rev. Stephen Cole, 21 Grove Ave., Glendale, OH 45246. Phone: Church (513) 772-1478. Home (513) 771-1428.

     CLEVELAND
Mr. Alan Childs, 19680 Beachcliff Blvd., Rocky River, OH 44116. Phone: (216) 333-4413.

     COLUMBUS
Mr. Hubert Heinrichs, 8372 Todd Street Rd., Sunbury. OH 43074. Phone: (614) 524-2738.

     Oklahoma:

     TULSA
Mrs. Louise Tennis, 3546 S. Marion, Tulsa, OK 74135. Phone: (918) 742-8495.

     Oregon-Idaho Border.-Se Idaho, Fruitland.

     Pennsylvania:

     BRYN ATHYN
Rev. Kurt Asplundh, Box 277, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Phone: (215) 947-3665.

     ERIE
Mrs. Paul Murray, 5648 Zuck Rd., Erie, PA 16506. Phone: (814) 833-0962.

     FREEPORT
Rev. Ragnar Boyesen, 126 Iron Bridge Rd., Sarver, PA 16055. Phone: Office (412) 353-2220 or Home 295-9855.

     KEMPTON
Rev. Jeremy Simons, RD 2, Box 217-A, Kempton, PA 19529. Phone: (Home) (215) 756-4301; (Office) (215) 756-6140.

523

     PAUPACK
Mr. Richard Kintner, Box 172, Paupack, PA 18451. Phone: (717) 857-0688.

     PITTSBURGH
Rev. Ray Silverman, 299 Le Roi Road., Pittsburgh, PA 15208. Phone: (Church) (412) 731-1061.

     South Carolina:- see North Carolina.

South Dakota:

     ORAL-HOT SPRINGS
Contact Linda Klippenstein, 537 Albany, Hot Springs, SD 57747 Phone: (605) 745-6629.

     Texas:

     AUSTIN
Mrs. Charles Grubb, 604 Highland Ave., Austin, TX 78703. Phone: (512) 472-3575.

     DALLAS-FORT WORTH
Mr. Fred Dunlap, 13440 Castleton, Dallas, TX 75234-5117. Phone: (214) 247-7775.

     Washington:

     SEATTLE
Rev. Kent Junge, 14812 N. E. 75th Street, Redmond, WA 98033. Phone: (206) 881-1955.

     Wisconsin:

     MADISON
Mrs. Charles Howell, 3912 Plymouth Circle, Madison, WI 53705. Phone: (608) 233-0209.
NEW CHRISTIAN 1986

NEW CHRISTIAN 1986

The New Christian is an occasional periodical intended as an introduction for people not familiar with Swedenborg and his works. It is produced by Mr. Gordon Jacobs of England and is available directly from him at a dollar per copy. The first number comes to 16 pages, neatly produced and engagingly written.

Address:
Mr. Gordon Jacobs
The Swedenborg Movement (Undenominational)
14 Holly Lane, Erdington
Birmingham B24 9JS, England
ORDER NOW FOR CHRISTMAS 1986

ORDER NOW FOR CHRISTMAS 1986

MORE BOOK NEWS

We hope next month to have information on a new book for older children entitled Johnny's Trail to be published soon by the Swedenborg Foundation. We hope also to describe a booklet entitled My Wonderful Religion by Rev. Jan H. Weiss.

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215-947-3920

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Notes on This Issue 1986

Notes on This Issue Editor 1986

Vol. CVI December, 1986 No. 12
NEW CHURCH LIFE

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     The "favorite passage" this month is on the theme of peace, and we wish for our readers this season the kind of peace there described (p. 538).
     In October the report of the Summer Seminar said, "it is hoped that a pictorial summary of our council members, with biography, will appear a, a supplement in a future New Church Life . . ." (P. 448). We are sending with this issue a directory which includes the number of dependent children each minister has, and in most cases includes a photograph of the minister.
     The membership of the General Church now stands at 3,927. More than a hundred people joined during the year. Their names are listed beginning on page 554.
     A couple who joined the General Church thirty years ago have been following the daily reading plan ever since (see p. 532).
     The second review of Mr. Pryke's book is by a young man who will turn twenty-one next month. We thought it well to have this point of view after the review by a grandfather (albeit a young one) in last month's issue.
ASSEMBLY REMINDER 1986

ASSEMBLY REMINDER 1986

The 30th General Assembly of the General Church of the New Jerusalem will be held in Bryn Athyn from Wednesday, June 3 to Sunday, June 7, 1987.
NEW CHURCH LIFE SUPPLEMENT 1986

NEW CHURCH LIFE SUPPLEMENT 1986

As noted above, we are publishing the General Church directory as a separate supplement accompanying this issue.

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IMMANUEL-GOD WITH US 1986

IMMANUEL-GOD WITH US Rev. HAROLD CRANCH 1986

     ". . . And His Name shall be called Immanuel-God with us" (Matt. 1:23).

     Each year we should enter a little more deeply into the spiritual meaning of Christmas and its personal application, which is the coming of the Lord to us, and His reception into our lives. The Word which describes His advent is not merely an ancient historical record. It is a picture of our minds and their development. All that went before the Lord's coming represents the formation of our minds in childhood and youth. His coming pictures the establishment of spiritual principles and personal responsibilities to begin regeneration.
     The situation that existed in the ancient world at the time of the advent pictures the state in our mind when we are being prepared to enter into adult uses. Then natural and materialistic reasoning governs the mind, and spiritual things have become formal and external. But the time is ripe for the personal coming of the Lord and the development of our spiritual life. Let us look for a moment at the situation that existed so we can see its relationship to our individual, personal life.
     At the time of the Lord's birth the ancient world was governed by the despotic power of Rome, exercised through governors or subordinate, vassal kings. As long as these subservient governments maintained order and paid their taxes Rome was content. It was materialism with enlightened self-interest. Rome promoted the welfare of others for the sake of her own well-being.
     Herod was the vassal king of Judea and Palestine. Herod was not a Jew. He was an Arab-an Idumean. The sceptre of kingship had departed from Judah, and the ancient prophecy of the Messiah's coming was to be fulfilled. Yet during Herod's reign the church had reached its lowest point. It had not heard the voice of a prophet nor seen a vision of an angel for four hundred years. Herod, seeking the favor of the Jews, had rebuilt the temple. It was magnificent, but he failed to gain the favor of the Jews, for they resented his kingship. This was the general situation in the land before the Lord's birth.
     Herod's tyranny, and the oppression of Rome, pictured the intermingling of the two aspects of man's mind. The spiritual side was almost destroyed. Herod had further perverted the Jewish Church by taking the power to appoint the high priest. So ambitious priests became politically aligned with him.

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The scribes and Pharisees, students of the Word, lived in a world of doctrine alone. Herod was obsessed by his own importance, dominated by his love of power. And Rome was coldly calculating, dominated by self-interest and materialistic goals. It was a time of spiritual darkness. The only living force in spiritual things was the Word itself. The few who read it with reverence and the desire to learn from the Lord were still receptive to spiritual influences.
     The Lord had foreseen and prepared for this time from the beginning. He would not come into the world in person until men had reached the lowest point of spiritual life, for He came to reach down to the very lowest states so that He might lift up men of every degree, to bring them back to the order of heaven. So through the prophets He had foretold that the time of His coming would be a time of darkness as to spiritual things. The prophet Isaiah said of that time: ". . . we walk in darkness . . . we stumble at noonday as in the night . . ." And Joel prophesied: "The sun shall be turned into darkness . . . before the great and terrible day of the Lord" (2:28, 31). But Isaiah also speaks of the coming of the Divine Light: "Arise, shine; for thy light is cornel and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee . . ." (60: 1-3). And Malachi speaks of the Lord's coming as "the sun of righteousness risen with healing in His wings" (4:2). In the fulfillment John stated that the Lord came as "the light shining in darkness" (1:5).
     This prophesied darkness was pictured in the events of the advent as they were fulfilled. The Lord was born to Mary in the midst of the night. The shepherds were keeping watch over their flocks by night when they saw the vision of the angel and learned of the Lord's birth. The wise men searched the heavens at night, and received the message of the Lord's coming by the appearance of the star. Thus was the spiritual darkness represented when the Lord was born. So with us; we are only ready to receive the Lord into our own hearts when we recognize our spiritual darkness and realize our spiritual heed. This opens the way. Then the Lord can answer our need, and come to us to dispel our darkness as He came into the world long ago.
     But not all of our mind will accept Him at first. Only in our Bethlehem can He be born of Mary, be protected by Joseph, acknowledged and worshiped by the innocent shepherds, and sought out by the wisdom of the magi.
     Mary and Joseph represent that which is living and genuine in our minds. Only this can receive the Lord. Mary is our affection or love of truth not conjoined or wed to any falsity, so she can receive the living, Divine truth which is the presence of the Lord. Truth is Divine, and the love that desires it must be pure and innocent. By that love it is clothed and adapted for use in our life, as a new body is clothed with flesh in the womb.

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So the Word-the Divine truth was made flesh to dwell among us. However, no one can perceive the truth as it is in itself, but only as we see and understand it in our lives. So Joseph represents the understanding of truth as it was in the Jewish Church. It seems to us that our intellect leads us to understand truth and then make it our own. But the fact is that Divine truth must be received first by love, and then it is thought about, and accommodated, and prepared for individual use. So the appearance and the reality are different. The understanding becomes as it were the father of the spiritual truth forming in our mind. So Joseph acted as father to the Lord as He grew up; and in the genealogy in Luke it is said of the Lord that He was, as was supposed, the son of Joseph. The love of truth, Mary, draws forth from the Word the Divine truth we need, and this is adopted by our understanding, our Joseph, and applied to our spiritual needs.
     The angel Gabriel had appeared to Mary at her home in Nazareth of Galilee. Yet the prophecy had been given that the Lord would be born in Bethlehem of Judea. It seemed only by chance that the prophecy was fulfilled. Yet this, too, was of the Divine Providence. In all things of spiritual life the Lord preserves our freedom; otherwise they do not affect us. So the fact that Joseph and Mary were at Bethlehem at just the right time so that the Lord would be born there could be discounted by those who knew this prophecy and yet refused to accept the Lord. But the fact remains that due to the peculiar situation in regard to the ownership of land in Canaan, and the demands of the census, the Lord was born in Bethlehem.
     The name Bethlehem means "the house of bread," and this represents the Word as to the goods and truths which it teaches, for these feed man's spirit exactly as our natural food nourishes the body. Thus the Lord told the wondering multitude that He was the bread which came down from heaven. He said that if any man ate of that bread he would live forever. It was to give this bread, the means for man to prepare for heaven, that the Lord came into the world, and this must take place in Bethlehem. In us, our Bethlehem is our knowledge of the Word which feeds our spiritual needs.
     So Joseph returned to Bethlehem with Mary. They traveled slowly, and when they arrived, there was no room in the inn. Mary and Joseph found a place in the stable, and there, in the dark of the night, the Lord was born and placed in a manger. Of this we read that the Lord was born in the simplest of surroundings, in a stable amidst the animals of the field, despite the fact that "if it had pleased Him He might have been born in the most splendid palace," amidst all luxury and beauty. But this would have been among those who were no longer in the doctrine of truth, and so "there would have been no heavenly representation" (AE 706:12).

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It could not represent what takes place in our minds when the Lord is born in us, had He been born in the inn of the Jewish Church, for that inn, having no room for the Lord, represented that the Jews of that time had falsified the Word. Therefore, there was no room for the reception of the Divine truth, and no willingness to abide by Divine good. But a stable, containing the animals of the field, the ox, the ass, and the sheep, represents the simple traits of natural good and innocence. Only in these traits can we receive the Lord. As He was wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger, so must we protect the Lord, newborn in our minds, by the simple, basic concepts of truth that we had learned from the Word.
     The swaddling clothes are simple truths we know and accept, such as that there is a God who is love itself, the source of mercy and wisdom; that He came into the world to save men, to lead them back on the way to heaven. Such truths enfold our new beginnings of spiritual life. They protect the innocence and purity of our acceptance of Divine things from the Word. They guard against destructive doubts and questionings. The manger also protects the Lord, providing a resting place for Him in our minds, for it means "the doctrine of truth derived from the Word" (AE 706:12).
     Today we live in a confused and selfish world. Again there is no room in the inn where the Lord can be received with love, affection, and acceptance by the nations of the world. Ambition, love of power, and materialistic goals and purposes are the modern Rome controlling the world of men's thoughts. Religion is relegated to a Vassal state under them. Religion again has a false ruler, a modern-day Herod of self-interest and natural, scientific reasoning which rejects the hard-to-understand doctrines of Christianity. So, under the leadership of the great modern theologians the resurrection of the Lord, His miracles, and the very fact of the virgin birth, are called myths, having some religious value, but not facts.
     Will the darkness of our times prevent us from receiving the Lord? Will we reject our love of truth? or our acceptance of the Word? or our effort to live a good life of spiritual principles? These things will happen if we allow our selfishness to reign in our lives unopposed.
     But now, as at the first Christmas, the Lord does prepare a place for Himself. In the night of the church He does come to men. He has given new truth through the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg to bring us the light of understanding so we can see the truth, and through love receive it into ourselves. Then the seed of truth is planted in our minds to grow and become the very presence of the Lord, keeping us from evil, guiding us to all good.

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Thus, quietly the Lord's work is done in us, as it was done for all men on that first Christmas so long ago. The Word is made flesh in our minds and hearts to become our Immanuel-God with us. Amen.

LESSONS: Isaiah 9:1-7; Matt. 1:18-25; AE 706:12

[This sermon is available on cassette tape from the Sound Recording Committee, Box 278, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Ask for #11-CS51-53.]
REVIEW 1986

REVIEW Breton Blair 1986

You and the Opposite Sex: For the Youth of the New Church; booklet by Martin Pryke, General Church Publication Committee

     In his book, Rev. Martin Pryke takes great care relating the ideal teachings in the Writings about the purpose of sexuality to the lifestyles of New Church young people today. "Growing up" today is not the same as it was several years ago. Each generation has new problems to face. However, the teachings in the Writings are timeless. You and the Opposite Sex is a book which can help a young person adapt the high ideals he (or she) has learned to the modern lifestyle which he leads.
     The book is designed to counsel any New Church person from early adolescence to the time of engagement and betrothal, and it is quite easy to read. Particularly regarding the issue of premarital sex, which is often foremost in the minds of many young people, Rev. Pryke endeavors to clearly state and shed light on some very simple but critical questions. "What does premarital sex really do for the individuals involved? Not just what does it do for them right now, but how will it affect their future? . . . we must go to the Writings and see not only the plain teaching but also the implications of all that is said . . ." (p. 32).
     Moreover, the messages about sexuality that one finds in this book are not all negative. Rev. Pryke makes it very clear that "To be a man, or a boy, a woman, or a girl is a marvelous thing" (p. 1). Also, "Yet in all that He does, the Lord looks to man's happiness" (p. 68).
     You and the Opposite Sex does indeed contain specific teachings about the right way and the wrong way to deal with sexuality, as well as practical advice on how one can lead a happy social life. However, everything presented in this book is presented for a reason. "The goal, of course, is conjugial love" (p. 72).
     Breton Blair

     (Breton Blair is a student at Bucknell University.)

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REMEMBERING THE SABBATH 1986

REMEMBERING THE SABBATH CHRISTOPHER O. HORNER 1986

     A Commentary on the Calendar Readings

     To those who are not in the habit of reflecting deeply, the keeping of the third commandment involves only the keeping holy of the sabbath day on the sabbath day, and this is a very necessary aspect of the life of regeneration; but those who reflect deeply realize that it is not by any means a full interpretation of the obligations involved in the commandment, for in reality we are enjoined not merely to keep the sabbath day holy on the sabbath day, but-to remember the sabbath day all the time, and as the term "day" fades into oblivion when contemplating the spiritual sense, we are to think of the sabbath state, or more deeply still of the Lord Himself; for the Lord is the sabbath (see AC 85, 666).
     AC 8885 teaches that to remember "signifies what is perpetual in thought which reigns there universally; and that reigns universally with man which is perpetually in his thought, even when he is meditating on other things, or engaged in business affairs."
     How can we achieve this happy state of having the Lord perpetually in thought? If we can do this, or at any rate make some real approach toward it, then all our actions and reactions will be spontaneously qualified by our subconscious thoughts of the Lord. There is but one way to do this: to read at least some portion of the Lord's Word daily. To the New Churchman this entails reading from the Scriptures and the Writings. What better medium can we have for carrying this into effect than the use of the Daily Readings issued by the General Church?
     My wife and I have used this consistently since joining the General Church thirty years ago, and looking back, it is astonishing to find just how much ground has been covered by devoting only ten to fifteen minutes a day to following the plan. By reading half a chapter or less of the Scriptures each day, the whole of the New Church canon can be covered in less than four years. In the time in which we have been participating we have also read Apocalypse Revealed, most of the minor works, the two volumes of Posthumous Theological Works and the whole of the Arcana Coelestia on two separate occasions, and to date have read the first eight volumes of A.C. again.
     This is something of an achievement in a technical sense alone, and the individual cannot but benefit from the intimate knowledge of the Lord and His leading obtained in this way, but there is a far, far deeper benefit which comes not only to those who read as individuals but to the whole body of the church, for we are told of the wonderful conjunctive power of thinking and acting in choirs.

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AC 5975 reads, "interior sight is thought, and in a society there [the spiritual world] where many act as one [and also in choirs] what one thinks, the other also thinks." In AC 3350 a choir in heaven is described in these words: "It was a choir in which many of them together thought the same thing and spoke the same thing. By representations they formed a golden crown with diamonds around the head of the Lord, which was effected at the same time by a series of representations such as those of thought and speech, spoken of above; and what is wonderful, although there was a large number of them, still they all thought and spoke as one; thus they all represented as one, and this because none was desirous to act at all of himself, still less to preside over the rest, and lead the choir, for whosoever does this is of himself disassociated instantly; but they suffer themselves to be led mutually by each other, thus all in particular and in general to be led by the Lord" (emphasis added).
     What an opportunity is here for maintaining a sustained effort in welding the church together! If all members around the world would support this scheme consistently it would be like a continued mighty prayer arising from the church to the Lord-the Lord of the Second Advent. Surely this is what the originator of the calendar had in mind, yet I find there are few amongst our membership who make use of it, and there are some who even disparage it!
     I also suggest that if this practice is made a mutual effort between husband and wife it can become a great factor in inducing that shared looking toward the Lord-the same Lord-which is the essence of the conjugial covenant and draws the partners forever closer together.
     It may be contended that it is impossible to adhere to a practice such as this in today's busy world, but why should we not have sufficient time? Are we too busy reading the newspapers or the popular magazines or the current novels-or watching TV? Are our social commitments too absorbing:, Are we working long hours so that we can buy a prestige car, or set up a house and domestic environments in keeping with the Joneses?
     The readings should certainly not be regarded as an end in themselves but as a springboard from which we can make other references at times when we have more leisure. I can understand that to those who, like teachers or ministers, are in constant and ready touch with the Word in all its forms the small portion allotted each day may seem paltry or even boring, but if we could make this a combined effort of the whole membership of the church, I am sure the power and the benefits derived from it would be inestimable.

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COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY MINUTES 1986

COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY MINUTES Alfred Acton 1986

     March 3-8, 1986

First Session

     After having greeted the clergymen who had assembled from all over the world, the Bishop recommended the acceptance of Rev. Prescott A. Rogers into membership. Upon motion duly seconded and unanimously approved, the recommendation was accepted.

     The Bishop's Report-Bishop King began his report by emphasizing the importance of the work ahead of the council in the selection of the name of an Assistant Bishop. In preparing the council for their deliberations, the Bishop read several passages pertinent to the subject. One passage stressed the necessity of making judgments of our fellow man before selecting someone to a public office. Others stressed the need for candid observations of both weaknesses and strengths in our fellow man, but in the spirit of charity leading toward useful ends. The Bishop mentioned that differences of opinion can be constructive. Not every difference need be resolved by vote. Still we should seek for essential unanimity in the government of our church. If the council can be open, affirmative and charitable in its deliberations it should lead the way for the rest of the church. This will allow a variety of opinions without stifling any one of them.
     The Bishop then turned to procedure. He recommended we follow the precedent set in 1972 at his selection. A judge of elections should be appointed by the Bishop (in this case it will be the Secretary of the council), and two tellers to assist. Secret ballots placing names in nomination should be submitted with one name each on them. Anyone nominated may decline. Those nominated should then leave the room. After discussion a ballot should be taken. The man with the least number of votes should be dropped. The man dropped should return. After further discussion a second ballot should be taken. The process should be repeated until one candidate receives 75% or more of the votes cast. At this point a motion for unanimous support of that candidate is in order which will complete the process. The Bishop also recommended that balloting begin first thing Thursday morning.
     The Bishop then reviewed what he considered the current needs before the church which should be considered in the selection of an Assistant Bishop. Selecting an Assistant Bishop now will begin a five year lead-in time before considering the succession of the present Executive Bishop. Bishop King will work with the Assistant Bishop over this period, but he stressed that the council is now looking for someone to succeed him provided, of course, it is still their wish at that time.

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He mentioned that preservation of freedom and order as well as the response of the church as a whole are essential goals of a governing bishop. Our clergy needs a general pastor. It is not only larger and younger, but has expanded into more uses today than ever before, and so requires pastoral support from the Executive Bishop.
     The Bishop pointed out that the Council of the Clergy does not govern. It selects the governor of the church, and, therefore, the Bishop has a responsibility to counsel and keep in close communication with the Council of the Clergy. He has a responsibility in keeping a warm and sharing sphere among the clergy in the council, providing mutual support to each member. Another responsibility of the Executive Bishop is to keep proper balance amongst the various uses of the church; for example, between education and evangelization, and the priest's role as physician and watchman. The Bishop does not need to expect agreement among members of the clergy, but does need to protect mutual confidence among them. Other forms of balance to be preserved are the priest's role as governor and as servant; the practical versus the theoretical; and the priestly versus the kingly. The Executive Bishop should show recommitment to New Church education within the church as well as continued commitment for creative leadership in the field of evangelization. The Bishop pointed out that we have been fortunate to have had good leadership from Rev. Douglas Taylor as the right man at the right time for this work. However, there does not seem to be another leader at this time, and it is his proposal to transfer the title of Director of Evangelization to the Assistant Bishop in 1987.
     The Bishop said we all need a clear understanding of what the General Church really is. There is a responsibility in taking the Gospel to the gentiles, particularly in Ghana, Japan and Korea.
     Another duty of an Executive Bishop is to provide for fiscal responsibility, and to discuss finances with membership of the General Church. The General Church is now stronger financially than ever before, with its assets nearly five times greater than they were in 1976 when he assumed office. On the other hand, our budgets have ballooned, not only because the clergy has doubled in size during this period, but also because of the numerous uses now being undertaken by the General Church. Each society must strive for full payment of its pastor's alary, whenever possible, or consider curtailing uses.
     The Bishop then stopped his presentation and asked for discussion of proposed procedure. A motion was made and seconded to approve the Bishop's recommendation for the format of selection. After discussion, the motion was passed, including provision for action on Thursday morning.

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     Continuing, the Bishop discussed some of the needs before the church today. In enumerating them he mentioned the importance of strengthening our commitments to New Church education. There seems to be a tendency to lose sight of the purpose of New Church education. We must seek fresh commitment from young parents. Also we must encourage more teachers to enter the field. Part of this apparent lack of commitment might be because of the apparent conflict between evangelization and education. We should not foster such an appearance of conflict.
     It is true that some of the results of New Church education are questioned. Rut we are not asked to evaluate it in terms of numbers. Instead we need to follow the dictates of the Lord's Word. Both our own children and our neighbors outside the church need to be encouraged to enter the church. Education and evangelization are two parts of the same mission. There is no real conflict.
     Certainly the external world is flooding us today with materialism and externalism and it behooves us to "insulate ourselves" (in contrast to "isolate ourselves") from these pressures and to teach with renewed strength the importance of eternal values. Also, the Bishop recognized that our priests are under greater scrutiny than ever before as to their personal and professional lives, and he expressed his appreciation for the courage of our pastors in dealing with this pressure.
     Other subjects the Bishop presented included: 1. Pulpit-sharing with priests of various Christian denominations. Is this a confusion of spheres, or something we should encourage? 2. Should there be more district Council of the Clergy meetings similar to the ones held in Canada and on the West Coast, perhaps in conjunction with district assemblies? 3. Another round of summer seminars is planned, and any member of the council interested in joining this group should contact him. 4. There is not only an increase of doctrinal studies being offered by our priests but also by our laymen, which is encouraging. 5. The Liturgy Committee is doing fine work leading to the next edition. 6. Translation is progressing well and needs our encouragement. 7. The General Church printing operation is going well, with several publications in the offing. 8. The Lay Participation Committee has been active and will give a report at the Corporation meeting. 9. The development reviews for the clergy are now entering their fourth round with encouraging results. 10. New building programs, at least in six areas, are under way, which is a sign of growth.
     The Bishop then raised several questions for discussion by the council, such as: Is the New King James version of the Old and New Testaments being accepted by our laity, and what is the response to the revisions being made by our Word Committee?

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Should the Theological School include more counseling courses, speech training, administration training? Should the Holy Supper be included with the other sacrament for the first order of our priesthood? Finally, the Bishop expressed his appreciation for the spirit of charity he perceives in our council deliberations, which surely will be a microcosm of the whole church when the Holy Spirit is invited to our deliberations.
     Following the Bishop's report, discussion focused on including performance of the Holy Supper in the responsibilities of the first degree of the priesthood. Next, the Bishop's proposal to drop the title of Director of Evangelization was discussed. One suggestion was for a pastor involved with a society to give General Church leadership in this area similar to the way General Church educational uses are led by a principal of our larger elementary schools. A request was made for further training for our ministers, perhaps after graduation, in post graduate seminars. The Dean of the Theological School said that some of this has been started; for example, a sermon-writing seminar in Glenview. He hopes that there will be additional training in this field for our clergy in the near future. Concerning the translation of the Word, the Bishop was most appreciative of the sensitive letters that have been sent out by some of our pastors. Even though by and large the General Church has been accepting the New King James version more and more, the deep affection that some of our people have for the older version cannot be ignored, and must be dealt with gently and with sensitivity. Mr. Bruce Rogers and his committee are still producing emendations to the New King James version and these will be distributed to the clergy later on this week.
     Alfred Acton

     [To be continued next month]
NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 100 YEARS AGO 1986

A hundred years ago this month the following note appeared in this magazine:

A New Church translation of the Sacred Scriptures is a desideratum long felt, and while the way does not appear clear for the work to be begun in the near future, preparations are being made in certain quarters by the study of the original tongues in which the Scriptures were written (p. 183).

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MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (6) 1986

MINISTER'S FAVORITE PASSAGE (6) Rev. Kurt H. Asplundh 1986

[Peace] . . . is like dawn on the earth, which gladdens minds with universal delight . . . for peace has in its confidence in the Lord, that He directs all things, and provides all things, and that He leads to a good end. When a man is in this faith, he is in peace, for he then fears nothing, and no solicitude about things to come disquiets him. A man comes into this state in proportion as he comes into love to the Lord. (AC 8455).

[Photo of Rev. Kurt H. Asplundh]

539

     It is striking that a beautiful passage a bout peace is related to the letter of the Word in an account of Israel under dire stress and temptation. The fugitive Israelites had no food in the wilderness and complained to Moses that they were starving. "And in the morning there was a deposit of dew round about the camp" (Ex. 16:13). This dew which was associated with the manna given by the Lord signifies "the truth of peace."
     The Lord can sustain us with an inner sense of peace no matter what the tribulation and turmoil of our life may be. True peace is not an external condition but arises from an inner state of faith and love to the Lord.
     No matter how dark the night or how fierce the storm, the dawn follows, and the dew, "and has also stored up in it something of sweetness or delight more than the rain has, whereby the grass and the crops of the field are gladdened" (AC 8455).
     For those who trust in Him, the Lord brightens life with a sweet sense of peace.
     Many years ago, men watching their flock by night saw a bright vision of angels to announce the Lord's birth. "Glory to God in the highest," the angels said, "and on earth peace to men of good will" (Luke 2:14)
     Our lives may be blessed daily with inner peace from the Lord our Savior.
          Rev. Kurt H. Asplundh
GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM TREASURER'S REPORT 1986

GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM TREASURER'S REPORT Neil M. Buss 1986

     For Year Ending December 31, 1985

     1985 was a successful year for the General Church from a financial point of view. The year closed out with a net surplus of $9,400, compared to a budgeted surplus of $520. Control of expenditures at all levels helped us achieve these results. I would like to express my deep appreciation to all our volunteer society, circle, and district treasurers, who do such a wonderful work in running their individual budgets.
     Overall contributions and bequest to all funds increased by $200,000 in 1985, to $1,134,000. This enabled us to increase our investment in the new Church Investment Fund by $500,000.

540

     The overall dollar figures for the General Church are impressive, but one must note that fully 48% of the assets of the church ($7.7 million of total book value of $16.2 million) are not really owned by the church. This 48% of our investments represents the balances of the Pension Fund and the Investment Savings Fund for our ministers and teachers. The balances held for all employees, including those of the Academy, are kept in the name of the General Church. Sometimes this can be misleading It is easy to look at the total market value of the assets of the church, which figure is $40 million, and to consider that the church should be able to support many more uses. However, of this $40 million, only $21 million is available as general and specific endowment of the church. A substantial part of the assets of the General Church is tied up in mortgages to ministers and in church and school buildings, plus loans to society developments. These investments often yield little or no return.
     Additionally, the church spends about one third of its total income from all sources providing employee benefits such as medical and life insurance, pension plan subscriptions and contributions to investment savings for ministers and teachers. Only two out of fifty-two individual societies, groups, and circles pay these expenses for their employees. The General Church pays the rest. In addition to these costs, the General Church budget provides for the administration of the overall church, including the Bishop's office, the Treasurer's office, the Secretary's office, the Development Office, New Church publications and book room, plus administration of all the benefit plans and pension schemes.
     This year we have taken the historic step of placing ministers in Ghana and New Zealand. Involvement in countries such as Korea and perhaps Japan are probably not far away. Local U.S. societies do not assist in these pioneering efforts. Only the General Church can, and does.
     We also provide the single largest funding for overall evangelization, translation, and publication efforts church-wide, plus support small societies and some schools.
     To enable the General Church to carry on its essential uses, and also to assist it in setting its sights on new areas where the church could grow, we need the wholehearted support of the entire church membership.
     Please seriously consider the request you will receive in December this year for support of your church.
     The audited financial statements which follow form part of this report.

     Neil M. Buss, Treasurer

541

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
Balance Sheet
December 31, 1985, with comparative totals for 1984
                              Expendable     Nonexpend-          Total
                              Funds          able Funds     1985          1984*
ASSETS

Cash, including short-term
     certificates and money
     market funds               $1,222,813     $375,546     $1,598,359     $1,115,771
Accounts receivable, principally
     from related entities          487,185               487,185     593,034
Inventory                          70,287               70,287     65,688
Prepaid expenses                    15,945               15,945     17,189
Loans to related societies and
     employees                    1,174,351               1,174,351     1,287,199
Loan to Cairnwood Village, Inc.     1,025,000               1,025,000     1,110,000
Investments                         9,169,640     12,092,887     21,262,527     19,324,425
Land, buildings and equipment,
     net of accumulated
     depreciation               473,026               437,026     467,348
Due from Expendable Funds                    100,000     100,000     100,000
                              $13,638,247     $12,568,433     $26,206,680     $24,070,654

     LIABILITIES AND FUND BALANCES

Accounts payable                    $91,900               $91,900     83,452
Agency funds                    319,658               319,658     249,903
Loans payable                    800,000               800,000     800,000
Mortgages payable                    84,821               84,821     86,280
Due to nonexpendable funds          100,000               100,000     100,000
Deferred capital support                    344,979     344,979     214,114
Annuity payable                              152,637     152,637     90,646
Total Liabilities                    $1,396,379     $497,616     $1,893,995     $1,624,396

Fund balances:

Unrestricted-
     available for current
     operations                    960,985               960,985     1,018,423
Restricted-
     available for current
     operations                    270,472               270,472     259,242
Restricted

     -designated for specific
     purposes                    11,010,411               11,010,411     10,387,554
Endowment                                   12,070,817     12,070,817     10,781,040
Total fund balances               12,241,868     12,070,817     24,312,685     22,446,259
                              $13,638,247     $12,568,433     $26,206,680     $24,070,654

542

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

     Statement of Support, Revenue, Expenses, Capital Additions and Changes in Fund Balances

     Year ended December 31, 1986 with comparative totals for 1984

                              Expendable     Nonexpend-          Total
                              Funds          able Funds     1985          1984
Support and revenue:
     Contributions and bequests     $825,623     $308,779     $1,134,402     $934,773
     Investment income               1,515,347     72,183     1,587,530     1,578,715
     Printing and publishing          232,763               232,763     221,211
     Gain on sale of investments               817,830     817,830     11,819
     Other Revenue               166,606     9,287          175,893     158,857
Total support and revenue          2,740,339     1,208,079     3,948,418     2,905,375

Expenses:
     Program services:
          Pastoral and
          Educational               314,071               314,071     320,156
          South African Mission     19,180               19,180     21,690
          Information and other
          services               217,435               217,435     198,402
          Employee benefits          419,409               419,409     382,322
          Development grants
          to societies          285,715               285,715     28,100
          Pensions paid          334,572               334,572     327,036
          Investment Savings
          Plan Withdrawals          118,354               118,354     158,952
          Other services          405,309     25,320     430,629     348,574
Total program services               2,114,045     25,320     2,139,365     1,785,232

Supporting services:
     Administration               543,564     12,872     556,436     520,215

     Total expenses               2,657,609     38,192     2,695,802     2,305,447

     Excess of support and revenue over expenses
     before capital additions     82,730     1,169,887     1,252,617     599,928

Capital additions:
     Contributions and bequests     39,605     95,000     134,605     109,409
     Investment income               4,742          24,890     29,632     56,998

     Total capital additions          44,347     119,890     165,237     166,407

     Excess of support and revenue over expenses
     after capital additions          127,077     1,289,777     1,416,854     766,335

Other changes:
     Pension Plan funding          253,499               253,499     228,630
     Investment Savings Plan
          funding               196,073               196,073     181,813

     Total other changes          449,572               449,572     410,443

     Excess of support and revenue over expenses
     after capital additions and other changes
                              576,649     1,289,777     1,866,426     1,176,778

Fund balances at beginning of year     11,665,219     10,781,040     22,446,269     21,269,481

Fund balances at end of year          $12,241,868     $12,070,817     $24,312,685     $22,446,249

543

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

     Statement of Changes in Financial Position

     Year ended December 31, 1985 with comparative totals for 1984

                              Expendable     Nonexpend-          Total
                              Funds          able Funds     1985          1984
Cash was provided by:
Excess of support and revenue
     Over expenses before capital
     additions and other changes     $82,730     1,169,887     1,252,617     599,928
Capital additions:
     Contributions and bequests     39,605     95,000     134,605     109,409
     Investment income               4,742          24,890     29,642     56,998
Excess of support and revenue over
     expenses after capital
     additions                    127,077     1,289,777     1,416,854     766,335
Other changes:
     Items that do not (provide) use cash:
     Gain on sale of investments               (817,830)     (817,830)     (11,819)
     Depreciation               13,945               13,945     13,246
     Contribution of investments     (656,347)     (86,104)     (742,451)     (1,002,184)
     Loss on disposal of fixed assets                              2,679
Proceeds from sales of investments     654,073     1,273,854     1,927,927     498,331
Decrease in accounts receivable     105,849               105,849
Decrease in loans to related societies
     And employees and Cairnwood
     Village                    187,848               187,848
Increase in agency funds          69,755               69,755     45,003
Increase in accounts payable          8,448                    8,448          5,381
Increase in deferred capital support          130,865     130,865     38,669
Pension plan funding               253,499               253,499     228,630
Investment savings plan funding     196,073               196,073     181,813
Decrease in prepaid expenses          1,244                    1,244
Increase in annuity payable                              61,991     61,991
Total cash provided               961,464     1,852,553     2,814,017     766,084

Cash was used for:
     Purchase of investments          699,936     1,605,812     2,305,748     650,853
     Purchase of land, building and
          equipment               19,623               19,623     30,474
     Increase in inventory          4,599                    4,599          2,005
     Increase in loans to societies and
          employees                                             33,197
     Increase in accounts receivable                              80,042     Increase in prepaid expenses                                   3,174
     Decrease in annuity payable                                   32,370
     Repayment of mortgages
          payable               1,459                    1,459          1,336
Total cash used                    725,617     1,605,812     2,331,429     823,451
     Increase (decrease) in cash     235,847     246,741     482,588     (57,367)
     Cash and cash equivalents,
          beginning of year          986,966     128,805     1,115,771     1,173,138

     Cash and cash equivalents,
          end of year               $1,222,813     $375,546     $1,598,359     $1,115,771

544

COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY 1986

COUNCIL OF THE CLERGY Lorentz R. Soneson 1986

     MEMBERSHIP

     During the year August 31, 1986, four men were inaugurated into the first degree of the priesthood, three ministers were ordained into the second degree, and one man into the third degree.
     At the end of the twelve-month period the Council of the Clergy consisted of four priests of the episcopal degree, seventy in the pastoral degree, and six in the ministerial degree, for a total of eighty. Of these, five were mainly or essentially employed by the General Church, ten by the Academy of the New Church, fifty were engaged in pastoral work, ten were retired or engaged in secular work, and five were unassigned.
     In addition to the above figures the General Church has five priests of the pastoral degree in the South African Mission, besides the superintendent.

     STATISTICS

     The statistics of the sacraments and rites of the General Church administered during the year, compiled from reports of the priests of the General Church as of September 1, 1986, together with the comparative figures for the twelve-month periods five and ten years ago are shown below.

                              1985-86      1980-81      1975-76
Baptisms
     Children                    162           152           133
          Adults                    36           48           42
          Total                         198           200           175

Holy Supper Administrations
          Public                    223           292           230
          Private                    75           59           50
               Communicants               5,195      6,705      5,727

Confessions of Faith               38           26           65

Betrothals                         36           29           42

Marriages                         53           64           57
          Blessings on Marriages      2           7           1

Ordinations                         8          12          4

Dedications
          Churches                    1          6          1
          Homes                         15          7           14
          Other                     0           2          0

Funerals and Memorial Services      76           60           55

     Lorentz R. Soneson,
          Secretary, Council of the Clergy

545

LOCAL SCHOOLS DIRECTORY 1986

     1986-1987

BRYN ATHYN: Rev. Frederick L. Schnarr           Principal
               Rev. Wendel Barnett               Assistant Principal
          Mrs. Robert Packer               Master Teacher
               Mrs. Peter Gyllenhaal                Supervisor of Remedial and Support Uses
               Mrs. Bruce Rogers                Kindergarten
               Mrs. Steven Lindrooth               Kindergarten
          Mrs. Neil Buss                    Grade 1
               Mrs. Charles Lindrooth                Grade 1
               Mrs. Grant Doering                Grade 2
               Mrs. Hugh Gyllenhaal                Grade 2
          Mr. Stephen Morley                Grade 3
          Mrs. Claire Bostock               Grade 3
          Miss Beth Anderson               Assistant, Grade 3
          Mrs. Robert Zecher               Primary Assistant
               Miss Rosemary Wyncoll                Grade 4
               Mrs. Willard Heinrichs               Grade 4
               Mrs. Prescott Rogers               Grade 5
          Mrs. Eric Smith                     Grade 5
               Mr. Carl Engelke                     Grade 6
          Miss Jacqueline Beirs               Grade 6
               Mrs. David Doering               Girls-Grade 7
               Mr. Reed Asplundh                    Boys-Grade 7
               Mrs. Peter Stevens                Girls-Grade 8
               Mr. Robert Beiswenger               Boys-Grade 8
          Mrs. Jeremy Finkeldey               Art
               Mr. Richard Show                     Music
          Mrs. Douglas Taylor               Assistant - Music
               Mr. Robert Eidse                Physical Education
          Mrs. Harry Risley                Physical Education
          r. Kim Junge                    Science
          Mrs. Robert Packer               Director - Library
               Mrs. Robert Alden                    Librarian
          Mrs. Geoffrey Cooper               Assistant - Library

          Enrollment - 307

          Head Teachers     Mr. Stephen Morley - Primary
                         Miss Rosemary Wyncoll - Intermediate
                         Mr. Robert Beiswenger - Upper

DETROIT:     Rev. Walter E. Orthwein           Principal
               Rev. Patrick A. Rose                Assistant
               Mrs. Stanford Lehner                Grades 1-3
               Miss Hyaley Synnestvedt               Grades 4-6

546

DURBAN:     Rev. Geoffrey H. Howard           Pastor, Religion, Hebrew
          Rev. James P. Cooper               Principal, Religion, Math
          Miss Marian Homber                Grades 1-3
               Mrs. Oonagh M. Pienaar                Grades 4-7
          Mrs. James P. Cooper               Art 1-3

GLENVIEW:     Rev. Brian Keith                    Pastor, Religion
               Mr. R. Gordon McClarren           Principal, Math, Science
          Miss Marie Odhner                    Kindergarten, Grade 1, 3
               Mrs. Donald Alan                     Grades 1, 2
          Mrs. Benjamin McQueen                Art, Grades 3, 4
               Mrs. Daniel Wright                Head Teacher, Grades 5, 6
               Mrs. Kent Fuller                     Grades 7, 8
               Rev. Eric Carswell                Physical Education, Religion
               Rev. Grant Schnarr                Religion
               Mrs. John Donnelly                Music, Physical Education
               Mrs. William Hugo                Librarian
          Miss Yvonne Alan                    French

KEMPTON:      Rev. Jeremy Simons               Principal, Social Studies, Music
               Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen               Religion
          Miss Bryn Junge                    Grades 1, 2
          Mrs. William Griffin and
               Miss Angela Rose               Grades 3, 4
          Rev. Frederick Chapin               Grades 5, 6, 7

KITCHENER:      Mr. Karl E. Parker               Principal, 7th Grade
               Rev. Louis Synnestvedt                Religion
               Rev. Andrew M. T. Dibb               Religion
               Mrs. Erwin Brueckman                Kindergarten
               Mrs. Ernest Watts                Grades 1, 2
               Mrs. David Hill                     Grades 3, 4
               Mrs. Robert Miller               Grades 5, 6
          Miss Audrey Glebe                French 7

MIDWESTERN     Rev. Eric Carswell               Principal, Religion, History
ACADEMY:      Rev. Brian Keith                Religion, Technical Drawing
          Mr. R. Gordon McClarren               Math, Science, Computer
          Mrs. Kent Fuller                     Math, History
          Mr. Dan Woodard                     English, Broadcasting
          Mrs. William Hugo                Librarian
          Mrs. John Donnelly               Music, Physical Education
          Mrs. Grant Schnarr                Drawing, Painting
          Miss Yvonne Alan                    Typing, French
          Mr. Gary Edmonds                    Soccer Coach
          Mrs. Willard Smith               Stained Glass

PITTSBURGH: Rev. Ray Silverman                    Religion
               Mrs. James Uber                     Grades 1, 2
               Miss Judith Elphick               Grades 3, 4
          Mr. Curtis L. McQueen               Principal, Grades 5-8
          Mrs. Paul Schoenberger                Grades 5, 6
          Mr. John Rose                    Grades 3-8

547

SAN DIEGO:      Rev. Nathan Gladish               Principal
               Miss Erin Junge                    Kindergarten, Grade 1
               Miss Karen Schnarr                Head Teacher, Grades 4-6

TORONTO:      Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs, Jr.           Pastor, Religion
          Rev. Terry Schnarr               Chapel
          Mrs. Richard Parker               Kindergarten
          Miss Sara Morley                    Grades 1, 2
               Mrs. Lee Horigan                Grades 3, 4, 6
          Mr. Philip Schnarr                Principal, Grades 6, 8
          Mrs. Mark Wyncoll                    French, Geography, Science
          Mrs. Alan Ferr                    Music

WASHINGTON: Rev. Kenneth J. Alden               Principal, Religion
          Miss Emily Barry                Grades 2, 3
          Mr. James Gese                     Grades 4, 5
          Mrs. Fred Waelchli                Grades 7-9
          Mrs. Jeremy Odhner               Language Arts

     SCHOOL ENROLLMENTS

     1986-1987

     The Academy

Theological School (Full Time)     3
College (Full Time)               123
Girls School                    101
Boys School                         109
Total Academy                    336

     Midwestern Academy
Grades 9 and 10                    11

     Local Schools
Bryn Athyn                         307
Detroit                         13
Durban                         24
Glenview                         44
Kempton                         27
Kitchener                         42
Pittsburgh                         23
San Diego                         6
Toronto                         17
Washington                         11

     Total Local Schools          514
Total Reported Enrollment in
     All Schools                    861

548

REPORT OF THE EDITOR OF NEW CHURCH LIFE 1986

REPORT OF THE EDITOR OF NEW CHURCH LIFE Donald L. Rose 1986

     I will remember 1985 as the year this magazine received a good number of congratulations and commendations of specific items that we printed. The eighty-one people who wrote the things we published during the year should take satisfaction in the indications of reader appreciation. (Some months ago I circulated a rather long report giving examples of items that were commended.)
     It should be pointed out that an article praised by one reader might not be approved by another. In our September issue we had quite an unusual article that receive a lot of favorable comment, but there were readers who wondered whether it might lead to preoccupation with personal encounters with the spiritual world. This was wholesome reaction.
     Each month fine work is done by people committed to the production of this magazine. On behalf of those enjoying the results (of which I am one) I would like to express admiration and gratitude.

     Figures for the use of our pages in 1985 follow:

Articles               201 pages
Sermons               52
Reports               58
Communications          63
Announcements          28
Church News               35
Editorials               34
Reviews               13
Directories               30
Memorials               4
Miscellaneous          49
     TOTAL PAGES          567

     Number of Contributors:
Priests               34
Laity
     Men               35
     Women               12
TOTAL LAITY               47
TOTAL CONTRIBUTORS     81

     Donald L. Rose, Editor

549

DIRECTORY 1986

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

     1986-1987

     [Detailed clergy directory accompanies this list in a special supplement.]

     SOCIETIES AND CIRCLES

     Society                               Pastor
ATLANTA, GEORGIA                    Rev. Christopher D. Bown
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND                Rev. Donald K. Rogers
BATH, MAINE                         Rev. Eugene Barry
BRYN ATHYN CHURCH                    Rev. Kurt H. Asplundh
                               Rev. Thomas L. Kline, assistant pastor
                              Rev. Frederick L. Schnarr, assistant pastor
                              Rev. Wendel R. Barnett, assistant to the pastor
                              Rev. Donald L. Rose, assistant to the pastor
CINCINNATI, OHIO                    Rev. Stephen D. Cole
COLCHESTER. ENGLAND                Rev. Kenneth O. Stroh
DETROIT, MICHIGAN                    Rev. Walter E. Orthwein
     (Oak Arbor)                    Rev. Patrick A. Rose, assistant to the pastor
DURBAN, NATAL, SOUTH AFRICA           Rev. Geoffrey H. Howard
                               Rev. James P. Cooper, assistant pastor
FREEPORT, PENNSYLVANIA               Rev. Ragnar Boyesen
GLENVIEW, ILLINOIS
(IMMANUEL CHURCH)               Rev. Brian W. Keith
                              Rev. Eric H. Carswell, assistant pastor
                               Rev. Grant R. Schnarr, assistant pastor
HURSTVILLE, N.S.W., AUSTRALIA      Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom
                              Rev. Robin W. Childs, assistant to the pastor
KEMPTON, PENNSYLVANIA               Rev. Jeremy F. Simons
Rev. Frederick M. Chapin, assistant to the pastor
                              Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen, associate pastor
KITCHENER, ONTARIO, CANADA
     (CARMEL CHURCH)                Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt
                               Rev. Andrew M. Dibb, assistant to the pastor
LONDON, ENGLAND (MICHAEL CHURCH)     Rev. Frederick C. Elphick
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA           Rev. Michael D. Gladish
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA           Rev. Raymond Silverman
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL           Rev. Cristovao R. Nobre, resident pastor
                              Rev. Jose L. de Figueiredo, retired; assistant minister
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA                Rev. Nathan Gladish
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN                    Rev. Bjorn A. H. Boyesen
                              Rev. Daniel Fitzpatrick, assistant to the pastor
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA
     (OLIVET CHURCH)               Rev. Geoffrey S. Childs
                              Rev. Arthur W. Schnarr, assistant to the pastor
TRANSVAAL, REP. OF SOUTH AFRICA     Rev. Norman Riley
WASHINGTON, DC                    Rev. Lawson M. Smith
                              Rev. Kenneth J. Alden assistant to the pastor

550

     Circle                              Visiting Pastor or Minister
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO               Rev. John L. Odhner
AMERICUS, GEORGIA                    Rev. Christopher D. Bown
                              Mr. W. Harold Eubanks, evangelist
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND                Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom
                              Rev. Robin W. Childs, minister
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS               Rev. Grant H. Odhner (resident)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA          Rev. William H. Burke
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS (Sharon Church)     Rev. Brian W. Keith
CONNECTICUT                     Rev. Paul E. Schorran (resident)
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK                Rev. Ottar Larsen
DAWSON CREEK, B.C., CANADA           Rev. Glenn Alden (resident)
DENVER, COLORADO                    Rev. J. Clark Echols, Jr. (resident)
ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA                    Rev. Andrew M. T. Dibb
FORT WORTH, TEXAS                    Rev. J. Clark Echols, Jr.
THE HAGUE, HOLLAND                    Rev. Frederick C. Elphick
JONKOPING, SWEDEN                    Rev. Bjorn A. H. Boyesen (resident)
                              Rev. Daniel Fitzpatrick
LAKE HELEN, FLORIDA                    Rev. Daniel W. Heinrichs
LANSING, MICHIGAN                    Rev. Patrick A. Rose
LETCHWORTH, ENGLAND                Rev. Ottar T. Larsen
MADISON, WISCONSIN                    Rev. Michael K. Cowley
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND                Rev. Ottar T. Larsen
MIAMI, FLORIDA                    Rev. Daniel W. Heinrichs (resident)
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA               Rev. Eugene Barry
NORTH NEW JERSEY-NEW YORK           Rev. Frederick M. Chapin
NORTH OHIO                     Rev. Patrick A. Rose
OSLO, NORWAY                    Rev. Ottar T. Larsen
ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS. MINNESOTA      Rev. Michael K. Cowley (resident)
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA          Rev. Mark R. Carlson (resident)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON                    Rev. Kent Junge (resident)
SOUTH OHIO                     Rev. Stephen D. Cole (resident)
TUCSON, ARIZONA                    Rev. Frank S. Rose (resident)
WALLENPAUPACK, PENNSYLVANIA          Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen

     Group                              Visiting Pastor or Minister
ASHLAND, OREGON                    Rev. Mark R. Carlson
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA                Rev. William Burke
BLACKSBURG, VIRGINIA               Rev. Donald K. Rogers, Jr.
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA                Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom
CALGARY, ALBERTA, CANADA          Rev. Glenn Alden
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA               Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom
CAPE COD, MASSACHUSETTS               Rev. Grant H. Odhner
CARLETONVILLE, AFRICA                Rev. Norman E. Riley
CENTRAL CALIFORNIA               Rev. Mark R. Carlson
CROOKED CREEK, ALBERTA, CANADA      Rev. Glenn Alden
DAYS CREEK, OREGON                Rev. Mark R. Carlson
DECATUR-WILMINGTON, ILLINOIS          Rev. Grant R. Schnarr
EDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA          Rev. Glenn Alden
ERWINNA, PENNSYLVANIA               Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen

551

FRANCE                         Rev. Alain Nicolier
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND                    Rev. Ottar T. Larsen
HATBORO, PENNSYLVANIA               Rev. Robert S. Junge
KENT MANOR, AFRICA               Rev. Norman E. Riley
LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA               Rev. Prescott A. Rogers
LANGHORNE/NEWTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA     Mr. Jonathan Rose
NEW HAMPSHIRE                    Rev. Grant H. Odhner
NORFOLK, VIRGINIA                    Rev. Donald K. Rogers, Jr.
ORAL-HOT SPRINGS, SOUTH DAKOTA      Rev. J. Clark Echols
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA               Rev. Eugene Barry
OYEN, ALBERTA, CANADA                Rev. Glenn Alden
PENN STATE, PENNSYLVANIA          Rev. Arne Bau-Madsen
PHOENIX, ARIZONA                    Rev. Frank S. Rose
RED DEER, ALBERTA, CANADA           Rev. Glenn Alden
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA               Rev. Donald K. Rogers, Jr.
TAMWORTH, AUSTRALIA                Rev. Erik E. Sandstrom
VANCOUVER, BC., CANADA                Rev. Kent Junge
WEST COUNTRY, ENGLAND                Rev. Ottar T. Larsen
WILMINGTON, DELAWARE                Rev. Donald K. Rogers

     New Assignments for Ministers

     1986-1987
Rev. Alfred Acton                    Additional duties:
                                   Director G. C. Religion Lessons
                                   Secretary Council of the Clergy
                                   Chairman Sunday School Committee
Rev. Glenn G. Alden               Pastor of the Northwest District of Canada
Rev. William O. Ankara-Badu          Minister of the New Church, resident in Ghana, West Africa
Rev. Eugene Barry                    Minister of the Bath, Maine Society
Rev. William H. Burke               Visiting Minister in the Southeast District

Rev. Frederick M. Chapin     Assistant to the Pastor of the Kempton Society
Rev. Robin W. Childs               Assistant to the Pastor of the Hurstville Society
                              Minister to the New Zealand Circle
Rev. William H. Clifford          Resigned
Rev. Nathan D. Gladish               Pastor of the San Diego Society, California
Principal of San Diego School
Rev. Cedric King                    Head of a special evangelization project in Orange County, California
Rev. Allison L. Nicholson          Retired
Rev. John L. Odhner               Independent evangelization effort in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Rev. Donald L. Rose               Assistant to the pastor, Bryn Athyn pastoral staff
Rev. Erik Sandstrom               Retired
Rev. Paul E. Schorran               Resident minister of the Connecticut Circle
Rev. Christopher R. J. Smith          ANC Faculty
Rev. Louis D. Synnestvedt          Pastor Carmel Church Society, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada

552

DEVELOPMENT OFFICER'S REPORT 1986

DEVELOPMENT OFFICER'S REPORT Walter C. Childs 1986

     GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM

     DEVELOPMENT OFFICER'S REPORT

     For the Calendar Year 1985

     Each year the members and friends of the General Church are asked to support a variety of General Church committees and associated organizations. These mutual and interdependent uses unite together in goals but exist financially separate. For this reason this report deals only with the support provided directly to the General Church Incorporated, but will present information that affects each congregation. Everyone who is associated with the church is asked to make an annual gift to the General Church. The reason for this is that those who are associated with the General Church receive a service from it. The range of services begins with guidance from the Bishop's office and extends to grants for payment of your minister's salary and benefits. Support of your local congregation is the most important gift you make, but it is hoped that each New Church man and woman will also extend at least a token gift to the annual fund of the General Church.
     During the last year the Board of Directors completed the process of establishing a planned giving program that is designed to benefit the General Church and all of its societies, circles, and districts. This means the church can now offer to our donors all of the same giving methods that other sophisticated non-profit organizations offer to their donors.
     The way a gift is given will vary depending upon an individual's circumstances but ultimately a gift will be one of the following.

     An outright gift which is what makes up our annual fund and accounts for most of the funds received by the General Church each year.
     A gift of principal with the income from that principal paid to you, your spouse, your children or grandchildren.
     A gift of income with the principal being returned to or retained by you, your spouse, your children or a beneficiary.

     During 1985 total support to the General Church reached a three-year high. This advance represents a 21.5% increase over the 1984 total gifts. The major reason for this increase was a number of large gifts to the General Church Real Estate Fund. This fund is used by the General Church to assist societies and circles in the purchase of worship facilities.

553

Number of               Activity                              Amount
Contributors          Supported                              Donated
647          The yearly operating costs of the General Church
          via the annual fund                              $419,095
170          Evangelization, the General Church Real Estate
          Fund, and other special uses                         $435,730
133          Endowment                                        $414,182
          Total                                             $1,269,007

     In addition to the current fund received by the General Church, $193,500 in planned gifts were received. This year the General Church was the recipient of an annuity and a life insurance policy.
     From a fund-raising perspective the largest challenge facing the General Church during 1986 is support of the General Church Annual Fund, since this provides a portion of the funds necessary to finance the annual operations of the General Church.
     Walter C. Childs, III,
          Development Officer
NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

NCL 50 YEARS AGO 1986

     A considerable part of the December issue in 1936 was taken up with church news. In the Bryn Athyn news we find the following:

     It has often been said that there are entirely too many organizations in Bryn Athyn, though opinions differs as to which ones could most readily be dispensed with!

     We then learn that yet another organization has come into being: the Bryn Athyn Orchestra Association. This association has thrived and flourished in the years since.

554

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM 1986

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE GENERAL CHURCH OF THE NEW JERUSALEM Lorentz R. Soneson 1986

     During September 1, 1985, through August 31, 1987, one hundred and eleven new members were received into the General Church. Three members resigned, and none were dropped from the roll. Sixty deaths were reported. On September 1, 1986, the roll contained three thousand nine hundred twenty-seven members.

                                             Other
                                        U.S.A.      Countries           Total
Membership, September 1, 19854           2,726      1,153           3,879
New Members (Certs. 7249 to 7359)           64          47                111
Losses: Deaths                          -37          -23                -60
     Resignations                     -2           -1               -3
     Dropped from Roll                -0           -0                -0
Membership, September 1, 1985               2,751          1,176               3,927
Net Gain during the period September 1,
     1985, through August 31, 1986      25          23                48

     NEW MEMBERS

     UNITED STATES

     Alabama: Bluff Park
Miller, Mr. Thomas Pelham

     California: North Hollywood
Rankin, Mrs. Robert John (Sylvia Ruth Oatley)

     California: San Jose
Gruber, Miss Ellen Marie

     California: Simi Valley
Zuber, Mr. James Steven

     Colorado: Westminster
Richey, Mr. Kevin Francis
Richey, Mrs. Kevin Francis (Kathryn E. Pendergrass)

     Delaware: Wilmington
Smith, Mrs. Glenn W. (Elsie Jean Clendaniel)

     Florida: Lakeland
Roberts, Mr. Albert Ernest
Roberts, Mrs. Albert Ernest (Edna Ferne Woofenden)

     Florida: S. Miami
Heinrichs, Miss Mary

     Georgia: Stone Mountain
Soderberg, Mr. Carl John, Jr.

     Illinois: Chicago
Moore, Miss Dana Rae

     Illinois: Evanston
Simpson, Mr. Charles Edward, jr.

     Illinois: Glenview
Henderson, Mr. Norman Graham
Huft, Mr. Michael John
McQueen, Miss Duana Pearl
Miskelly, Mr. Stephen Daniel
Richter, Mr. Steven Kent

     Illinois: Skokie
Kiel, Mr. Alan James

     Kansas: Leavenworth
Coffin, Miss Lissa La Vonne

     Maryland: Greenbelt
Hyatt, Mr. Duane Daryl

     Maryland: Mitchellville
Cooper, Mr. Philip Andrew

     Minnesota: Lake Elmo
Johnson, Mr. David Dormer

555

     Missouri: Maysville
Klippenstein, Mr. Brett Owen

     New Jersey: Elmwood Park
Anderson, Mr. Charles (Edna Mae Jansen)

     Ohio: Dayton
Pettella, Mrs. Daniel R. (Pamela Smith)

     Oregon: Corbett
Andrews, Mr. James Stuart

     Pennsylvania: Bensalem
Pratt, Mr. Thomas Rockwell

     Pennsylvania: Bryn Athyn
Cooper, Miss Lisa Ellen
Dalcin, Mr. Rogerio
Heinrichs, Mrs. Robert D. (Janina Elaine Scott)
Kwak, Mrs. Dzin Pyung (Eun Sook Kim)
Martin, Mr. Gyamfi
Odhner, Mr. Calvin Acton
Odhner, Mrs. Calvin Acton (Margaret van Zyverden)
Porpiplia, Mrs. James (Donna Bostock)
Smith, Mrs. Robert Baker (Susan Eleanor Poole)
Synnestvedt, Mr. Dan Alan

     Pennsylvania: Cheltenham
Sampey, Miss Joanne

     Pennsylvania: Hatboro
Andrews, Mrs. Robert T. (Mary Susan Grubb)
Murray, Miss Barbara Ann

     Pennsylvania: Huntingdon Valley
Carey, Mrs. Thomas John (Doreen Fannie Vandecar)
Cronlund, Miss Amy Beth
Frazier, Mr. David Owen
Fuller, Miss Jessica
Pitcairn, Mr. Clark Darrell
Stern, Miss Margaret Anne
Wille, Mr. Kurt Smith
Zecher, Miss Nadine

     Pennsylvania: Kempton
Brown, Mr. Lach Ian

     Pennsylvania: Meadowbrook
Betz, Mr. George Ludwig
Betz, Mrs. George Ludwig (Doris Adalyn Whitlock)

     Pennsylvania: Philadelphia
Lanyon, Miss Virginia Dena Margaret
Miller, Mr. William Joseph
Prickett, Mr. Frank Warren

     Pennsylvania: Pittsburgh
Olson, Mrs. Paul Andrew (Patricia Naomi Coffin)

     Pennsylvania: Sarver
Blair, Mr. Breton John

     Tennessee: Nashville
Pendleton, Miss Teal

     Texas: Fort Worth
Smith, Mr. Huard Gordon
Smith, Mrs. Huard Gordon (Jody Lou Pachacha)

     Virginia: Richmond
Hyatt, Mr. Keith Edward

     Virginia: Woodbridge
Pekala, Miss Eleanor Frances

     Wisconsin: Hixton
Mergen, Mrs. Phillip L. (Margaret Anne Parker)

     Wisconsin: Milwaukee
Clark, Miss Elisabeth Ann

     CANADA

     Alberta: Silver Valley
Friesen, Mr. Gary Daniel
Friesen, Mrs. Gary Daniel (Vera Lynn Smith)

     British Columbia: Dawson Creek
Friesen, Miss Christine Rae
Friesen, Mrs. Marvin Daniel (Joan Lesley Grant)

     British Columbia: Prince George
Greenough, Mrs. Darrell R. (Edell Diane Friesen)

556

     Ontario: Islington
Childs, Miss Heather
Longstaff, Mr. Philip Scott

     Ontario: Kitchener
Glebe, Mr. Bruce David
Schnarr, Mr. Maurice Kenneth

     ENGLAND
Hertshire: Letchworth
Chambers, Mrs. Brian (Rosalind Hilda Evans)

     Kent: Beckenham
Elphick, Mr. Stephen Charles

     Surrey: Guildford
Burt, Mr. Lewis John
Burt, Mrs. Lewis John (Dorothy Joyce Dean)

     EUROPE

     Denmark: Roddovre
Bach, Miss Anette
Bach, Miss Lilli Marie

     France: Manche
Lotte, Mrs. Germain (Denise Georgler)

     Norway: Oslo
Misvaer, Mrs. Ola (Anne Fyhn)

     REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

     Clernaville: Clermont
Nzimande, Mr. Benjamin Ishmael

     Diepkloof: Zone 1
Magazi, Mr. Solomo

     Diepkloof: Zone 2
Nkabinde, Mr. John Vusumuai
Nkabinde, Mrs. Peter P. (Tryphine Nzimande)

     Dube: Dube Village
Tshabalala, Mr. Daniel
Tshabalala, Mrs. Daniel (Joyce Sankobe)
Tshabalala, Mr. Lazarus
Tshabalala, Mrs. Lazarus (Salaminam Mashinini)
Tshabalala, Mr. Valelani Bennett
Tshabalala, Mrs. Valelani Bennett (Kgopedi Maggie Phalatse)

     Johannesburg: Mozodo

Tshabalala, Mr. Rueben Njanyana
Tshabalala, Mrs. Rueben Njanyana (Olgina Sibongile Khumalo)

     Khotso: Zone 5
Mazibuko Mr. Ndaba Richard
Mazibuko Mrs. Ndaba Richard (Florence Zodowa Thabede)

     Moroka
Nhlapo, Mr. Absolom
Nhlapo, Mrs. Absolom (Stephina Mabena)
Nhlapo, Miss Ausi Mirriam

     Orylando
Nhlapo, Mr. Elijah
Nhlapo, Mrs. Elijah (Madefree Mkhizg)
Nkabinde, Rev. Peter Piet

     Pimville: Zone 5
Maseko, Mr. Jacob Mokaka
Maseko, Mrs. Jacob Mokaka (Priscilla M. Motloung)

     Sherwood: Durban
Burne, Mrs. Warren (Leslie Jane Waters)

     Natal: Westville
Cockerell, Miss Janice Linda
Douglas, Mr. Andrew John
Lester, Mr. Michael Gerard
Rodda, Miss Bronwyn Jean
Waters, Mr. Allan William
Waters, Mrs. Allan William (Patricia Mary Robertson)

557

DEATHS

Anderson, Mr. Curtis, 1986. Plains, Georgia (80)
Anderson, Mrs. Edward (Emma Jean Seidat), December 13, 1985, Volusia, Florida (75)
Appleton, Mrs. Roy J. (Patricia Mary Lewin), September 25, 1985, Colchester, England (56)
Appleton, Mr. William Sanfrid, September 7, 1985, Colchester, England (94)
Berggren, Mrs. Carl Thorwald (Ingrid Matilda Holmberg), March 30, 1986, Stockholm, Sweden (90)
Boatman, Mrs. Ellison S. (Anna Pearl Edwards), March 21, 1986, Annapolis, Maryland (76)
Bouillet, Mrs. Walter A. (Jean Sanders Ord), August 18, 1986, Tennessee (68)
Hovard, Mr. Richard Crozier, March 20, 1986, Titusville, Pennsylvania (103)
Bovard, Mrs. Richard Crozier (Guida Asplundh), July 31, 1986, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania (92)
Brickman, Mrs. Robert (Leona Grace Friend), March 27, 1986, Albuquerque, New Mexico (78)
Campbell, Mr. Harris Shirley, January 14, 1986, Warrington, Pennsylvania (82)
Carlson, Mr. Robert Fred, July 5, 1986, Tucson, Arizona (71)
Carswell, Mr. Louis Duncan, February 21, 1986, Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania (62)
Cole, Mr. Duncan P., March 10, 1986, Kempton, Pennsylvania (37)
Cole, Dr. Robert McFarlan, January 18, 1986, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania (94)
Collett, Mrs. William M. (Florence Wilhelmina Bellinger), May 11, 1986, Islington, Ontario, Canada (88)
Cooke, Mr. Alfred, February 20, 1986, Durban, Natal, Republic of South Africa (87)
Coop, Miss Annie, December 1, 1985, Heywood, Lancs., England (86)
Craigie, Mr. Alec, July 30, 1986, Islington, Ontario, Canada (82)
Daniel, Miss Germaine, 1985, Paris, France (76)
deMaine, Mr. Robert Edward Lee, February 9, 1986, Florida (69)
DeNio, Mr. Albert Alfred, Jr., December 27, 1983 (delayed report), Neshaminy, Pennsylvania (73)
Edley, Mr. Neville Gane, December 18, 1985, Durban, Natal, Republic of South Africa (73)
Evens, Mrs. Nelson (Kate Norman), date unknown, Canada
Forfar, Mrs. Hugh Scott (Ruth Beatrice Robinson), 1985, North Branch, Michigan (81)
Glenn, Mrs. Walter Justin (Dorothea Homiller), 1985, Florida (78)
Hansen, Miss Helen Marie, April 4, 1986, Spokane, Washington (55)
Heinrichs, Rev. Henry, December 24, 1985, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada (88)
Hilldale, Mrs. John (Adrienne Pitcairn Starkey), February 9, 1986, Chicago, Illinois (74)
Hussenet, Mr. Rene, February 24, 1986, Foecy, France (82)
Johnson, Mr. Victor, August 25, 1986, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada (71)
Kintner, Mrs. William Roscoe (Xandree Marie Hyatt), July 28, 1986, Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania (70)
Kirk, Mrs. Theodore H. (Muriel May Sturnfield), November 14, 1985, Tarpon Springs, Florida (80)
Kofod, Mrs. Otto (Irene Gregson), August 24, 1986, Glenside, Pennsylvania (86)

558

Kuhl, Mr. John Ernest, November 6, 1985, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada (80)
Leeming, Mrs. Kenneth (Virginia Smith), April 16, 1986, Pompano Beach, Florida (59)
Lemky, Mr. Edward, November 26, 1985, Crooked Creek, Alberta, Canada (78)
Leonard, Mr. Edgar Morel, January 23, 1986, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida (89)
Leonard, Mrs. Edgar Morel (Louise Davis), October 9, 1985, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida (87)
Lindrooth, Mr. Charles Marelius, April 23, 1986, Northbrook, Illinois (84)
Moore, Mr. Grady, 1986, Ground Birch, British Columbia, Canada (84)
Mumford, Mrs. Doris Adeline (Ridgway), December 16, 1985, Durban, Natal, Republic of South Africa (81)
Nkabinde, Mr. John Vusumyzi, April 29, 1986, Diepkloof, Republic of South Africa (44)
Nowe, Mrs. William (Dorothea Glenn), May 13, 1986, Meadowbrook, Pennsylvania (87)
Orr, Mr. Raymond Charles, February 4, 1986, Weston, Ontario, Canada (76)
Payne, Mrs. Murray (Orida Olds), June 9, 1986, Sarver, Pennsylvania (89)
Pritchett, Mr. Joseph William, November 7, 1985, Uxbridge, Ontario, Canada (83)
Rowcliffe, Mr. John, November 18, 1985, Heywood, Lancs., England (77)
Scalbom, Mrs. Trumbull (Rosalie Olds), September 6, 1986, South Venice, Florida (83)
Simmons, Mrs. Edward (Nellie Clara Taylor), October 25, 1985, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia (67)
Simons, Mr. Elmer Eldridge, October 25, 1985, Tumbull, Connecticut (77)
Simons, Mrs. Keneth Alden (Mary Pitcairn Richey), August 12, 1986, Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania (73)
Smith, Mrs. Gilbert Morris (Venita Paula Blair), August 31, 1986, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (83)
Smith, Mrs. Leander P. (Joanne Schoenberger), January 16, 1986, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (72)
Starkey, Mrs. Glen B. (Patricia Finch), December 4, 1985, Warminster, Pennsylvania (27)
Synnestvedt, Mr. Raymond Harvey, February 12, 1986, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania (83)
Waldron, Mrs. Richard L. (Mary Evelyn Davis), March 22, 1986, Ridgecrest, California (70)
Walsh, Mrs. Edward William (Eudora Sellner), August 3, 1986, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (95)
Waters, Mrs. Gerald Gilbert (Myrna Loy Veitch), June 6, 1986, Westville, Natal, Republic of South Africa (46)
Watson, Mr. Jack Harry Durrant, February 4, 1986, St. Petersburg, Florida (65)

     RESIGNATIONS

Dahl, Mrs. Tonnie, March 12, 1986, Sweden
Pyles, Mrs. William O. (Gloria Joan Slater), May 5, 1986, Denver, Colorado
Ring, Mrs. Gene (Katharine Ann Barry), October 24, 1985, Hazelhurst, Wisconsin

     Lorentz R. Soneson,
          Secretary

559

Editorial Pages 1986

Editorial Pages Editor 1986

     A PLAN FOR READING

     As we approach a new year we do well to consider what plans we might have for religious reading. Specific thoughts are offered by Mr. C. O. Horner on page 532, and on page 568 we give an idea of the daily reading plan for the months ahead. Often individuals who do not actually follow this plan are inspired by it to formulate one of their own.

     RECOGNIZING GIFTS

     At a gift-giving season we keep pretty good track of what gifts we have received and from whom so that we may express our thanks and enjoy the thought behind them. What about the gifts we receive from the Lord?
     Part of the progress of life is coming to the realization that something that we have enjoyed is indeed a gift and is indeed from the Lord. One of the differences between people on earth and people in heaven is that those in heaven are very clear about the gifts that come from the Lord. An enlightening passage on this point is AC 5649.
     What have we been given? At this season we give thanks for the gifts of innocence and peace, and gifts is precisely what they are (see AC 1738). Everyone is given these from infancy, and part of religious life is to come to the recognition that they are gifts that they have enjoyed in the past and can continue to enjoy.
     If in this season we enjoy a special sense of good will, we may quietly reflect that the regenerating person recognizes the ability to love others as something that is received. It is a precious ability which "he acknowledges and believes to be the Lord's gift" (see AC 1594:5).

560

BOOKS OF BRIAN KINGSLAKE: A POSTSCRIPT 1986

BOOKS OF BRIAN KINGSLAKE: A POSTSCRIPT Kurt Simons 1986

     Communications
     When writing the review of Rev. Kingslake's other books (Life, March 1986), I was not aware of the existence of his most recent effort, Angel Stories (Worcester, England: Arthur James, 1982). This note is to rectify the omission, for this book should not be missed. As Aqueduct Papers records a might-be conversation with an angel, so Angel Stories is a set of stories that angel mothers might tell their children-or even each other. Or us. They're stories with an allegorical point. Some the kids will figure out; some you'll need to help with-and they may stimulate some entirely grownup reflection! In keeping with most of Rev. Kingslake's work, the book is bite-size brief, as are the stories. Indeed, some are Aesop-size fables of a half or third page in length.
     Angel Stories may be most successful as a read-aloud book, allowing Mommy or Daddy to translate some of the vocabulary, at least if you are an American reading what is occasionally very British usage! At our house, certainly, it was very popular used this way, and a New Church teacher might find it similarly useful and not just at the elementary level either.
     The growth of distinctive New Church literature will probably continue only slowly, "line upon line, here a little, there a little," It is thus always a pleasure to welcome the arrival of new contributions to this bookshelf. Angel Stories is particularly welcome, for it adds to the children's corner, which may be the most important part of that shelf these days. In this case, there's the bonus that many of the stories speak to the child "remain"-ing in all of us. Would that most modern best sellers could say as much.
     Kurt Simons,
          Lutherville, Maryland
VIEW FROM WITHIN 1986

VIEW FROM WITHIN Robin Childs 1986

Dear Editor,
I have been reading A View from Within, A Compendium of Swedenborg's Theological Thought compiled and translated by Dr. G. F. Dole. I pause here to gather my thoughts and feelings of gratitude for this lucid translation.
If you love swimming, this book is like friends leading you to the most exciting and also the most peaceful swimming spots they have found in their lifetime. If you love to fish, it's the best fishing spots; if you love to sail, it's the perfect windy days on your favorite lakes.

561

Whatever it is you love that you bring to this work you will find water that is crystal clear and as refreshing as the Lord intends water to be. The frustration of reading long sentences with endless commas, and also verbs and subjects in odd places, is gone. The sentences trip along; the paragraphs bubble by, and the pages flow past steadily. The joy of this thirst-quenching translation is that Divine revelation, the water of life, stretches out clearly before your spirit in all its depth and breadth.
Robin Childs,
Auckland, New Zealand
ATONEMENT, ETC. 1986

ATONEMENT, ETC. Dr. David Lister 1986

Dear Editor,
     I have just read in the London Times that two men in Iceland have been fined for shooting a white-tailed sea eagle. Since I am a bird lover, this has sent my thoughts to the article by John Sabol "Explaining Atonement" (New Church Life, August 1986, p. 367), especially his criticism of Anselm's theory that by the justice of God it is absolutely necessary that the debt of man's sin should be paid in full. John Sabol goes on later to describe the fight of our Lord with the powers of evil, but he seems to miss the point that the Lord was also wounded in that fight, as witness the marks on hands, feet and sides. To bird lovers the death of that eagle is an irreplaceable loss, and can never be made good by however many pounds (or even dollars!).
     A son of one of my patients has been sent to prison for drug offenses. His parents make a 200-mile roundtrip every weekend to see him. In a way they are helping him to expiate or make amends for his sin, assuming that there are innocent, as in the Lord's case. They agree with the government, as their representative, in putting him in prison, dispensing justice on their behalf, and yet they do not hate their son, as John Sabol's interpretation of Anselm's theory might imply.
     The theory of atonement implies forgiveness. If that son is going to rejoin and be at one with them, then his parents must at least pay for the petrol they use; also for the broken promises of their son's life. They cannot be glossed over as if the parents were two "sugar daddies." Forgiveness means letting off in order that there can be an atonement, and forgiveness implies a background of justice or order. But of course thesis, antithesis and synthesis of feelings, in the sense of Tatsuya Nagashima's excellent letter (New Church Life, June 1986, p. 281), dance after each other so quickly that it is dangerous to make too much of one except in the company of Divine love and wisdom.

562

     I am tremendously grateful for all the new insights I have learnt since first coming into contact with Swedenborg's Writings, oddly enough in a Roman Catholic bishop's house, and then later via the Swedenborg Society in London. I love the "cool," un-hot-gospel sphere of the New Church as I have experienced it, but as Sydney Parker in his talk to the Toronto chapter of the Sons of the Academy said (New Church Life, February 1986, p. 78), it seems a bit outside the activities exemplified, e.g. by the Salvation Army, and I wonder if this is because there is a lack of emphasis on how much God is hurt by us men, and on what Dietrich Bonhoeffer calls "costly grace."
     Dr. David Lister,
          Yateley, Surrey, England
NEW CHURCH SINGLES NETWORK 1986

NEW CHURCH SINGLES NETWORK Various 1986

Dear Friends,
     A group of us met in July at "Meadowridge" in Pennsylvania We enjoyed meeting new people and renewing old ties while hiking, eating, and discussing. We thought: how could we make it possible for more people to get the chance to do what we're doing this weekend-meet like-minded people, have fun, discuss interesting topics, doctrinal and otherwise.
     Sparked by Kaia Synnestvedt's reaction to Bethany Gruber's letter in New Church Life, we came up with the idea of a New Church Singles Network to facilitate personal correspondence among members and the opportunity to visit with those traveling through one's area. Secondly, the network will organize and sponsor various kinds of events: workshops, weekend gatherings, whatever the members are interested in doing. We are publishing a newsletter as a forum for open exchange of ideas, information and experiences. You can get a copy of the newsletter from your pastor or by writing to us: NCSN 299 Le Roi Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15208.
     Initially we are asking for donations in the form of a membership fee. This has been set at $5.00 (U.S.) in order to support the costs of mailing and production of the newsletter and directory. Please write with your suggestions especially in reference to a meeting at the '87 Assembly in Bryn Athyn. We look forward to hearing from you.
     Kate Hammond,
     Marcia Smith,
     Sam Moore,
     Rob Uber,
     Nathan Morley,
     Emily Barry,
     John Walker,
     Donna Ruch,
     Ed Havanas,
     Kaia Synnestvedt

563

Church News 1986

Church News Various 1986

     SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA CIRCLE

     Since our last report in January, 1984, we have had a change of pastors; Rev. Wendel Barnett was called to work in the Bryn Athyn Elementary School, and Rev. Mark Carlson came to the Bay Area as our new pastor. We've also gained more than 20 new members and friends to our congregation, two of whom are new members of the General Church, and three who have joined us as infants since our last report. We grieve at the loss of Riis Hurwell, one of our newer members, in September, 1986, but rejoice that he is in the other world among those with perfect health.
     We still worship in the building we, rent in Mountain View, which has a roomy nave and nicely furnished chancel along with lots of Sunday school and meeting room, but we have gone from holding services three times a month to worshiping every Sunday (and, as Harold Rand says, also during the week by shunning evils as sins). In addition, we are renting the adjacent building with a kitchen once a month so we can enjoy a potluck dinner together after church.
     The Bay Area Circle hosted a successful camp at Lake Tahoe in the summer of '85. Seventy-five adults and children attended from all over California and as far east as Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Ontario. The horde of children were at their most creative under the able direction of Nora Cooper. Rev. Michael Gladish (L.A.), Rev. Cedric King (San Diego), and our own pastor gave the lectures and conducted worship, and the camp directors were Jonathan and Hannah Cranch, assisted by Bob and Peggy Merrell. In addition to all the sights of Tahoe and rafting down the Truckee River, we had some lovely, quiet campfire services and an exceptional talent show.
     Music has become an ever more important part of our church life, though we began, as many groups and circles do, as humble users of taped services. We rejoiced when Eunice Righetti was occasionally available to play the piano, or when Jean Cranch was in town and played the organ for us. Later, with the expert help of Ken Rumrill, Tom Aye, and Jonathan Cranch, we began taping additional hymns, using our own untrained choir and any organist we could seize upon as she passed through our area (which always turned out to be Mark's mother, Barbara Carlson). We were also glad to have Ken play his guitar and sing, sometimes joined by Kris Carlson, for interludes or during the Holy Supper. Jonathan often found and taped wonderful postludes that kept us glued to our pews for ten minutes after the service.
     Then we were joined by Donald and Eleanor Dillard, both trained musicians, who came into the New Church five years ago and moved to the Bay Area last May. Now that we have live organ music on a regular basis, we sing out the way we have always wanted to. We have also set up two committees related to music, the Music and Ritual Committee, which is making up pamphlets containing an order of service and hymns for each service, and another committee looking into the possibility of starting up a community choir under Donald's direction, in conjunction with our evangelization program.
     We have always been enthusiastic about sharing our beliefs and way of life with others. Perhaps this is because over half of our congregation has come into the church as adults, which makes it easier for us to talk to visitors about our church when they visit our services.

564

We are delighted to know that the TV series "Death, Dying, and Beyond," first produced here under the direction of former pastor Barnett, has been refined and reused to aid in the cause of evangelization in other areas of the church.
     More recently our missionary focus has been on several public lecture series, followed up by inquirers' classes, in both San Jose and Palo Alto. Although our pastor gives the lectures and conducts the classes, they would not be possible without the active participation of many people in the congregation, from booksellers to greeters to poster hangers, letter writers, and representatives to the local newspapers. The same is true of the fairs where we have had book booths and the people who not only manned the booths but also entered into the many hours of preparation and follow-up work necessary. Other societies that have done such projects know the amount of work that is involved, and we have enjoyed almost every minute of it. We feel the Lord has given us "results" exceeding our (great) expectations, which encourage us on to more ambitious projects.
     Besides our evangelization committee, inquirers' classes and music committees, our church body is made up of many other cells. Our Funds Development Committee was formed out of the original Contributions Committee to include fund-raisers and other means to the end of financial responsibility and self-support, which we strive to obtain within the next few years. Our Women's Guild is active both in support of church "housekeeping" duties and in support of our relationships with one another; we held our first women's retreat last fall with Louise Rose in a lovely nest overlooking San Francisco's Colt Tower. The men have had their good retreats too, joined by our friends from Convention, Richard Kopa and Dr. Horand Gutfeldt. Our Sunday school, always strong and full of children, now has additional strength in the new official teens group, which meets twice a month after church to study the Word, discuss, wash cars when they're poor and eat pizza when they're rich.
     The spiritual growth groups and reading groups, formed from time to time as a new need arises, are in many ways the heart and lungs of the circle, cementing bonds between members, providing time for study and reflection, allowing us to help one another in the process of regeneration, assisting newcomers in becoming a part of the growing church body.
     How do we manage to pull all this off, being so spread out over the Bay Area? Well you may ask. Sometimes it isn't easy, with members of the congregation coming from as far south as San Jose and even "over the hill" in Scotts Valley, near Santa Cruz; as far north as Santa Rosa; as far east as Livermore; and as far west as . . . well, no farther west than the Pacific Ocean. So although we get our name from the beautiful hilltop city of San Francisco with its Golden Gate bridge, it's actually a good hour's drive from San Francisco to the church in Mountain View. Most of our members drive at least a half hour to church. Yet we get together at least once or twice a week, and have been known to stand in the parking lot talking for an hour after church, because we enjoy one another's company and because the church is important to us all.
     Christine Pendleton,
     Kristin Carlson

565

VISITORS TO CHURCH SOCIETIES 1986

     Announcements

     Visitors to the following societies who are in need of hospitality accommodations are invited to contact in advance the appropriate Hospitality Committee head listed below:

Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania                Colchester, England
Mrs. Anne T. Synnestvedt                Mrs. Donald A. Bowyer
Box 334                                   26 Allanbrooke Road
Bryn Athyn, PA 19009                     Colchester, Essex, C02 8EG
Phone: (215) 947-3725                     Phone: 0206-43712

Transvaal, South Africa                London, England
Mrs. Marlene Sharpe                     Mrs. Geoffrey P. Dawson
52 Keyes Ave., Rosebank                28 Parklands Road
TVL 2196, Rep. of South Africa           Streatham, London, SW 16 6TE
Phone (0011) 4472743                     Phone: 01-769-7922

Atlanta, Georgia                         Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Mrs. Harold Sellner                     Mrs. Paul M. Schoenberger
1805 Roswell Road, Apt. 24F                7433 Pen Hur Street
Marietta, GA 30062                     Pittsburgh, PA 15208
Phone: (404) 971-6899                     Phone: (412) 371-3056

Detroit, Michigan                         Sacramento, California
Mrs. Harvey Caldwell                     Mr. and Mrs. Courtney D. Scott
410 Crane Avenue                         3448 Vougue Court
Royal Oak, MI 48067                     Sacramento, CA 95826
Phone: (313) 399-9243                     Phone: (916) 364-1044

Glenview, Illinois                         San Diego, California
Mrs. Donald Edmonds                    Mrs. Helen L. Brown
2740 Park Lane                         2810 Wilbee Court
Glenview, IL 60025                     San Diego, CA 92123
Phone: (312) 724-2834
                                        San Francisco, California
Toronto, Ont., Canada                     Mrs. T. L. Aye
Mr. and Mrs. John Parker                P.O. Box 2391
17 Archerhill Drive                     Sunnyvale, CA 94087
Islington, Ont. M9B 5P2                Phone: (408) 730-1522
Phone: (416) 622-5967
                                    Kitchener, Ont., Canada
Cincinnati, Ohio                          Mrs. Maurice Schnarr
Mrs. Donald P. Gladish                     98 Evenstone Ave., R.R. 2
4805 Drake Road                         Kitchener, Ont. N2G 3W5
Cincinnati, OH 45243
                                        Washington, D. C.
Tucson, Arizona                         Mrs. Frank Mitchell
Greta Lyman                              1708 Grace Church Rd.
1085 West Schafer Drive                Silver Spring, MD 20910
Tucson, AZ 85705                         Phone: (301) 589-4157
Phone: (602) 887-8367
                                        Louisville, K. Y.
                                        Mr. John Frazier
                                        800 S. 4th St., Apt. 2201
                                        Louisville, KY 40203
                                        Phone: (502) 583-1329

     Kindly call at least two weeks in advance if possible.

568

DAILY CALENDAR READINGS 1986

     Those who follow the Daily Readings plan during 1987 will move from the 9th volume of the Arcana on to the eleventh volume by year's end. They will be reading the book of Ezekiel in January and will finish the Old Testament at the beginning of July and will be in the middle of the Gospel of John at year's end.
     If you would like a copy of this daily plan, please write to The Secretary of the General Church, Cairncrest, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009.
     Here are some particulars if you want to get started.

January 1 (Thursday) Ezekiel 12:1-16; Arcana Coelestia 7656-7667
Jan. 2 Ezek. 12:17-28; AC 7668-7670
Jan. 3 Ezek. 13:1-16; AC 7671-7673:2
On the 15th of the month it will be Ezek. 18:1-18 and AC 7730-7741.
On the 31st it will be Ezek. Chapters 25 and 26 and AC 7829-7831.
Title Unspecified 1986

Title Unspecified 1986

[Photo of Rev. Olle Hjern and Judy: Rev. Olle Hjern shows Judy Rhodes a monument to Swedenborg. Photo taken by Leon Rhodes during a visit to Sweden to promote the tricentennial celebration.]

569

[Photo of people in Sweden.]

570

My Wonderful Religion 1986

     My Wonderful Religion
By
The Reverend Jan H. Weiss
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A
CONTEMPORARY RELIGION
THAT EMBRACES LIFE?

     DO YOU WANT TO KNOW
HOW TO FIND GOD AND
LEARN ABOUT HIM?

DO YOU WANT TO GET
RID OF YOUR FEARS
AND GUILT FEELINGS?

     DO YOU WANT TO BE HAPPY IN MARRIAGE,
FAMILY AND WORK?

     DO YOU WANT TO HAVE
A GOOD FUTURE WITH HOPE?

     MY WONDERFUL RELIGION
CAN FULFILL ALL
THESE DESIRES!

     AND THIS BOOK INTRODUCES
YOU TO THIS RELIGION.

     TO ORDER
SEND A CONTRIBUTION
OF $5 OR MORE BY CHEQUE
TO NCO, PO BOX 7066
INDUSTRY, CA 91744