Swedenborg and Swedenborgians - An Exploration of Influence and Response Part 2

Here in part two, Stephen looks at themes within Swedenborg's work and how these variously connect him to other seekers or set him apart. He clarifies what he thinks separates Swedenborg's Christianity from all other Christian denominations. -Editor

Swedenborg is considered the founder of a religion, today called the New Church. He wrote thirty thick books that redefine Christianity. He did not think about his books as theology, though. They were always based on his own experiences. This is why there is more to Swedenborg than theology.

Swedenborg and Spiritism

Swedenborg is also considered to be one of the forefathers of spiritism, a movement that became very active in England in the 19th century. Spiritism basically means talking to spirits, in séances, with cards and oracles, or in magic rituals. This practice is based on the belief that we pass into a spirit world after death and can still communicate with people here. Spiritism is reputed to have some four million adherents the world over in 2012. That number is probably at the low end. By comparison, the religion based on Swedenborg’s theology only has a few thousand members the world over today.

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Swedenborg and Swedenborgians - An Exploration of Influence and Response Part 1

Stephen tries to ascertain whether or not all of Swedenborg's work could be pulled under the umbrella of one clear theme. He puzzles over the fact that many people who read Swedenborg's work attack people who claim to interact with the other world, when the man whose doctrines they adhere to did the very same thing. -Editor

Swedenborg and the Search for the Soul

“The Search for the Soul” is a nice theme for Swedenborg’s life. It may not be the most accurate wording, since “soul” can have so many meanings. Swedenborg looked for the soul in nature, in the human body, in the brain. Then he looked in the Bible, in poetry, in symbols. He was not satisfied with this, however.

Then something happened that can only be described partially. I don’t think Swedenborg understood what was happening. His diaries and dream journals show great confusion and searching.

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To Make a Difference

What is the New Church doing? Are there quantifiable results to support all of the claims? Stephen uses direct language, simplifies the playing field, and centers it in the heart. -Editor

This article will look at the question: How can the New Church transform itself from what it is now, into an entity that works for the benefit of the human race and the planet?

Many people today want to “make a difference.” A difference for the good of humanity, for the good of the planet, and for the good of their immediate surroundings and friends.

If “making a difference” sounds like an empty cliché to you, try replacing it with: doing good, living a life that matters, solving world problems, awakening to your true purpose and creating a new and better world. Making a difference covers all of that.

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Meditate | Mindfulness and Most Ancient Breathing

Meditate is a monthly column in which insights gained from meditating on the Word are shared. This month Stephen Muires writes about the subtle breathing that ensues during periods of mindfulness and its potential to connect us with heaven. You could write for Meditate, too! Contact us if you'd like to write a submission for this column.-Editor.

If praying is talking to God, thanking God, asking God, then meditation is listening to God answering.

In mindfulness our own thoughts are temporarily invited to leave center stage and leave space in the middle for a fullness of experience involving the full mind. That’s why it is called mind-full-ness.

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Other Revelations

Stephen brings our attention to how the Lord is revealing himself to us, and to others, in the present. He challenges the notion that the Bible and Swedenborg's writings are the exclusive and static emanations of a God who only wanted to speak twice. The water is still moving under the bridge. -Editor.

This is a New Church perspective on other revelations. Other revelations meaning: revelations from God through human beings other than those who wrote down the Bible and the Heavenly Doctrines.

The great thing about the New Church doctrines is that they allow for the validity of other religions and place all value in the embodiment of faith through action, good will and love.

But what about revelations? Don’t we consider the Word, including the Writings of Swedenborg, as the Divine Truth? We do. And sometimes those words “Divine Truth” get to have overtones that make it sound like “Final Truth,” or even “the Only Truth.” But that would be ridiculous, don’t you agree? That would be similar to asserting that the Hindu, Muslim or Native American religions are invalid, and they are not.

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Aliens

In this essay Stephen compares Swedenborg's written accounts of people on other planets with the descriptions of extra-terrestrial life given by Howard Storm after his near death experience in 1985. The two are in extraordinary sympathy with each other. -Editor.

Introduction

Swedenborg wrote about aliens. Why did he do that?

In the Arcana Coelestia it is explained that the revelations about heaven and hell, life after death, the process of regeneration, etc., have been given to lead people into a belief and a true understanding of the Lord's nature and purpose. Among the revelations that the Lord gave through Swedenborg we find the descriptions of Swedenborg's interactions with spirits that once lived on other planets. These accounts turn up in the Spiritual Experiences. They are used later as inter-chapter material in the latter part of Arcana Coelestia. Finally, which for us may emphasize the point that Swedenborg really was serious about these accounts, he published them once more separately in the book Earths in the Universe.

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