ANC Words For The New Church 1876 1886 XIV First Principles 1884 (Reprint Cincinnati 1984)

WORD·S
FOR
THE NEW CHURCH
A 8ERIAL
XIV
FIRST PRINCIPLES
CINCINNATI
1984 - 214
1~1
11J:rC - 'î PROLOGUE
'<b ~?
100 years ago the Academy of the New Church pub
lished a serialunder the title WORDS FOR THE NEW
CHURCH. Their purpose in publishing this work was
to affirm the Divine Authority of the Writings as the
infallible works of the Lord Himself in His second
Advent, and to show clearly from the Writings them
selves the consummated and devastated state of the
Christian World, and its opposition to the Lord's New
Church. (WORDS vol. 1, p. 571) Also through THE -:»
WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH, the Academicians
sought to promote a more thorough study of the
Heavenly Doctrines by which aIl things of knowledge l
and life might be subordinated to Dlvin~elati2n.
We quote from the prologue of th_fLfirst volume of the
--
SERIAL:
The Heavenly Doctrines as unfolded in the Writings of Sweden

borg we joyously take as our guide in conducting the SERIAL.
Indeed as we come into a more searching culture of these Writings,
we discover more and more the vastness oftheir scope. They find us
everywhere. And tb.ese Doctrines being themselves Divine are the
me~r~o~se.Thcey are the TabY..Jlacl~ of G.QcLwith n:!en; the
Lord Himself in His Advent making aB things new. What more
therefore can we have? What more than these gr;nd di~~IôSures
Iwhich are the final analysis of aB that has respect to God, at;1.d to
l\:1a_n, and to the relation between the two.
WeB therefore may we devote ourselves to the development in
ourselves and others of a familiar knowledge of thi§! ~y~stem ~f
DiviQeTI:uth, -to an actual internal2rop~gandaofthel!!ith, -to th~
bringing of our own liyes, and aB that is dearest to us, under the
2 PROLOGUE
influenceofthese wonderful disclosures through the Word,'made by

the Lord in His Second Advent. (WORDS vol. 1 p:2)
This SERIAL truly was, and still remains, WORDS

FOR THE NEW CHURCH, a searching study of the
Writings which brought forth principles from which to
view everything around us, WORDS by which scien
tifics of every sort can be subordinated to the truths of
L Revelation. In this SERIA L, which is now being
presented 100 years later, we hope to continue with the
same principles and goals of the original SERIAL: To
affirm the Divine Authority ~f the Writings in every
"thing of the Church, and to draw from these Heavenly
Doctrines particular aEPlications i~ science, language,
J\ history, and in aIl other subj·ects in which the Writings
find us.
CONTENTS
PAGE
PROLOGUE : ; 1
FIRST PRINCIPLES
SECTION
1. - DIVINE AUTHORITY
OF THE WRITINGS 5
II. -THE DEVASTATED AND CONSUMMATED
STATE OFTHB CHRISTIAN WORLD TODAY ... 13
III. - ALL THINGS ARE TO BE MADE
NEW IN TH~ NEW CHURCH 24
IV. -THE AFFIRMATIVE PRINCIPLE 32
~ SCIENCE IN THE LIGHT r. '> l
OF THE NEW CHURCH (REPRINT) , .. , 38
APPENDIX - A MISSING NUMBER FROM
THE APOCALYPSE EXPLAINED , 53
NOTES - WHY REVIVE WORDS FOR
THE N~W CHURCH? 57
"THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORD" ... 58
.,
FIRST PRINCIPLES
I.
THE DIVINE AUTHORITY OF THE WRITINGS
Happy are they who do his commandments, that their authority

may he in the tree oflife, and that they may enter hy the gates into
the city.-Reu. 22:14
The first and foremost principle of the Academy

movement was the acknowledg~ment of the Divine
Authority of the Writings. They affirmed in no un
., certain terms "The Second Advent of the_Lqrd in the
Il
~ Writings, and consequ;ntly their infallibility and
Divinity." (WORDS vol. 1 p. 571) The first number of
WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH was devoted to the
affirmation and confirmation of this principle. .In the
section entitled "The Divine Authority ofthe Writings,"
they state that "the books, then, in which the LORD is
jn His Second Coming, and by which that Di~iiïe
Coming and Presence are effected from the Word, were
wri.tte.!1 by Him, and not by man. '" Being thus drawn
out of His Ow!,!-Word, presented by the Lord Himself
and written by His command, they are necessarily His
books and not man's!" (WORDS vol. 1 p. 41)
Several issues later to clarify even more their position
on the Divine Authority of the Writings, the editors of
WORDS wrote:
5
~j Q"~~"'? "' ·t~ S-v
6 THE DIVINE A UTHORITY OF THE WRITINGS
Our estimate of the Writings we have given in the previous

numbers of the SERIAL. For the convenience of our readers and
that we may be weil understood we give once more a brief summary
of this estimate:
We hold that the Writings are a body of Divine Doctrines,
namely, the Heavenly Jloctri.!teLoL th_e New JerusaJemf:tJthat
Swedenborg was divinely inspired and illuminated by the LORD to
receive these Doctrines in his understanding, and to publish them
by the press; that the Doctrines are free from error and infallibly
true; and that they constitute the Second Coming of the LO~D, and
are His peq~e.!llillP..tese!!ce in His Ch,?rch, and that ~ing evolved
by the LORD Himself{6om the Worg..they are inseparable from,it
constituting ità)Divine Sanctity and its very lif~(vol. 1 pp. 339, 340)
Such was the doctrinal position expressed in WORDS

FOR THE NEW CHUR CH with respect to the Divine
Authority of the Writings. It was not a conclusion
arrived at by a series of human deductions and
reasonings, but a Erinc!pl~..rawn dir..e.1:..tly from the
II Heavenly Doctrines. Therefore we also affirm this
principle, not because our forefathers so believed, but
because it is a principle from the Writings themselves,
and thus from the mouth of the Lord. For it is clearly
taught in several passages of the Heavenly Doctrines
that the Lord Himselfis thereal Author ofthe Writings,
that it is He who has revealed to the workfthe doctrine
and arcana ofheaven, and that Swedenborg only
-
served as the means through whom thls Orvine Reve
-lation was made. In the INVITATION Ta THE NEW
CHURCH Swedenborg writes:
I The-s&itual se!!s~ ~ord has been disclo~d by the Lord

JJthrough
- me, which has never been revealed since the- Word was
~ /"
written with the sons ofIsrael. ... Not even a jot ofit can be opened
except by the Lord alone. This surpasses aIl revela_tion which ~as
l
been made since the creation of the world. (Inv. 44, also see App.
THE DIVINE A UTHORITY OF THE WRITINGS 7
And in responding to Ekebom's report he refers to the'

Wri~~gs as '~the...doctrineofthe New Church, deliverèd
to the world by our Saviour Jesus Christ through me
His servant." (Smalt Theological Works and Letters, p.
258f, Sëe also TCR 779) This declaration of Divine
origin and authorship is not only made with respect to
J the spiritual sense and heavenly doctrines in general,
but it is also made in reference to aIl of the heavenly
arcana revealed by the Lord in His Second Coming.
--=---
For in response to Dr. Ernesti's attacks against the
Writings, Swedenborg wrote: "Please read what is
written about the arcana that have been disclosed by
the Lord through me His servant in nos. 846-851 in the
latest work, 'l'RUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION." (Smalt
Theological Works and Letters, p. 198±) From this last
Memorable Relation of the work True Christian
Religion, referred to here by Swedenborg, it is evident
that the arcana disclosed by the Lord through
Swedenborginclude the whol; of die"Wrltings in aIl
the1r v~riety. Thus it 1Sëlear that the Lord Himself
revealed the Heavenly Doctrines, and Swedenborg His
servant was only. the means. by which i.hf8rtWclation
was made. (see also AR 43, SS 4, De V VII 21, AE 641:3,
670:4, Inv. [VII], NJHD 7, TCR 508, Cor Sum XLIX,
etc.)
Now it may be argued that, although the Lord is the

source of the Writings, something of the means will
also enter into them, something of Swedenborg the
man. But the Writings themselves testify that, al
though the Heavenly Doctrines have indeed been
reveale,.Çl to us by m!lans of Swedenborg, a-n-a aIso by )
way of the spiritual world, nevertheless Swedenborg }
was not alIôwed "to take anything from the mouth of
any spirit, nor from the mouth of any angel, but from
the mouth of Lord alone." (De V XIII 29) For "in order
that th.e true Christian religion might be opened, it was
absolutely necessary that someone should be intro

duced into the spiritual world and, from the mouth of
the Lord, drawlor.th genuine truths from the ~d."
(Inv. 38) Therefore in the TRUE CHRISTIAN
RELIGION Swedenborg testifies: "from the first day
of my calI, l have not received anything pertaining to
the doctrines of the Church from any angel, but from
the Lord alone while reading the Word." (TCR 779
Although Swedenborg discoursed with spirits and
angels for many years, no spirit dared, nor did any
angles wish, to instruct him about what is in the Word,
or about any matter of doctrine from the Word. He was
"taught by the Lord alone, Who was revealed" to him.
(DP 135) For the Lord gave Swedenborg a distinct
perception ofwhat came from the Lord and what came
from angels. (AE 1183) Even what he learned by means
of evil spirits, he "learned from the Lord aIOn"ë; al
tho-ugn tne spirits spoke." (SD 4032) This unique
enlightenment and perception is described as follows:
The things which 1 learned from representations, visions, and

discourses with spirits and angels were from the Lord alone.
Whenever there was any representation, vision, and discourse, 1
was kept interiorly and intimately in ref1ection upon it, as..to~w.hat
thence w~s useful and good, thus what might be learne.d frOJ:!l it....
'Thus-have-I been instructed; consequently by no spirit, nor by any
'angel, but by,Jhe_Lord aÏone, from Whom is aU truth and good ...
When they wished to persuade me, 1perceived an interior or inmost
persuasion that the thing was so and so, and not as they wished;
which also they wondered at; the perception was manifest, but
cannot he easily described to the apprehension of men. (SD 1647)
Thus it was possible for Swedenborg to be taught by

the Lord alone, even though this was done by means of
things in the spiritual world perceived by his under
standing. The events that he witnessed and the subjects
that were discussed were "ofthe Divine Auspices of the
Lord." (AR Chap. X, 484) And the spiritual sense ofthe

Word, although given to him through heaven, was
revealed to him by the Lord alone.
Everyone is able to see that the Apocalypse cannot be expounded

except by the Lord alone, for the single words there contain arcana
that would never be known without a unique enlightenment and
thus a revelation. It has therefore pleaseatliëLôrd to open for me
the sight of my spirit, and to teach. (AR pref.) -
As Swedenborg received the Heavenly Doctrines

from the Lord alone, therefore we must conclude that
he wrote that which he received, without tarnish from
his own spirit, or his worldly ideas. For if he could
distinguish between what came from angels and spirits
and what came from the Lord, surely he could also
distinguish between what came from himself and what
came from the Lord. Nevertheless, this conclusion is
not ours, but is given to us directly in the Writings, for
the passage from the preface to the APOCAL YPSE
REVEALED quoted just above continues with this
declaration:
Do not therefore suppose that 1 have taken anything there from

myself, or from any angel, but from the Lord alone. (AR pref.)
-- -
"That'the internaI sense is such as has been set
forth" in the Arcana Coelestia, "is evident from aIl the
details that have been unfolded, and especially from
the fact that it has been dictated from heaven." (AC
6597) Therefore the exposition ofthe chapters ofGenesis
and Exodus begin with the words "the internaI sense."
and at the end of the exposition of.the tirst chapter of
Genesis, it is stated, "Here now is the internaI sen~of
the Word." (AC 64, see also AC 1965) Also in the
APOCAL YPSE REVEALED the exposition is called
"the spiritual sense." (see also AE 1061) For "it has
10 THE DIVINE AUTHORITY OF THE WRITINGS
pleased the Lord ... to open the Word ... as to its

spiritual sense. This has been done through me
[Swedenborg] in the ARCANA COELESTIA published
in London, and afterwards in the APOCAL YPSE
REVEALED published in Amsterdam (Appendix to
the White Horse 4, see also AR 820, De Dom perf., SS
97:5) From these references and the whole of the
Writings it is evident that what is written in the
Writings is the internaI sense as it has been revealed to
us DY tneLüraalone. For [his reason the editors of
WORDS considered the position that "Swedenborg's
, Writing!' are not in themselves the internaI se~ of !he~
Word," as "The New Heresy." (WORDS vol. 1 pp.
331-348)
It has been shown above that the experiences and
arcana of the spiritll.al w..,grld related in the Writings are
revelations from the Lord Himself. (SD 1647,4034, HH
1) And this is true both with respect to the revelation of
these things to Swedenborg in the spiritual world, and
also with respect to what is written in the Writings
concerning these things. For "the Lord has opened
arcana concerning heaven and heU, man's life after
death, the Word, and the Last J udgement. AU these
things have been written down in Latin and sent to aU
I the ArchbiShops ofthis~kiogQ.om~eat Britain] and
to the Nobility." (Ath Cr 2)
N evertheless, Swedenborg foresaw that many would
attribute much ofwhat he wrote to his imagination or
to an obscure state of mind. Therefore he declared "in
solemn truth that they were not inventions, but were
truly seen and heard; not seen and heard in sorne state
·1 of mind when asleep, but in a state of complete
'L wakefulness. For ~it has pleased the Lord to manifest
Himsel{to me, and to send me to teach those things
J 1 w}1ich will oelongPto His New Chu1Ch." (TCR 851) "As it
has been granted me by the Lord to see the wonderful

things which are in the heavens and under the heavens,
l must, as commanded, relate that which has been
seen." (AR 962) The Lord revealed these things to
Swedenborg so that He might also, through Sweden-
borg, reveal them to the world in written form. That the
whole of the Writings was written and published by
command of the Lord can also be seen in other
passages in the Writings. (D. Lord pref., CL 1, TCR 771)
Thus, from the teachings ofthe Heavenly Doctrines
, themselves, we conclude that each and everything
:wz:itJ;en in !!te~ Wr!ting~j$ neither from Swedenborg,
nor from any angel or spirit, but from the mouth ofthe
1\ Lord alone. For Swedenborg was given to percéive
distinctly what came from the Lord and what came
from angels: "What is from the Lord was written, and
what is from angels was not written." (AE 1183)
Neither did Swedenborg write anything from himself
(AR rref.), for the Writings are not his work~ "b~t the)
Lord s, Who wished to reveal the nature ofheaven and
hell, and man's life after death, and about the Last
J udgment, and that thElolQgica!-thin~do not transcend)
r~~~on." (~.D_6IÇn) Thus we find the following state-
ment in the ECCLESIASTICAL HIS TOR Y OF THE
NEW CHURCH:
1 The books which were written by the Lord through me (a Domino
) per me s.,9'ipti), from the beginning to the present day, must be
enumerated. (Ecc. Hist. 3)
From aU these teachings quoted above, and from

many more, throughout the Heavenly Doctrines, it is
evident that the Writings are from the Lord alone, in
1their essence and OTIgin, fii1lie way in which-they were
revealed, and in their written form. It is because ofthis
that they constitute the Second Coming"of tJ)e Lord.
For how coula-the Lord in His Divine Humanèoniëto
man, except in His Own Divine Truth? (AC 8427)
,,~ l
) . ..... ......; 5~'t:
The Second Advent of the Lord is effected bv means of a man

t7.J before whom He .has m~ested Himselfin Person and-;hom He
has fiUed witb Hi~-fu>irit, to teach the doctrine of the New Church
1through the Word from Him. (TCR 779)
It has now pleased the Lord to reveal many arcana of heaven,
especiaUy the internaI or spiritual sense of the Word, which '
hitherto has been entirely unknown; and with this He has taught
r j1the genuine truths of doctrine; which revelation is meanLby the
IAdvent ofthe Lord in Matt. 24. (AE 641:3)
There are also many other passages which teach

that the Writings themselves constitute the Second
Coming of the Lord (TCR 3, 771, AC 4060:7, 9807:4, D
Lord 26, AE 36, 670, 948, AR 642 etc.), but perhaps the
most direct teaching to this effect is in the ECCLES
IASTICAL HIS TOR Y OF THE NEW CHURCH.
When the Brie! Exposition was published, the angelic heaven

from the east to the west, and from the south to the north, appeared
of a deep scarlet color with the most beautiful flowers.... In the
spiritual world there was incribed on aU these books: "The Adv~~t
or the L<>rd." The same 1 also wrote by command on two copies in
J' ..c oUand. (Ecc Ijist. 7, 8)
One of these copies has been found, on which was

lincribed the words; Hic.--Libe~UdY.e.ntlllLPomini,
IJScrimum ex Mangp.to - This book is the Advent ofthe
Lord, written by commando
We therefore reaffirm the principle of the Divine

Authority ofthe Writings, and base this beliefupon the
clear and direct doctrine from the mouth of the Lord.
And, as did the first editors of WORDS FOR THE NEW
CHURCH, we apply this QIinciple to the whole ofthe
Writ~~s, accepting everything thatis written in them
as Divine Revelations, as teachings from the Lord
J Himself. \
'}
THE DEVASTATED AND CONSUMMATED STATE 13

OF THE CHRISTIAN WORLD TODA y
II
THE DEVASTATED AND CONSUMMATED STATE
OF THE CHRISTIAN WORLD TODAY
Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for Me, but weep for yourselves
and for your children. For if they do these things in a green tree,
what shaH be done in the dry? (Luke 23:28:31 see also Matt 21: 18-20
and AC 9337:2, AE 403:21.)
Another principle clearly and repeatedly stated in

WORDS FOR THE NEW CHUR CH is the recognition
of the devastated and consummated state of the
Christian world, even to the present day. This position
was taken in marked contrast to the opinion held by
many New Churchmen at the time, which was that the
Christian world was improving and becoming more
receptive to the Heavenly Doctrines, an oQinion forrped
1 largely t'rom external appearance~ and affections. The
1 prirïciple presented in WORDS FOR THE NEW
! CHURCH, on the other hand, was not drawil. from
observations of the world around them, but from an
11 objective and extensive study of the Writings them
selves.
1 They state in the second number of the SERIAL, in
WhiCh they treat ofthe state oftl?-~Christianworld; "In
'i),:cf'J ç \ the Writings of the New Church w.ùl.aY~n int~r
J\ VleW of]i11 things, a view which penetrates beyond
external guises.. Jlnfolds the most recondite realities of
life.... Under thjs lighj; Qfheaven, which in other phase
is the light of Divine Truth, myriads of things are
revealed, never conceived of before, fallacious appear
ances are stripped off, and the reality is brought to
i ltght,. sothat aIl things appear, less according to their

seemmgs and as man sees them, and more as they
really are, and as the. Lord sees them.
~ l'J J "The Christian world analyzed under tllli; light of
Heaven will, in many respects, be found in a most
d~plorabl~ condi~ion, ~ts .Iif~~~gh~~ith the most
dlreful eVlls, and!ts prmclples ofhfe1llost lamentably
~L 1 <> J{:l.c tA~~ (D", 7 J )
)
14 THE DEVASTATED AND CONSUMMATED STATE
/1'
fallacious .... The interior state~ofmencan be known
only from Divine Reveiation;. Opiiiions formed from
observation alone are of no value ... (hence) our
absolute dependence upon Divine Revelation for aIl
true knowledge of man's spiritual state, and conse
2. quently the state ofthe Church." (WOIlDS vol. 1 pp. 77
and 78, see also AC 3489 quoted in what follows.)
The reader is referred to the rest of this second
number of WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH for a
thorough treatment of this subject according to the
teachings ofthe Heavenly Doctrines. But to summarize
this study the following principles and points will be
quoted.
..L -==-, From what precedes (especial1y AC 3398 and 3898) we have these
five priIJ.::!ples:
-r - - First:~toctrin~Ofa New Chu~ch are never revealed until the

men of the ormer Church reach a state in which they will not
acknowledge them.
L - _ . Second: When a former church is consummated, the Church is
transferred ta the Gentiles. --
3 - - -Third: Draya fliW of the former church then remain in the lif~of
good.
il' - ourth: The posterity of the vastated church, by accumulation of
hereditary evil, becomes more confirmed in evil than their ancestry.
s Fifth: The men of a vastated church acknowledge no truth and
good by which they may he regenerated, and by which the
increasing force of ancestral evil may be broken. (WORDS vol 1
pages 105, 106)
'Î1 ' - Though involved in what precedes, these Five Points, because of
their conclusive force, are still to be presented separately, as
fol1ows:
- - First: The interiors of Christian are, as it were inundated in a
black cloud of direful falsities from- evil, separatiitg them from r j)1.7 S
heaven. (see AC 4423)
'L - J1 Second: Chri~tians abominate the genuine goods and truths of 'IL) 1\
,the Church ana: the Word:{8ee AC 5702)
?
-1
Third: In the Church once perverted, there is continued growth of
evils and falsities. rAC45<f3j-\-
\ \0'I~/.r
(1 _
Fourth: The evils of the consummated church are inherited and
confirmed by posterity. (see AC 2910)
, - - Fifth: The disposition to acknowledge God as Man, and the Lord \
as God, is de_~trQyed among Chris~ians, exc~Ilt.Jl.mollgthe fëWWl10 )1
al'ünl'impl~ good. (see AE 808, 1097, Ath Cr 6, SD 4772) - WORDS
vol. 1 pp. 114-123
It may appear as ifthe writers of WORDS FOR THE

NEW CHURCH were harsh and judgmental, without
charity and condemning. But a careful reading of the
SERIAL will show that they themselves did not make
the harsh judgments upon the Christian world, but
merely recognized and set forth the open and fr~uent 1
teaG-hi~§~ijh~---Writj!1~s on this subject. For it is
.{ - clearly taught in the Heavenly Doctrines that'~
l~
hO come into the other life from the Christian world
re the worst of ~Il, hating the neighbor, hating faith,
enying the Lord; besides being adulterers above aIl
thers." (AC 1186 pref.) '~ are deyoured.IDfu1he

L.. .love of self aIH:l the world ... they also make nothing of
iland utterly despise aIl things that are of charity and
jfaith; and do not acknowledge the Lord Himself, nay,
'" 1they hate aIl who con~im." (AC 2122) "Almost aIl
< - from the Christian world have an idea of three gods,"
and consiaer "the Lord as another m~n" and "separate
from the Divine." (AC 3704 & 5256)tr~o not even
know what good is, what charity is or what the
o - neiK-hbor is, neither wJ!..' !t the i!!.!ernal man is, nor what
heaven and heIl are, nor that everyone lives immed
i
iately after death." (AC 9409:5~believe "that they
may live like devils, hold the neighbor in hatred and
s persecute him, pass their whole life in adulteries, and
yet be saved.... The very gentiles perceive that this is
false, many of whom abhor the doctrine of the
Christians be_cause the)': see their life. Thus it is evident
that nowhere does there exist a more detestable life
than in the Christian world." (AC 916) There are also

~any other teachings in the Heavenly Doctrines which
, _ reveal t~e interior evils in the Christia~rld (AC
( 1032,2121,2343:6,3469:4,3469:4,3489,5009, and TCR
619) showing hqw ~he most pernicious, cruel and
adulterous are mostly "from the Christian world, and
1- ( rarely fromütIiers/'(XC 2752, 824, 826, 1673:3, 2744,
2754,4327:2, 5060, and AE 1008). There are also many
, passages in the Writings that reveal the f~lsity and
ignorance of the Christian world (AC 3489, 4464:5,
;Z ( 4733:2, 5572, 5639:2, 5702, 6876, SD 153, 239, 262, AE
1220, and TCR 4, 121, 339) and the preferable state of
the gentiles (AC 1059:2, 2590 - 2598, 4190, 9256:2 and
DP 322).
Now sorne may argue that these passages are not
referring to most individuals in the Christian world,
but only to the general state of the church brought
about by a few who have confirmed themselves in evils
and falsities. However such an argument is not
supported by the Heavenly Doctrines. Indeed the
j ~ (Writings teach us that "there are very many from ~he
Christian world ... devoured by adulteries," (AC 2752)
"that very many at this day in the Christian world ...
10 love themselves and the world above everything else,"
( (AC 10409:2) and "that very many think ofnothing but
filthy, obscene and profane things, and among them
Il _.
( selves speak of nothing else." (AC 2122, see also 2754,
4327) The Heavenly Doctrines also reveal that "there
are very many in the Christian world who ascribe aIl
, ~~ ( thin,.gs to nature, and scarcely anything to the Divine,"
(AC 5572) and that "almost aIl" from the Christian
11 Church "have the idea. of the Lord as another _ man"
.
and "separate from the Divine." (AC 5256, see also
f3704) And lest we still think that "very many" may
here refer to a smaIl percentage ofthose in the Christian
THE DEVASTATED AND CONS UMMA TED STA TE 17
world let us add the following teaching from the

Arcana Coelestia.
Be it known that those who are in inverted order, that is, in evil
and the derivative falsity, become at last so averse to the good and
truth of the church that when they hear of them, and especiaUy
when they hear oftheir interior things, th~~o greatly abominate
them that theY feel as it were a nausea and vomiting. This has been
told and shown me, when 1wondered why the Christian world does
~j ve these interior things ofthe Wordo There appeared spiri ta
from the Christian world who, on being compelled to hear the
interior things of the Word, felt so sick that they said they were .
11 going to vomit. 1 was told that such is the Christian world at thisj\ N~
day almost e~x.where. (AC 5702)
The!3e teachings, revealed to us by the Lord in His

Second Coming, clearly do not refer to sorne general
state of the church apart from individuaIs, nor do they
refertoonly a few in the Christian world whohaveconfinned
themselves in evils and falsities. Rather the Writings
use the word "few" (pauci) to describe those in the)
Christian world "who are in the good oflife" (AC 3898).
For although the Christian doctrine prescribes love
and charity more than any other in the world, "there
are few who live according to it." (AC 2596, see also AC
i-)
l
-' 2732 and DP 330:7) And "although the whole Christian
world acknowledges that evils must be shunned as sins
" {... and unless they are . ~erelsnosalvation;Yet
scarcely o.ne in a thousand understands this." (DP 153,
see also HH 495, CL 500 and AC 3812) In the Christian
\ church the Lord is received "by few with acknow
ledgement ofheart, and by still fewer from affection of
1\ love," (AC 9198:2) and "not a single one from the
Christian world knows that His Human is Divine, and
ût."")f 1
scarcely anyone that He alone rules Heaven and the
Universe." (AC 4689) For "scarcel~yI;the
Christian world are affected with truth for the sake of
truth" (AC 9409) and because of this "few know

anything about spiritual good and freedom," and "few
believe in the resurrection." (AC 4136:3 and 1886 pref.)
80 much is this the case that newcomers from the world
who were introduced into a hëavenlY society declared
, that "not a single person in the whole Christia;;orld ~ :s
f knows what heavenly joy and eternal happiness are, or
'what heaven is." (CL 2, see also AC 1033 and 3957)
That the church is such, does not appear to those who are in the
church .... For they frequent Illihlic~hip,they hear preaching,
they are in a certain holiness when there ... they also live among
themselves in civic charity or friendship. Hence it is that in the
J~
si~m~nno comtempt is visible,rn"ch le.. ?ve"ion, and~'-st
of aIl enmlty against the goods and truths oHalth and agamst the
~ But these things are only external fQ!1Ils, by which one person
iëads anothe;;;~y;whereas t'Fiëiiiternai forms of the meru>-Qhe
2
l
church are altogether unlij{e, even aItogether contrary to the
1external forms .... How far these differ from the external forms may
he evident from those who come from the Christian world into the
other life.... For when the Lord is but named before them in the
other life, Mphere not onl of contempt, but also of aversion and of
enmity against Him, is manifestIy exhale an if'fusea aroundbY
em ... so likewise when charity and faith are named.... Suchàre
Christians at this day as to their interiors, except a few who are notJ 1
known. From this it is evident what is the quality of the Chureh. ~
(AC 3489)
Thus, there are "very many" in the Christian world

who are in evils and falsities, "who have confirmed
themselves against the truths of faith," (AC 9256) and
only a "few" in genuine good who can receive the
Heavenly Doetnnes. Indeedthe Heavenly Doctrines
could not be revealed until the Christian church was so
)
\d~.§.tated by evil and falsity that they wOJ!ld not~ven
"ft>
JT) Icompreh~md the tru!hs revealed, lest they should receive
them and later profane them. For "Divine truth can in
nowÎse be profaned except by those who have first
(...~i-c-,tc::---. t.v .... /"'" r ;;'e~~f;~ (J_ vl.·,/d <)
I, S rw-:.. r::~ cfi- l'j -, J t:..f j 4 ' .,
THE DEVASTATED AND CONS UMMA TED STATE 19

acknow l~dge~H.... It is for this reason that the arcana ),~"""'J

of the inîernal sense of the Word are now being "S
revealed, because a~ this daY.-there--is scarce~ any Sf?,I?'-'
faith, because there is not any charity, consequently,
because it is the con~mmmationof the age, and when
this- takës plac~, th-e-n these arcana can be revealed
without danger of profanation, because they are not
interiorly acknowledged." (AC 3398) At first it may
seem paradoxical that the interior things of the Word
can now be revealed because the Christian church is so
J\,c,9nsummated that they will not acknowledge or receive
them but this is the teaching of the Lord in His Second
Advent. - ~
The reason whyfthe interi~~ of the Word are now being opened, is
that the church at this day has been so far vastated, that is, so
'/s devoicfoffaith and love, thataJfhough men knowand understand,
sWI they do not acknowledge, and much less believe, except a few
'
"YQo are in the life of good and are called the 'elect', who can now be
JI
. instructed, and with whom a New Church is t.Q..btinatituted. But
where these are, the Lord alone knows. There will be few within the
1
c~h; it has been a_mong the Gent~st~ previo,!s ~ ëllurenes
\ nave been set up. (AC '3898
Because ofthe evils and falsities so prevalent in the

Christian world, the New Church, as the other Churches
\.1 before it, will b~tranferred to the gentiles, those,.Q~de
JH of Christendom. This is because the gentiles are not
imbued with the false principles which oppose the
Heavenly Doctrines. Thus, although the church does
begin among the remn~nt, the few in the Christian
world that cano receive t.b~Heavenly Doctrines, its real
J\ strength..J!1l.d increase will be with the gentiles. For "a
Nn~ church is always insiituted among the nations
J1wno areoutside the-.k.hurch. This is done when the old
'> cli~rcJi has cl~sed heaveI!..ag~instit~elf. For this reason
/1 _ the church was transferred from the Jewish people toll

< t~e gentiles, and the church at the present time also is J\
2.. -- being transferred to the gentiles. That the church is
being transferred to the gentiles who acknowledge the
Lord, appears from many passages in the Word." (AC
9256, see also AC 409, 410, 3812, 9209;4, 9780:13)
Futhermore, it should be known, when any church becomes no
Ç.@n:h, that is, \Yhen charity perishes, and a new church iS)
J. U'jestablishe.d by the Lord, that seldom, if ever, is this effected with -1
~- J those amongst whom the old church existed, but with those
amongst whom there was heretofore no church, that is, amongst
l
the gen.tiles .... The case will be the same with this which is called
the Christian Church.The reason why a new church ~ e d ?_
with the gentiles, i~ec~e the)' have--.!!9 principles of ialsity
opposed to the truths of faith, for they are ignorant of tlie t;uths of
faith. (AC 2989 see also AC 2910, 4747, 1366,9198, AE 49: 52)
Therefore, the angels "have slender hope for the men

of the Christian church, but have much hope of some
·nation far distant from the Christian world, and
ltlierefOre removed trom mIëStors, WhlCh nafiOn is such
Ithat it is capable ofreceiving spirituallight. (W 74, see
\
'1also AC 1850, 3353, SD 4770-4779 and 5807)
From aIl the passages that have been quoted and
cited above the real cause for the lack ofreception ofthe
Heavenly Doctrines in the Christian World becomes
evident. It is not because of inefficient or -Împroper
presentation, but simply because the Christian world
liS devllslated by falsitie~.Jlnd eYils which preven.!J!1e
.) Doctrines frQm being understood and accepted. "Revel
ation has been given by the Lord concerning the Last
J udgment as having been accomplished, and con
cerning the spiritual sense ofthe Word, thus the way to
salvation has been revealed, and man's state after
death ... and copies have been distributed. But still the
church pays no heed to it. It is greatly wondered at in
heaven that the church is in such astate that those

things which are its very essentials are not even
considered, but left as matters of no moment, a sign
that heavenly things do not occupy their minds, neither
are they seen when revealed." (De Dom 1, see also Ath
Cr 2 and letter to Oetinger) We are also taught in the
Heavenly Doctrines that "the spiritual sense will not
be acknowledged for a long time, and this owing
entirely to those who are in falsities of doctrine,
especially concerning the Lord, and who therefore do
not admit truths. This is meant in the Apocalypse by
the beast and the kings of the earth who were going to
make war with Him that sat on the white hor8'e, chap.
19:19. By the beast are meant the Roman Catholics, as
in chap. 17:3, and by the kings ofthe earth are meant
the Reformed, who are in falsities of doctrine." (SS 25)
For the New Church to be received, the Old Church
must first be removed. This is true of an individual, of a
household, and of a city (BE 103), and it is also true of
the Christian world in general.
It is of the Lord's Divine Providence that the church may be at

first among a few and increase successively among many, because
the falsities of the former church must first be removed; for before
this, truths cannot be received, since the truths that are received and
implanted before the falsities have been removed are not permanent,
and are also rejected by the dragonists.... It is certain that the New
Church, which is: the New J erusalem, is going to come into existence,
because it has been foretold in the Apocalypse (chaps. 21, 22). And it
is certain that the falsities of the former church must be removed
before this, because these things have been treated of in the
Apocalypse as far as the twentieth chapter. (AR 547, see also AR
473, 500, 700, and TCR 784)
This removal of the falsities of the former Christian

church is not accomplished through graduaI lack of
interest and dis association by its members. Their
interior evils will not be dissipated because offriendship

and outward acts of charity. The Christian world will
not become more spiritual or more receptive to the
Heavenly Doctrines simply through the passage of
time or by sorne interior and imperceptible influx. If
this were possible we should expect to find the Christian
world at the present time more receptive to the truths of
the Writings than they were one hundred years ago
when the writers of WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH
made their analysis (WORDS vol. 1 pp. 123-129 and
351-361) But is this the case? Rather we find the evils
and falsities of the Christian world more destructive
and more insane than ever, and even more opposed to
the life and faith taught by the Lord in His Second
Coming.
N evertheless these evils and falsities must be re
moved for the New Church to be received. And this
removal is accomplished through the opening up and
examination of the falsities of the former Christian
Church and the evils associated with these falsities.
"The reason why the falsities of the dogmas of the faith
ofthe present church must first be opened and rejected,
before the truths ofthe dogmas ofthe New Church can
be received, is because they do not agree together, no
not in one single point or particular." (BE 96) Moreover
"they who have confirmed themselves in the faith of
the old church, cannot, without endangering their
spiritual life, embrace the faith of the New Church,
until they have first disproved the particulars of the
former faith , and thus have extirpated it, together with
its offspring or eggs, that is, its dogmas." (BE 103)
This examination and rejection of the falsities and
evils of the Christian world must be done from the
truths revealed by the Lord in His Second Advent, as is
manifest from the internaI sense ofthe Apocalypse. (see
especially AR 295, 388, 420, 657, 718, etc.) For this

reason so much of the Heavenly Doctrines treat of the
state ofthe fallen Christian church, examining it in the
light ofheaven and exposing the infernal quality ofits
falsities and evils. Also, Swedenborg wrote, in a letter
to Dr. Beyer:
Here l am asked concerning the New Church, when it will come;

and to this l reply that it will come gradually as the doctrine of
justification and imputation is uprooted, which should he done hy
means of this treatise (the Brie! Exposition).
(March 15, 1769)
Therefore the Heavenly Doctrines are the very means

by which the Lord will separate the evils and falsities
ofthe Christian world and establish His New Church,
and this not only in the spiritual world, but also in the
natural world. For "when the end of the church is at
hand, then the interior things of the Word, of the
church, and of worship, are revealed and taught. The
reason is that the good may be separated from the evil;
for these interior things ... which are celestial and
spiritual, are received by the good, but rejected by the
evil, separation being the result ....The case is the same
at this day, for it has now pleased the Lord to reveal
various arcana of heaven, especially the internaI or
spiritual sense of the Word, which have been till now
entirely unknown, and He has also taught the genuine
truths of doctrine. This revelation is meant by the
"coming of the Lord" in Matt. 24:3, 30, 37. The reason of
this revelation at the end of the church is, as said
before, that by means ofit separation ofthe good from
the evil may be accomplished, and also a new church
formed, and this not only in the natural world where
men are, but also in the spiritual world where spirits
and angels are. For the church is in both worlds and
revelation takes place in both, and separation by

means ofit, as also the formation of a new church." AE
641
Even the gentiles, with whom the New Church will

increase in its fullness, must recognize and reject the
evils and falsities ofthe fallen Christian world, before
they can receive the Heavenly Doctrines (see Prophets
and Psalms, Jonah chapters 1 and 3). For the life of so
called Christians is a stumbling block to their reception
of the True Christian Church now being established
(AC 916, 2592, 2596, 2597). Thus, considering the state
of evil and falsity in the Christian world, and the
necessity ofits removal before the New Church can be
truly established, we reaffirm as a fundamental
principle the recognition of the consummated and
devastated state of the Christian world, even to the
present day. This principle is as essential in the
establishment of the New Church on earth, as the
recognition of the corrupt and devastated state of our
own proprial will is necessary for our reformation and
regeneration. For just as our evil will masks itself in
hypocrisy and persuasions, so too, the_uld Christian
-.5 Church conceals its hatreds, adulteries, blasphemies
and_pr_ofanatiQns, under vërYPëi-Süasive appearances
oflove and faith. But the Lord has warned us, -and let us
heed his warning.(Matt 7:15-23,24:23-25, AE 763 etc.)
We cannot judge the state of the Christian world, but
the Lord can, indeed He has, and He has revealed this
judgment to us ig His Second Advent~
III
ALL THINGS ARE Tü BE MADE NEW IN THE NEW CHURCH
He that sat upon the throne said, Behold l make aIl things new.
And He said unto me, Write, for these words are true and faithful.
(Apoc. 21:5)
ALL THINOS ARE TO BE MADE NEW 25
IN THE NEW CHUR CH
A third and equally essential principle of WORDS

FOR THE NEW CHURCH was the belief that aIl
'. thjngs are to be made new by the Lord in His Second
Il'3'''' Coming. This principle was clearly stated at the very
outset of the SERIAL:
Indeed as we come into a more searching culture of these

Writings, we discover mOre and more the vastness of their scope.
They find us everywhere. And these Doctrines being themselves
Divine are the measure of all aIse. They are the Tabernacle of God
with men; the Lord Himself in His Advent making aIl things new.
What more therefore can we have? What more than these grand
disclosures which are the final analysis of aIl that has respect to
God, and to Man, and to the relation between the two? (WORDS vol.
1 p. 2) -
Later, when the editors of WORDS FOR THE NEW

CHUR CH were defending the doctrine of the Divine
Authority ofthe Writings, tney wrote that "the doctrine
of the authority will not be found to be an adversary in
the way to those who humbly approach the Lord in His
Second Advent and on every subject come first to Him
to be taught concerning it, and then having been
enlightened by Him proceed in the way there pointed
out. To them the Writil1gs àte a strong help to the
rational comprehension of every subject, the very
presence ofthe Lord Himselfmore specifically guiding
and helping them on theirway." (WORDSvol.l p. 350)
Thus they considered the Writings their starting point
and guide to every subject, for with the Second Coming
ofthe Lord the Word was opened so that it might shine
forth and give enlightenment in aIl things. And it was
with this belief that they made th-e fol1owing
declaration:
May the glorious day soon come, when man will rise out of the
26 ALL THINGS ARE TO BE MADE NEW
IN THE NEW CHUR CH
darkness of self-derived intelligence and appeal to the Open WQ.rd

of God for aIl that concerns his life, its moral government, its civil
andpolitical instruction, its philosophy, its science, its everything.
(WORDS vol. 1 p. 251) ~ _~,
J
From these statements, and from the general tone of
the entire SERIAL, it is clear that the writers of
WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH believed that
everything in the New Church, both in knowledge and
u --rrre,-
in should be made new througn-tne sfiïây and
)applicatiOn ofthe HeaveIily Doctrine~Theyconsidered
the Writ[ngs their first and final authority, not just in
doctrinal matters, but in everything, both in generals
and in particulars. And therefore they sought to bring
every subject into subordination to the truth revealed
by the Lord in His Second Advent.
Now, it has been argued that the Lord, in order to
preserve our freedom and as-of-self, does not reveal
direct applications to life, nor specifie knowledges
about natural things. It is proposed that Divine Revel
ation provides us only with general principles, and
that particular applications and knowledges should be
formed by individuaIs through experience and science.
But is such a position in accordance with the Heavenly
Doctrines? For we are taught that in the Ney; Church
and in the regenerating man, the Lord make~ aIl things
new, both in general and in particular, both as to
internaIs and as to externals. (Rev. 21:5, AR 886, AC
1040,9258, and 9723). And the_Lord m~an things
new from His Word (John 1:1-3); first through the
general truths ~rthe let~f the Word, and then
through the particular and singular truths of the
spiritual sense, now revealed in His Second Coming
(AC 2395).
The things of the literaI sense of the Word are general vessels
ALL THINGS ARE Ta BE MADE NEW 27
IN THE NEW CHURCH
which receive truths, and the quality ofthese vessels appears only
as through a transparency, as it were, until they have received
truths. Thus they are only generals, which must first he learned hy
a man, in order that he may receive the particulars and singulars
fitly (AC 6222:2, see also AC 245, 2395 and 3438).
Moreover, "during man's reformation, the general

things which are in his natural man, are disposed by
the Lord into correspondence with those which are in
heaven .... The general things are first disposed in
order that particulars may be successively insinuated
into them by the Lord, and singulars into the
particulars. (AC 3057:3, see also AC 868, 4345, 4383 and
6610)
Thus the Lord reveals to us, not only general truths,
but also particular truths, and even singular truths.
But to preserve our freedom and rationality, He intro-
duces us into these truths successively, first into the
generals, then into the particulars, and finally into the
singulars. AlI these truths are openly revealed in the
Heavenly Doctrines, but only progressively can we be
led to see them. For we are in the beginning blinded by
P.... r-jY ~ worldly thought and corporeal desires. Therefore this
JJeJ. "J )1 renovation or making new of aIl things with the II!..an,
is not just limited to his knowledges and understanding,
but also involves everything ofhis life and will, for it is
~-
'" t- "" t-the process of .regeneration. (AC 9258 a~d 97?3) ~or
./ ~ )/ "w~an~s regenerated, then aIl thmgs m hlm,
both in ~en~rà and in particular, are also regener~ted,
thaTi~have life, and tne life they have is exactly
proportional to the degreein which his own will, which
is fouI and dead,. can be separated fro~ the new will
IJ and understandmg that he has recelved from flle
Lord." (AC 104à) Therefore to see and receive the
particular and singular truths of Divine Revelation we
need to separate ourselves from fallacious appearances
28 ALL THINGS ARE TO BE MADE NEW
IN THE NEW CHURCH
and false persuasions, and especially from our selfish

and wordly desires. It is these which keep us from
seeing the extent and application of the Lord's Divine
truth in our knowledge and life.
As the removal of the old will and its evils and
falsities is necessary for the making new of aIl things
with an individual, so also a similar removal is required
for aIl things to be made newiï1tlï:e chur'ch and in the
world. We are taught in the Brie! Exposition that "the
opening up and rejection of the dogmas of the present
church and the revelation and reception of the dogmas
ofthe faith ofthe New Church, is meant by the words in
the Apocalypse: "He that sat upon the throne said,
Behold l make aIl things new; and He said to me, Write,
for these words are true and faithful." (BE 95) And in
the Apocalypse Revealed the signification of these
words is given as follows:
The former heaven with the former earth, and the former church,
with aU things in them, both in general andin'particular, are going
to perish; and a new heaven and a new earth, and a New Church
which is to be cal!ed the New J erusalem, are going tobe crëàted ~ ..
with al! things in them, both in gen~l and in particular. (AR 886)
Thus, with these words in the Apocalypse, the Lord

promises us that everything will be made new in the
New Church through the truths now revealed in the
Heavenly Doctrine. Not only its interior goods and
truths will be new, but also its life and knowledge, its
practices and studies. For "no man puts new wine into
old wine skins, else the new wine will burst the wine
skins, and be spilled." (Luke 5:37-39, TCR 784 and AE
376:28) The old externals ofthe consummated Christian
world have been formed by false dogmas and fallacious
appearances, as old wine skins have been stretched by
the fermentation process of the old wine. Trying to
infill the practices and theories ofthe world today with
ALL THINGS ARE TO BE MADE NEW 29
IN THE NEW CHURCH
the interior truths of the Writings is like putting new

wine into old wine skins, which, already formed and
stretched by the old wine, would burst under the
pressure of the new. What is of the old church is not
compatable with that of the New, and "if they were
together, such a collision and conflict would take place,
that everything of the church would perish." (BE 102)
Nevertheless the New Church is only established
... gradually and man is only re-gënerated slowly, through
successive states~·· Everything is n<2!-made new inyn
II instant, nor can it be. "No man, having drunk the old
wine, straightway desires the new." (Luke 5:39) And
... therefore, so that m~n can be regenerated and the
church established in the world, there are many fal
laclOus appearances and mediate goods, which, al
though they are interiorly incompatable with genuine
truths and goods, serv~ as a~ns to introduce th;se.
But as the man is regenerated and the new chID"ch is
i., restablished=:t"hese external appearances and nop
'/ S genuine goods are put off, and new externals are
formed from interior truths and genuine goods. - ÎP",/ J
t,(~} f"'-'o'sJ-
When the internaI of man lS being formed anew, that is regen
erated, the knowledges lÎiid truths which belong to the external
man are Iike the fibers of the fruit, through which the sap is carried
towards the internaI. Afterwards when the man has been regen
erated, there things are also separated, and then serve for soil. The
case is the same with the man's internaI to which the seed
corresponds; here the good which has been formed in this manner
produces a new man, just as the prolific germ in the seed produces a
\/new tree, or a new plant. AlI things thus are made new, and
}/afterwards multiply, and produce fruit to eternity. (AC 9258 âiîd
9723)
And so, as we enter into the study of the Heavenly

Doctrines with the purpose ofhaving our understanding
30 ALL THINGS ARE Ta BE MADE NEW
IN THE NEW CHURCH
and life made new by Lord, we should not consider

ourselves free from aIl fallacious appearances and
worldly desires. For our understanding of genuine
truths, especially in the beginning, will indeed he
limited by these desires and appearances. But as long
as these are not destructive ofgenuine truth orinteriorly
fiIled with hatred and contempt, such external things
may be ofuse for introducing interior goods and truths.
(AC 9258) However, there must be a humble recognition
that we of ourselves are filled with selfish and worldly
loves, and false and faIlacious ideas, and that aIl
genuine good and truth are from the Lord alone (AC
3993 - 3995). This recognition is contained in the belief
that the Lord makes aIl things new, that aIl our -J.,.;,·f>".(ci.
thoughts and affections, knowl~ges and practices, /~~':f:.-'
should be made new by the-Cordthrough the interior ;t::;,
truths of the Heavenly Doctrines. ( D---'ÏJ)
That aIl knowledges of every kind can and should be
subordinated to the truths revealed by the Lord is
openly stated in the Writings themselves:
When a man has been~m~; and is thus in the ~rmative 1

).,0'';:04 frorrlJ;he Wordithat the doctrmal things are truths offaith, it is then )
allowà~ him ta
~ them by allthe knowledges he
possesses, of whatsoever name or nature; for then because what is
affirmative reigns IlDiyers.§liy, he accepts the knowledges which
agree, and rejects those which, by reason of the fallacies they
contain, disagree. (AC 6047:3 see also 2568:5 and 6023)
Through this subordination and reordering ofknow

ledges, the interior truths of Divine Revelation become
, principles which bring forth and govern aIl things of
~~".':) tnènatnral ~- and life. Knowledges and pract~s
-'":>
become outward forms of gemÜnetruths and ~ds, .
0-'-;5 and those which cannot serve it this way are=put aside. J2.ç, l''''Jj
This is of course a graduaI process, both inlhe church rj).<I:_"'JJ
ALL THINGS ARE TO BE MADE NEW 31
IN THE NEW CHURCH
and in the individual. But it is in this way that our

study and knowledge of natural things can be made
new, and our lives can be broughtjnto correspondence
with the life of heaven.
When a man subordinates and reorders his natural
1k- j j - knowledges and experience according to the revea1ëd- ~dSS'
t!J!ih.s, then the natural world becomes, as it were, a
theatre representative ofheavenly and spiritual things.
When he sees the heavens, "he does not think of the
sun, but ofthe Lord, as being the SUJ1J)fheaven. So too
,when he sees the moon, and the stars also; and when he
sees ~he immensity of the heaYens, he does not thinKof
their immensIty, but ofthellI1measurable and infinite
)
p'ower of the Lord. It is the same when he sees aIl other
things, for there is J!othing which is not r!mresentative." :r""(" -.:
(AC 1807, see Psalm 8) " (Lv') s
t This is the vision ofthe naturat world which should
J1 be cultivated in the New Church. And such an intenor ,
VISIOn can be gIven on aIl subjects and aspects oflife, ~- H'-, +'-':3__
we will only go to the Lord in His open Word with the
humility to receive something new in place of the old.
Therefore, in taking as a principle the belief that each
1 é!nd everything ofthe New Church is to be made new by
ff the Lord in His Second Coming, we also recognize that
Hie continuing presence of falsities and evils with us
1 À:'6":0<:, /1 prevents our full rece?tion. ,!,he ~acred Scripture~~
1 2 the Heavenly Doctrmes gIve us answers to every
question we have, even though we cannot yet see or
accept most of them. And the answers we need will not
be given to us in the form of some unique interpretation
or clever insight, but th!.....Lord Himselfwill answer us)\\ j)
directly, using His very words of Divine Revelation. ~ fl7)
'7. "A~and it shall be given you; seek;'and ye shall f1nd; .
J knock~ and it shall be opened uiïfo you; For everyone'\
t~t asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and 1
to him that knocketh it shall be opened." (Matt 7:7, 8) )
J
32 THE AFFIRMATIVE PRINCIPLE
IV
THE AFFIRMATIVE PRINCIPLE
In that day there shaH he a highway out o~ tolÂ.ssyria'.\ and

the Assyrian shaH come into Egypt, and the Egyptian~~ma,
and the Egyptians shaH serve with Assyria. In that day shal~el
he a third with Egypt and Assyria, even a hlessing in the midst of
the l~d, whom Jehovah Zehaoth will hless, saying, hlessed he
Egypt My people, and Assyriithe work of My hands, and Israel3
Mine inherit@ce. (Isaiah 19:23-25)
The three principles set forth in the preceding

sections are the essential principles of the seriaI,
WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH. But we should not
consider these princples as separate from each other or
without connection. For although these principles are
indeed distinctly presented in the Heavenly Doctrines,
they are in reality various aspects of one universal
f principle - "the principle which leads to aIl intelligence
J
la.!!d wisdom," (AC 2568), the way in which--truths or
faith are conjoined with factual knowledges (AC 6047),
"the true order" by which man becomes wise from the
Lord (AC 128, 129); This principles is "the affirmative
principle." (AC 2568, 2588)
The affirmative principle in its simplest form is the
"belief from a simple heart that something is true
because the Lord has said so." (AC 1911) Therefore the
acknowledgement of the Divine Authority of the
Writings is in agreement with the affirmative principle.
For this acknowledgement is the belief that what is
said in the Writings is true because it is from the mouth
of the Lord Himself (lnv. 38, De Verbo 29). It is the
humble acknowledgement that everything stated in
the Heavenly Doctrines, whether we comprehend it or
\ /•• s <-:> S,-r. ..,(, <J~ r ...~-V
>.. ~ôo <, a3 &. il.."z ,

<:1Z AcT<=...·· '.fa-. r.. Vo-,A.....
THE AFFIRMATIVE PRINCIPLE 33
not or whether we favor it or not, is true because the

Lord has so said. For according to the affirmative
principle a man's "starting.Qoint must be the Lord, and
not himself, for the former is life, but the latter is
death" (AC 129).
That the affirmative principle is applicable to the
Heavenly Doctrines is expressly stated in theARCANA
COELE8TIA:
The ... principle consists i!Ulffirming the thingS which are of

'l---'{J )
doctrine out of the Word, or in thinking and believing in oneself
sw'\~~
that they are true because the Lord has said so. This principle leads
to all intelligence and wisdom, and is to be called the affirmative
principle (AC 2568:4).
That the Writings are doctrine "out ofthe Word from

the mouth of the Lord" is taught in INVITATION TO
THE NEW CHURCH no. 38 (see also TCR 779).
But the affirmative principle involves more than just
the acknowledgement of the Lord' s Divine truth. l t also
involves thinking from Di~ine truths and not from the
scientifics and reasonings of the world or from the
doctrine of men.
Indeed the start must not be made from know ledges (scientifica)
and through these an entrance be made into the truths of faith,
because the knowledges with a man are derived from things of
sense, thus from the world, from which innumerable fallacies
spring. But the start must be made from the truths of faith, in this
1 way. First the doctrinal things ofthe church must be learned, and
L then th.~ W~.rd must be examined to see if these are true; for they are
not true because the heads of the church have said so and their
\Ol ~) c.. .followers confirm them....cr~m!ls.t.b.e..s.earched,and it must
)be seen here whether the doctrinal things are true. (AC 6047:2)
To reason about the truths offaith from the things of

sense and "factual" knowledge, is the opposite of the
affirmative principle, and is called in the Writings "the

' negative principle", which leads to aIl folly and insanity
( (AC 2568:4), and is represented by eating of the tree of
knowledge of good and evil (AC 126-129). It is necessary
that we recognize the danger ofreasoning from appear
ances and opinions of the world, and accept affirma
tively the teachings of the Writings, especially when
they disagree with such appearances and opinions.
This means that we must, at least temporarily, and
often forever, put aside "hard facts" and "real life
experiences" in order to receive what the Lord himself
teaches. Forthen, from thetruths of Divine Revelation,
false appearances and opinions can be recognized and
rejected.
The recognition and rejection offalsities and fallacies
which do not agree with revealed truths is an essential
part ofthe affirmative principle. This is clear from the
passages in the ARCANA COELE8TIA where this
principle is presented and explained.
He who would be wise from the Lord, and not from the world, says
in his heart that the Lord must be believed, that is, the thingtl which
the Lord has spoken inethe WorcD because they are truth~d l~dOC,)
accoraing to this principle he regulates his thoughts. He confirms ~
.p'lk-l2. , himself by things of reason, by scientifics, by things of sense and
4/ by natural things, and those which are not confirmatory he casts
T~"o(
aside. (AC 128)
Truths are initiated and brought in where knowledges (scien
tificafare ruled by tIuths; and they are ruled by truths when truth is
acknowledged bec~~;;the Lord has so said in €Wor~ and the
knowledges which affirm it are accepted, but those which oppose it
are removed. Thus truth becomes lord over those knowledges which
are affirmative of it,While those not affirmative are rejected. (AC
6023, see also AC 6047 quoted above)
Therefore, the affirmative principle is first put into

practice by putting aside the appearances and opinions
ofthe world and beginning with the truths given to us

by the Lord. Then afterwards, when we are in the
affirmative ofwhat the Lord teaches, we may consider
the knowledges and theories of the world, accepting
those which confirm the truth, and rejecting those
which disagree. Thus the recognition of the evils and
JI falsities ofthe Christian world is an essential aspect of
the affirmative principle. For we must c011~e
II practices and ideas ofthe Christian world according to
the truths revealed in Divine Revelation, and not
according to external appearances and affections.
When this is done, evils and falsities from the old
church and from the old will can be uncoveredând
rejected, and we caÏi. enter into a more genuine affirm-
ation of the truth.
We have now considered two aspects of the affirm-
ative principle, the acknowledgement of the truth of
what the Lord teaches, and the recognition and re-
jection of the falsities and appearances which do not
agree with the teachings of the Lord. A third aspect is
the making new of aIl things from Divine truth. For
when the affirmative reigns, and falsities have been
removed, the mind is opened to receive new truth in
abundance. Dur former way ofTIllnkmg from appear-
ances ceases, and our eyes are opened to see the
wonders of heaven mirrored in the world around us
(DLW 46 and AC 1807).
The beliefthat aIl things are to be made new with the
ord's Second ComiP-g is inseparable from the affirm-
ative principle. For it is the affirmative to believe that
the Heavenly Doctrines reveal specific truths about
every aspect oflife and study, that knowledges ofevery
kind and nature can be reordered according to Divine
Truth. Indeed the clearest passages which teach that
everything of knowledge and reason can be subor-
dinated to Divine truths are given in connection-wlth
the affirmative princi"ple.
.J/~-V
\0;0<; \~
'"/.. ..o~
/ .-Th(true ord~is for m~n to be wise..f!:Qm the Lord, that is, from
'.7 -\!iis W0!5L and then ail things follow, and he is also enlightened in
matters of reason and of science. (AC 129)
They who think from the affIrmative principle are able to confirm
\nthemselves by means of ail rational, scientific, an(Leve~.2Èilo
,filsophical things whatsoever, as far as lies in their power, for ail
thëse things are to them confirmatory, and give them a fuller idea
of the subject. (AC 2568, see also AC 2588 for various examples and
AC 6047 quoted earlier).
With ~e Se~ond CominiJ of the Lord, aIl things Of~

knowledge~sonare to be subordinated to t~e #R.G"-L
spiritual truths of the Heaven]~octrines.This sub
ordination, and consequent blessing, is signified by the
lprophecy of Isaiah concerningJsrael;being a third with
JIl ~gyPl and ~ssyri~\ a blessing in tne midst of the land.
These words (Is. 19:23-25) in the spiritual sense mean that at the
time?>o[ the Lord's Coming the l'~cientif~ther-!ation~ and the
j spiritua shall becoID.LQ.ne, and t'FieSCientific"1strnll serve the
ratlOnal;and both shaH ~erve thèspirituJ;l.l, fo~ by ~~1 is meant
t1i.eS(;ientific, by Assyriathe rational, and by IsraePthe spiritual. ~
I\ By the day, twice-=tioned, is meant the First~nd the Second
J
~ Coming of the Lord. (TCR 200:4)
Because of this signification, the affirmative prin

ciple is so often illustrated in the Writings by this
prophecy (AC 119, 1462:3, 2588:13, and 6047:4, 5 see
also AC 2568:3 and 6023)
We can now see how the three essential principles of
WORDS FOR THE NEW CHUR CH are various aspects
ofthe affirmative principle. Indeed they come together
in the affirmative principle as end, cause, and effect. f-k,
'lThe end, or purpose, is th_~t t~~~'S truth may Èe
J affirmed and received in the heart,!iîlind, and life?>The
cause or means is the recognition and rejection of
falsities and fallacies which do not agree with the
Divine truth.
~"7S rAnd the effeet or result is the making new of ev.e.IY!!::!in.g

Ji<Jj::S- j fofknowledge and life according to the truths revealed
hy- the Lord. Thus we take as our nrst principle the
affirmative principle, which contains within it the
acknowledgement of the Divine Authority of the
Writings, the recognition of the devastatÈ~d and
consummated state of the Christian world, and the
Jhelief that l!ll things-'ar~J~ .. made new in the New
Il Church.
--
".L.
38 SCIENCE IN THE LIGHT OF THE NEW CHURCH.
xv.
SeIENCE IN 'filE LIGll'f OF 'fllE NEW CIIURCrr.
T-
HE New Church has BO conflict with true Science but
is in full harmony with it and rests upon it. Much of
the Seience of the pre3ent day however is so filled with
Natlll'ali~m that it does not acknowlcdgc Divine Revelation,
and eomes into direct conflict with it. We must therefore
~listillguislt hetween tr~nce and that which is false.
Fa ls~ Seienè,g> is floocling the old Church and the \Vorld
wlth its theories and leacling away from ~he LOlm and the
,y01'(1, and iuto N aturalism.
The \Yl'itings deseribe the state of Naturalists in the other
life in Jn:lIlY pIaees. We quote the füllowing:
Evcry man who has become a naturalist by rneanR of thought derived
from natllre, remains sueh also after death, calli ng ail the objects that he sees
in llic Kl'irit!lal world, n:tturul, bccuuse thcy urc similur to those in the nutural
world. i.\lün 01' this kinù urc however enlightcucd IInd t:tught by tho ungcls
that thcse abjects are not nalural, but that they are the appearanc('-8 of nat
unt! lhings and thcy are convinced so far as to uffirlll that this is 50. Still
'\thC Y relapse and worcl!iP~tEre, us they !lad done in the world, until, ut
i Icn;.;t1l, scparating themsclves' from the àngels, th~ filU into hen and cannot
Il':! rcocueJ From it to etcl'llity. The rC0.'3on of this ie that their soul is not
~piritnal but natural, like that of the bc'asts, with the faculty still of think
ing and sl'cak'ing, bccanse they were born men. The hdls, at thifl day, more
t.han at uny /ormer pcriod, ure fillcd with men of this class. At the preseut
V daL.lllil!Jru1ism hns..J11.!!.J!lst delllged the Chul'ch, and can only bo dispersed by
llleallS ot' r~ti()nal :Il'gurncllts, which will enable man to see that this is so.
(Sec Athullasian Crcc<1, 107.)
Such are the naturalists and Sl1Gh the prevalent condition

~{"3...... If ~hQ sciclllific world t.o-day. Thinking from nature and
from space and tÏme, which belong to it, the mujority of
i'icicntifie Jl\CII rqject the spiritual and the LORD, who is the
i'iource of a.U life.
'j'III,' Xl: 1/" ('If( In·/I. 39
In tbe "\Vritings, tbe ~illll'k Illinded, ,yll() (':In willl difli
cuHy rcmove the idéas of Hp:l(.'l~, and lime l'I'OIl\ Lhl'il' I1I(lllgld,
are advised ta avoid thinking of 10fty S1)Îl'itllal sllldpd~, as
olllllipre~enee, omniseiencc, de" frolll any rcasolling nt' tlw
ullJerstanJing, buL simply ta L~licYe thCIll [rom. l'ld igion ;
or tü aeknowledge Lltat th(,y exist, becallse they arè aUribllll's
of God, Gad being cvcrywhcrc and inlinitu, anJ bl'ctlllSC Ihe
"\Vonllllso tcaellc:'! thi~. (f.;l'(' Athan. Cl'l'(~d, 107.) ln Illi"
way, I~J H('JlllU cxl.ent, Lllu ,-.;illll'1e ilia} lll: 111'<'S01'\,('d 1'1'11111
materiulisrn.
'l'Ilcre arc nHlllY Wl10 dc1iglJt in the stlldy or Seil'Il('('.
'l'h/'re is a peeuliar ellaJ'1ll in Jll'ying ,ililn I1a.LlIl'l"~ f'('('I'I'ls
and dii:leoveri/lg Iler govel'l1ir'g lawi,i. HilL tll(~ diJlielllli('s 01'
this work are ail bilL oV('J'wll(·lllling. Wc: live in a \Yurld
of appearanecs, HIl(l if wc n':lsun all.ugdlll\1' l'rolll Lhe It1al1(:
of the sen8('S, we are cUlItillllally lcd lnLo erraneous eO~I
c1usioJls. 'l'he Writiugs say that
\vitla Ihe Allciellt..~ iL IVaH ulto;..::(·tltcr difTerellt. Wit.1t tltcm RI,ielllifi"M
Ircaled of Ihc cl)rrcs!,lluJeIlC()~ of ()lillgS in Lhe lIalur<ll wllrld \\"il,h lhill~s i,)
tlte HIJirilUal worl,\. The ~(,i()utilics wltielt are lluW eallvJ philt)~('l'hical,.~lIch
as arc lho~e of Aristot.k, 1I"(~rc 1I11k1lO\\"1I 10 ,hmll.. 'l'he ~Ci('lIlifil;M wllieh
8Ilce/'/'dcd the all(,ye, :11,,1 which are prop"..ly eall(~d philosophiea!. rall,,'r
wi thdru W Lhe III iud Ihllli 1he k IIU\\" l..Jrj(· of ~!,i l'il liai alld cd,'"' j:i1 11, jllg"S,
bec((lIs(', tltcy 1I!UY a/su /Je ((j,/d/cd (0 clJ1(firmfalsù/e.l, alld Lhey likcwisl' !t'Ild
10 obscure the lUind wllen Irulhs arè cOllfirlllcù by 1,111'111, inaslIIlldl as 1II0st
or (hclll were l'X l'I'I:ssili liS, \\"111'1',,1,)" (,IIl1firlllll\,ioIlS an' en·l.ch'd, whieh an,
apl,rdlclIJeù by few, UollÙ cOlJccruillg which Cl'ell t.ho!!e fcw Ji"l'ute.-.:1. C.
4%G.
'l'he lelll1<'llcy toward natll\':dii:illl illcrease, rutllcl' Ikm

JIIWil
JillliJlisll, IJlle:tll~u f'(~i('lllilie edll(:aLioll 1I101'() :lIId I110j'(' drin~
ill lhat direetioll; alld llue,wsc llutumli~JII qllitc eOllsislCIII\y
lJeluugs ta the l'allull eh 1Il'cll, wllit:1t lms tUl'lled l'rom the Lult Il
:lllIl e()I1~(''1"elllly J'rom Lnl!" lllld good. (1:'et) '1'. C. IL 17:;,
"0)(1 )
":>0v. '1'] le .11.lIe1<.'1It8
A • 1.
Wl~l'e Ilot as su~cet. La C1'1'01' as we :11 l'.
Thuy culti vatu<1 the Sei('lltC of Corrcspolltlences. 'l'Itey saw
40 SCIENCE IN THE LIGHT OF THE NEW CHUR CH.
lhe Hpirilnal in the naturul und were in wisdom accordingly.

Bllt as man withdrew farther and farther from thc LORD
awl conscl}ll\'ntly sank dcepel' and deepor into evil, he im
Il1cI'Scll hil1l:-ielf in materialism. To-day, sueh is dIe eon
strnetion of tlte human mind, and so far has it dcgenerated,
that evcn wltat he calls truth is sIlseeptillle of divcrse and
even opposite applicatiolls, so that he may confirm with it
either truth or fitlsity.
lIow CS:-il'Iltial, then, is a new Hcvelation, whieh shaH
instrnct man how ta distinguish the trlle from the false, that
Il(~ lJIay rii;c ont of his dcplorahle condition into a higher
st<ltc, in which he may grutify his landaLlc desil'e fl)r knowl
edgc with the hope of temporal and eternal profit.
Tn worki Ilg out this mueh nceded reformation, the first
stcp nceessa l'y is an earnest desire to know the truth-not
for any selli:-ih purpose, but simply from a love of the truth,
as t'rom and of the LOHn.
I~ 'l'Ile nnd(~I;,.;tanding conferred upon man, may be clevated
intu tire intcrior light of heavcn, provided only he desires,
1
j'rom a prineiple of love to know the tl'uth.-Athan. Oreed,
]')7.
It is lIsclcss to investigate tire philosophy offered by the
CllIlrclr, wit!lout this primaI love of truth. !ts pl'eeepts will
Ilot he eOlnprellcnded nor will its Leauty and grandeur ap
pl'ar. Certaill of i~ statement.'5 lIlay plen::>c for the moment
~lllli cvell win eulogillllls, bllt theil' aceeptane8 will he Lllt
snperficial and cphellleml. 'Vhen, from a sinccre dcsire to
11~<l1'Il the (l'Ilth, man permit::l lJilllself tü he tanght of the
LOJ{D~ by Illenus of !lis HevdatioD, he, ft)r the fil'st time, lln
dcrst.alld8 rcal causes an Il views ail natural phenomena, as
ètli.~cL". 'l'he faets he had lcarned bcforc remain Just as
tmc, but are now vivified and arranged in an orderly man
ner. New f:tCts are added, Loth spiritual and natura!. His
11101]lOt! of tllUUght is inverl.ed. He loob l'rom within out,
1.'lIE NEW CIIURCH. 41
from above down and finds that he is approaching an en
tirely new philosophy. He begins to appreciute something
of tlte order of thought unù of crention. He fllC)S the full
force of the passage in the Writ.ings which reads: "those
,vho do not conceive the creation of the universe and a11
tllings thcrein by continuaI rnediations from the First, can
not but build unconnected hypotheses, disjointed from their
causes, which, when examined by a mimi that looks interi
orly into tllingi3, appear Ilot like houses, but Iike heaps of
ruhbish."-D. L. IV. 303.
Viewed in interior light, what is the state of the science
of to-(lay? Do we find consistency, order, harmony, unity ?
ls it like a hC:I Il ti fi Il picture with the LORD flS the ccntre and
a11 arouncl arranged with light and shade into bold relief?
True science, the science which the Church teaches, is
harmonious alld consistent. Tt penetrates deeper than th~
plane of thc senses and unfolds infinitely more than natural
thought can snggest or merely natural reason expound.
Science is thc lwowledge of nature, and its philosophy gives
us an insight illto the orderly arrangement of ail things.
So far from being in confiict with the Church, it is a part
of il. Knowled~('S of facts are instruments to Rerve the in
A lCl'llal Illall in his l'egcllen~tjon. ~Scc A. C. (i()57.) Tlwy ure
the initiaIs of thought and rcnder rationality possible. How
ri <1nngcrol1s, then, i8 their perversion. How fatal to regener
J~Htion is the lInturalism which inverts true ortler and elevates
>
l~el'ial tlling:-> ahove spiritual, or:t~~bstitutes matter for spir!:b
{k;)L
"The scrvant is not grenter than his LORD."
The New Church promises here, as everywhere eIse,JQ_
Ji make ail things ~w. First, as the crowning truth of all,
and fi'om which ail proceed, will it be acknowledged that
the LORD JESUS CHRIST is the Creator of the universe; that
He,.-J,!.8 Very-Man, and because He is Very-Man, created
the universe from Himseif.
42 SCIENCE IN THE LIGHT OF THE NEW CHUR CH.
It will be seen that there proceed from Him, as the Spir

itual Sun, Divine Love and Divine Wisdom. These are
not vol(ltile, ethereal, nothings; but Substance and Form,
self-subsisting and sole-subsisting. They are the aU of life
throughout aIl creation fi-om highest to lowest. They flow
from within into every oqject and form. In their mani
festatioll, they procced as the Divine of love by heat, the
])i ville of. wisdom by light and the Divine of use by at
mospheres. In ultimates they form earths, iri which they
tenninate in simllltalleollS onle!'. Inrnostly, is~ or life
itself, the force of ~ing;' mediutely, is the force of~j1
3 and next that of(formill~ These lie hidden in everything
in the universe, and constitute the continuous presence of
the LoRD.
N atural forms derive their origin from the spiritual con
taineJ. within, which is the universal sphere of the Divine.
From the spiritual Sun cornes the patural; from this pro
ceeJ. atlllospheres, and from these the earths are formed.
Natural forms are, of themselves, clead. AU their activity
is del'ived from the spiritual.
Mun's love is his life, derived from the universal sphere
in its various clegrees. His affections are the continuations
and derivations of love, Rowing like streams from the foun
tain, producing lIses in forms and therein adva.ncing from
first prineiples ta last. These forms are efiÊ:lcts, which are
the effigies of uses, and in these, uses advance to the outmost
fihre of t.he ho<1y. Tlms man's organs are aB and each of
them forms of uses. And 1.0 comprehend human physi
ology, one must bear in mind, not only the form and struc
ture of the various parts of the body, but also their functions
as determined from their several uses. This can only be
known accurutely by a careful study of the Wl'itings, par
ticularly where correspondences with the Grand Man, are
given. Thus instructed, the investigator is better qualified
16
THE NEW OHURCH. 43
10 rationally interpret the various bodily functions in their

order and workillgs.
Lire, it must be remembered, app1ies itse1f 10 man, on1y
in the uses in which he is employed. Hence is conjunction.
These uses are arranged in man in a series, and the Divine
life applies itsclf to these in aIl their gradations. Renee is
the soul. This is true of aIl men coIlective1y, of nations,
eities, fil.milies, as well as of the individual.
AH things in the world tend to the human form, for aU
arc forms of uses which are subservient to man. AlI things
wcre made for man, and by him Lave communication with
the other world. (See A. C. 3702.)
If the philosopher thoroughly understands the corre
spom1enccs of the organism of man with Reaven, or the
Gl'llnd Man, he will be bot.ter prep(lred to explore nature
outside of man; for man, as 10 his body, is a 1ittle wor]el, a
microcosm, and all without him corresponds with aH within
11im.
Natural things do not live of themselves, but only by
influx. The heat and ]ight from our Slln act from their
l':lpiritllal eorrcsponf1ence, and then they only operate in
opelling the extl'eme parts of the hody, t1H1t illtemal heat
lllllY How in. Ph)'l:iio]ogy has no rig11t to c1aim that vital
heat comes from combustion in the animal economy, or is
sim ply a re8ult<lnt of aetivity. This is merelyan appear
ance, 311(1 is itself dcpelHlent on interior causes. Love is
t11e origin of vital heat. Love proceeds as beat from the
spiritual sun, ",here the LORD is, and is so felt by the ange]s.
Spiritual 1Ie:lt, wbieh in its essence is Jove, ilows by corre
spondence into the heurt and olood, and gives it heat, and at
tbe same time vivifies it. (See D. L. W'. a79.)
l Il the vegeta!J1e and millera1 kingdoms, forms are pro
d\lœd Hw1 maintained oy the Jowest degree of the universa1
influx merely. AnimaIs are correspondent forms of natural
affections. Vegetables derive their forme from the atmos

pheres, in which there is such a creative endeavor from the
determination of spiritual forces. These latter continually
tend toward the human form and so impress every terrestrial
thing. Thus there is in every partic1e'of matter an endeavor
to shape itself into form, which more and more resernbles the
l,uman as we rise in the order of creation. Crystallize a
:>alt, and it" figures a pigmy forest of plants; examine a tree,
and its growth of leaf, circulation of sap, blossom and fruit,
pl'c~ent more than a fanciful resemblance to animal life.
Creation, then, is li panorama, imaging the LOIW as very
man. But what of its blelllii:ihe:>? \Vhat of venomOU8
animal, noxious plant and poisonous minerai? What of
devastating storm, destructive earthquake? 'What of 80rrow,
suffering, disease, untimely death? If delight and happi
ness flow into uses constituting their rewanl, acconling to
thcir degree, whence corne evil uses with consequent wretch
cdness and misery? Neither from the LoRD nor from
heaven. N either from nature's sun, nor from earth itself.
Bnt from hel1.
I~verything spiritual endcavors to clothe itself with a mu
teria.! llOdy. 'l'he lowest or natural degree of man, is no
longer controlled by influx direct from heaven. Its order
is inverted. In origin it is still the LaRD's, in reception, it
bears elllbosometl the venom of hel1. Like the sun's ray
p()lIred into the poisonolls plant, it is distorted unto ·death.
Evil uses, then, fJow from hell and clothe themsel VCd with
whatever of filth they e<)11 find, in the stagnant pool, the
H<lvagu lwust, the unregenerated mind.
From this brief outline, embracing sorne leading points in
true Scienœ, it becomes apparent how far man has wandered
from a just conception of creation and of matter, its laws
and relations. The primaI cause of thjs confusion, is
plaiuly the lack of the conception of God as a man; for,
THE NEW CHUR CH. 45
although the iclea of His unity and Humanity is implanted
Ly the LORD in every one, it faùes away in the life of evil
and in the rnind oLscured by fUIse doctrines. This primaI
conception lost, aIl else is confused. Man gropes about in
spiritual darkness and. finaIly thinks and acts in the treach
erous light of nature. The heavenly windows of his mind.
are closeJ and he revol ves in a perpetuaI whirl of appenr
ances. His ingenuity contrives aIl sorts of theories, which
t!olll'ish for a while and finally sink into oblivion before·some
llewcr :1ll(1 more 8ubtle invention. Setting ont frorn the im
pressions of the senses, his science soon takes these impres
sions for truth and reasons frorn thern accordingly.
But the view is not aIl so dark and gloorny. Sorne there
are, who have sought after knowledge, suLmitting self to the
\Vord and to the LoRD'S manifold working in nature. Theil'
horizon is narrow, perhaps, but what they have discovcred,
Lecaw:ie truc, will never perish. AnJ even others, though
actuated by nothing higher than a love of being called wise,
hr.ve brought minds to the work weIl adapted to it apd have
discovercd thousands of invaluable fads.
These fads will Ilot Le rqjected, Lut will Le examined in
the light of the New Church. By means of the dvctrine
of correspondences, as expounded in the \Vritings, man is
enaLled to discrirninate Letween cause and effect, betwE'en
spiritual and natural, between true wisdorn which reasons
frorn interior light and that false reasoning, which is founded
only in the impressions of the senses. Thus will be dcvel
opel! a pllilo~0l'hy, which will Le enduring, hecause orderly;
true, Lecause from the LORD; and therefore Loth comprehen
sive and satisf\lctory.
It may Ilot 1>e unprofitable to briefly examine some of the
t'abc theories of present science the better ta comprehend the
reformation required.
One of the first steps necessary, is the renoyation of Psy
chology. Sucll a labor is essential before materialism will

rcleatle it8 hold on philo80phy und permit the nxioIIlutic
acknowledgmcnt of the LORD as the Cause and Sustainer
of the uni verse. But Philosophy is not advanced by the
nominal acknowledgment of a Divine Being, when this is
placed illfinitely distant, or diffused through space as the first
Source of things. Nor does the conception of God as three
pel'sons a(l(l one iota of strength; for, " Creation is an image
reprcsentative of God-Man, and this image cannot be seen
by him who denies that the LoRD is a Man;" nor can it
be seen by him who denies that God is One.
111 the Spiritllal niary and elsewhere are recorded frequent
conversations bctween Swedenborg and eminent philosophers
and scicntists, whose teachings still exert a powerful influence
in the learned 'Vorld. In every instance the lesson is to dis
aouse these teachinl:,"S of their falsities and to present them
in their true light. His denunciations of Aristotle and his
followel's apply more to the materialistic abuse of logic, than
to logic itself: (See S. D. 3947-55, 3959-Gl. A. C. 4446-7,
4658.) His conversations with Newton were but to correct
errors in science, some of them taught by Newton himself
and otllers introdllced by !lis followers. (See S. D. GOG4,
and S. D. Purt vii. p. 85.) The latter reference eIHls with
these remarkable words, which clearly explain the use and
importance of tÈlis permitted meeting with this philosopher,
" Now 1 koow that colors are modifications of light in objects,
in t!lc t(mos of which they make common planes, above
which light is variegated according to the forms of the parts;
hence are colors. These are the words of Newton hirnself,
which he wùhes that I should communicate."
Speaking of the philosophy and science of to-day Sweden
borg says:
O>hilosOP!IY)U ils every department has had no other effect than ta darken
Dlèiï'SïITiïï~(alld thus to shllt' the way to a view of interior and universal
THE NEW CHUR CH. 47
things j for it consista of mere terms and in disputes concerning thcm j
besides, so-called rational philosophy so confines the ideas, that the ruind
c]ellVClI only to plll'ticulllTlI anù thue to the ùust; bll8idos, it not 0011 obstruaIs
the way t~ interior things, but also blindB the mind and utterl banishes
faith, so that in the other Ife, a philosopher who has dwclt mueh on or in·,
Julgcd, in sueh studies, becomeB stupid and beyond ail others, ignorunt. \ AB
tu ItrccllUnical seiencs:>when one indulges too ruueh in rnechanicul praxis,
[1 he f~ as to bcJieve that not ollly nature, but even spi!i!ual
-' and celestial thinb'll consists oLnothing but \Vhat lB mechanicaJ j and if he
cannot~uce thelll to llJechanir.~~f;;ciples, and thei;ib;ces, he believes
Iluthing, and thus bceomes corporeul and, curthly. @~and tho like \
also concentrate the mind llnd impede it from lldmnclllg into U~IS;)
besides, it supposes nothing ta exist but what is geomctricai or mcchaniéal,
whereas geometry ex tends not beyond terrestrial and corporeal forms .
. \ No knowlctlgcs arc illjurious provided a 1II11n docs not place evcrything
\ in thelll, but regarJSïïUïïItëTloreü""d. KMOwlcJgel:l ure spiritual richcs, on
) whieh the understanding of things ean be founded. (See S. D. 767 to 773.
A. C. 3348.)
Hence it may be seen that to escape from materialism, the

man of science must constantly look to uses as ends and
C''sl'ccially must lie look to the LORD anù continually elevate
hi:; tllOughts above merely earthly things. (See S. D. 866,
4578, 4655.)
'] 'l'flle intelligence consists in seeing and E.,erceiving what
J i:;J..:.lIc and good, and thence whal j:; f;tl~e llllll evil. 1tfnn'B
interiors, are formed in heaven, his exteriors, in the world.
'l'rue intelligence oemands that these interiors shall flow
into the extcl'iors nnd so give perception. (See H. & H.
:34() to 356 with the numerOllS references.)
Psychology legitimately expounded, physiologists will
have need to thoroughly remodel their theol'ies of the brain
lllld derivative nervous systems, and, in fact, of the whole
organism. N owhere but in the 'V ritings, can be found the
gelluine definition of thonght, idea., sensation and emotiOlI, of
ncrve-force, vital-force, and function. New Church philos
ophy is not satisfied with the chemical theories of the origin
48 SCIENCE IN THE LIGHT OP THE NEW ClIU1ÜJH.
of animal heat, of the digestion of food, and of the blood

metalllo!'phoses, any more than it is with the theory, which
affinl1s thought to he the result of chemical changes in brain
tissue. Nor can it tolerate the prevailing theol'Y of proto
plasm, as "the parent of a11 things." The sea yields from
its depths a homogeneous, quivering substance, which is
c<llled, bjoplasm, or life-forming substance. 'Vith avidity
cxplorcrs boUle this bioplasm, study its microscopie stI'l1C
tll!'e, analyze it, :lIlcl conelude that it is the long sought for
p1'ùna causa vitœ. Hereafter every seert, every animal,
ev(~!'y man, is reduced, at least theorctically, to IL llWS.'l of
<}uivering jel1y, formless, organless, havillg only the capacity
of moving, amœboid-like, and here philosophy points to the
orio'in
b of life
. !
Next, Natural History will receive a remodeling. The
prescnt classification of animaIs, including man, is imperfect.
Man, monkey, horse, bat and whale, bccause they all suckle
thcir young and have warm blood, are huddlled toget.hcr
illto one elass. In genuine science, man will be ackllowl
edgcd as imrneasurably above ail the l'est of creation. He
Il:113 the capacity of being conjoined forever with the LORD
by will and undc!'stanùing. The mere animal is but a form
of sorne affection, born into unchangeable desires and the
consequent instinctive science and it perishes with its natural
life.
Use is the esscntial characteristic, not form only. Swed
enborg calls the whale a fish, because of its correspondence,
:lIHl cons()Cjlwntly of it.s use.
'l'he saille cr!'!)!', that is classifying according to forrn in
stcad of use, extends also, to the science of Butany. Noxious
and eùiblc plants are grouped in one family, because of
cel't<lill cxtcrllal similarities, despite their internaI and utilita
ri:m intolllpatibleness. This is one of the rnany illustra
tion::> showing the damagillg influence of the consummated
THE NEW CIlUR CIl. 49
Church upon Science. These errors, arise not so much

from mistake of judgment, as from the life which rejects
dml'it.y ulld Ll1ri~tl uee with it. Let the Dotftlli::;t in elu'B
sif)'illg plants, consult use and he will not associate the
paralyzing lathyrus with the nourishing bean.
rsp0ntaneous gcneration is another fact i.n nature, which
to-( ay fi( s scarce y one to defenc1 it. Swedenborg however
says, after dŒcribing the origin of noxious things, "whether
slleh thing::; exi::;t fl'om eggs carried thither, either hy the
ail', or by rain, or by the fiowing of water, or whether they
exist from hUlllors and stenches is a question. That such
noxiolls animalcules and insects as are mentioned above are
hatchetl frOIl\ eggs carricd thither or lying hill from creation
everywhcre in the ear!h, is not supporteù by genêral experi
euce, because worms exist in seeds, in nuts, in woods, in
stones, yea from leaves; also upon plants and in them, lice
and moths, which accord with them; flies also appear in
!lauses, fiel<1s and woo<1s, in summer, produced in great
ablludance not from any oviform matter; as is likewise the
case with tlJOse allirnalcules that devour meadows and lawns
and in sorne hot places fill and infest the air, besicles those
which swim anù fly invisible in fetid waters, sour wines llnd
Jll~stih~nt.ial ail'. Tltese faets fiLVor the opinion of those who
[ say that smelJs, effiuvia, and exhalations themselves, rising
1 from plnnts, earths and ponds, also give origin to such
animalcules. That afterwards when they are produced
they are propagated either by eggs or spawn, does not dis
prove th,9ir imlllc<1inte origin."-D. L. HZ 342.
Indeed, generation itsclf, as explained by science, will
<!cmanù an elltire renovation. It is fitlsely cxpoundcd in
plant-life anù imperit.'ctly studied in animaIs. Not only
is the spiritual presentation of the subject neglected or
erroneously presented, but also the physical phenomena
are lamcntahly misunderstood and c1efectively expressed.
50 SCIENCE IN TIIE LlGHT OF THE NEW CHURCH.
Physiology stumbles at. the very initiament of fecundation

and TIutany introduces the fa11acy that plants are male and
femule, possessing organs, which are compared to the gener
ativc parts of animaIs of both sexes. Swedenborg, present-
JI ing LIS with the true state ~f things, teaches t~at plunts are
ail male, t.he earth onl)', bClng femule. (Sec '1. C. R 585.)
\Vhat a ùestructive warfare will the Church wage against
a~gant :r.hysjology and a falsely systematized bo~
Physicists inform ns that the sun's ray is composed of
f:;Ovcn 01' lIIore colors, and that these may be reduced ta three
pl'imary (;olors, red, blue and yel1ow. From these aH com
binations, now colors and shades arise.
Truc science, however, teaches tbat a11 colors are reducible
\\ t.2-~o, red and white; and that their modifications ~;; a
Jground of dark, g~ve !!.se t~ev~.[Y-PQSsible_~ion.
-- Muoh of the confusion which prevailsJE._Phy~i~, arises
from thc notiolls entertnilleù concernin~cèj Reluctant
to consider it as spiritual, theorists regard it as an inheren~
property of matter; or, disregarding any conception of its
nature, connue thclllselvos to the investigation of its effects.
Bllt how can these om~cts be explained or systematized with
their cause undetermined or treated of, upon purely hypo
thctical grollnds? Illogical conc1usiorls and fauIty classifi
cation must result. (See D. L. W.185.) Take, by wayof
exalll pIc, the theory of heat and light Ils radiations from the
sun, differing in wave length only. Radiant heat is said tü
ho idcntieal with light, diflcl'ing from red light, for instance,
as l'cd from blue, lIlcrely in the length of its waves.
A baIl of lime is gradually heated. At first, it gives off
only rays of llcat; as its temperaturc increases, it adds a low
l'cd light. \Vith a further rise of temperature, it gives off
yel1ow, blue, etc., until fina11y when incandescent, its light
is white as that of the sun, thus containing a11 the colors
of sunlight. When the Solar Sp~ctrum is formed by means
THE NEW CHUR CH. 51
of ft pl'ism of rock-salt1 the thermo-electric pilc proves the

existence of heat in aU the colo1'ed spaces, inc1'easing, how
ever, düwn tailie red, and attaining its maximum beyond the
visible lig1Jt, just as if heat were (as it must be) rfgTït;ith
longer wnVéS. (See Chambers's Encyclopœdia, vol. v. last
editioll.) i "-
Butl)ICàtJ is not ~ What are called For~) in na~lre,

lire Ilot llIi1tel'ial, nor are they- inhercnt in matter. They
';;r
ure 1\1<tllifestations activity, which proceeds from the LORD
alll.lle, And tltey are varled-~ill111el-r receptlOn 6y matter.
117lli, thel'c arc several cmanations from the slIn: aUl'a~ ether
amI atlllosphere. These are pel'fcetly distinct, the purer occu
1 lJyillg tIte interstices of the Iower and ...ç..Qar~r. Activity in 1
( one of these spheres is manifested as (magnetism, in anotheI 2.
as~~ ill another as~ung, an.d so on.. (Com~are D. L ,v.3
170 and S. D. 222.) -wIlen ID expenmentatlOn, one force,
as magnetislll, for instance, seems cOllverted into another,
as hl'at, it i:3 merc1y this force manifested in IL different
HI,mediulll. .For, as was said, these solar emanations, are inti
JI llIately associute{l in aIl thin_~~!!l~ .~~!Eth. (F~ --m;li
fl'ated as magnetislll, arranges particles into cel'tam orders,
alld~changc;,; the state of matter a.nd arouses it into
activity. The atmospheres hohl substanccs in their proper
fOl'ln. The extel'llul of form, as the surface of the body, is
mailltained by the aerial atmosphere; the internaIs, as the
viscera, are muintuine<1 in their farD! by an œthereal atmo
arhere .
To brÎng Scien~nd Philosophy out of its ch~os, t.b~n,
we must a) lcal to tlLEL.BliVJllatioIl . he New Church,
'1 which will afliml us aIl needed ass~tance-by the_ ScieI!-Çe
L of Corresponde.!!,ces, ~y the doctrines of forms, of cause and
()fll~ct, by sllpplying fucts corrective and supplementary to
] wlw:t of science we already know; and also, by th~Doctrine
~f D.,ggees.
52 SCIENCE IN THE LIGH1' OF THE NEW CHURCH,
" Thc knowlcdgc of dc~ees i8, as it wcre, the key to open thc causes of
thingll nnd tu Cil ter intotfi(;m j without it sonreoly nny~hing of OIlUSO oan he
J known j for without it, the objecta and subjects of both worlds appear 50
gencral as to seem to have nothing in them but what is seen with the eye.
The intcrior things which lie hid, can by no means be discoycrcd, ~ss
d~s arc unùel'stood. . . . Nothing, BO fur as 1 an} nware, has hithcrto
bccn known of Discrcte D~grEle.'l. , .. 1 can declare, thrit ~gels are in
sadncss on ~unt oLthe dnrkness that p,Eevails upon carth. They say that
l~~carccly unywhere to be Been, and that men seize on and eonfirm
/,t1lacies and thcreby lllulrir!y falsities upon falsilics; and 1.0 confirm lhem,
devise by Fcasonings grounded in falses und in truths falsifieù, sueh figmenls
as Callnot be dispellcd, s~great is the dUl'kness that pr~ils conccrning C~C8
and the ignorance concerning truths. (Sce D. L. W. 184 and 188.)
May the glorious day soon come, when man will rise out
'j of the darkness of self-derived intellige!1ce a~d ~p-~al to the
J. 0een \Vord of Gnd for aU that concerns lus lIfe, lts moral
government, its civil and political instruction, its philosophy,
its science, its~yth~.ng.
APPENDIX
A MISSING NUMBER FROM THE APOCALYPSE EXPLAINED
To the first fascicle of Words for the New Church was added an
appendix containing the Latin text of Historia Ecclesiastica Novae
Ecclesiae. The significance of the publishing ofthis was that it had
never before appeared in print. It gives us great pleasure, therefore,
to be ableto follow this precedent by including here a passage ofthe
Writings which has not hitherto been published:
In the current Swendenborg Society edition of Apocalypse

Explained (prepared, apparently, in 1896), there is a note at the
bottom of page 485 which reads:
"That he might cause her to be carried away by the
river." The explanation of this clause is omitted from
the author's MS. But see 762.
(This clause is the last part of verse 15 in Revelation 12. Number
762 contains only a summary explanation of the internaI sense of
verses 15 and 16 and therefore states its meaning very briefly.) This
note is correct in that this explanation is omitted from Swedenborg's
final draft but it is not true that Swedenborg never wrote the
explanation of these words.
The first draft of Apocalypse Explained was only first reproduced
in 1916. This means that none ofthe published editions were able to
take into account the information contained in it. Both the English
and the Latin editions published by the Swedenborg Foundation
take the one sentence explanation of the internaI sense in number
762 and add it in Brackets as 763 112. 764, then, is the explanation of
verse 16. There is no number 765 in Swedenborg's final draft and
766 explains verse 17. Comparing this to the first draft, it becomes
clear what happened: When recopying, Swedenborg simply skipped
over his original 764 and put this number instead on what had been
765 in the first draft. Coming to the end ofthis number he saw that
53
54 APPENDIX
the next was 766 and resumed numbering the final draft as he had
the first. AH this probably took place without Swedenborg being
aware of what he was doing. The original 764 stands intact in the
first draft. It is of special interest because it is the only place in the
Writings where the last part of Revelation 12:15 is specificaHy
explained (AR 562 and AC 7293:5, both of which explain verse 15,
don't really say anything about the last part.)
Here, then, for the first time it has been seen outside Swedenborg's
manuscript, is the real Apocalypse Explained 764 (The 764 of the
present published editions should be 765).
APPENDIX 55
764. Ut ilIam a flumine absorptam faceret, quod significet ut

Ecclesia ilIa per ratiocination es occaecaretur et dissiparetur.
constat ex significatione fluminis, quod sit ratiocinationes, de qua
mox supra; et ex significatione absorptum facere ac absorbere,
quod sit perdere, quod sit occaecari et dissipari est quia intelligitur
per ratiocinationes ex falsis perdere, et qui ex falsis perit, is primum
occaecatur ut non videat vera, ac dum vera non amplius videntur,
dissipatur etiam Ecclesia apud ilIum nam Ecclesia est Ecclesiux
v.eris.
[TRANSLATION)
764. That he might cause her to be swallowed up by the river,

means "in order that that Church might be blinded and dissipated
by ratiocinations." This follows from the meaning ofriver, namely,
ratiocinations, as said just above, and from the meaning of "to
cause to be swallowed up" and "to swallow up," in that it is "to
destroy."
This is to be blinded and dissipated because to destroy by
ratiocinations from falsities is understood. And he who perishes
from falsities, is first blinded so that he does not see truths. And
when truths are no longer seen, the Church with him is dispersed as
weIl. For the Church is the Church from truths.
NOTES
~lm ~biue ~Orb6 Jlfor m~e ~efu arlturc~?
Words far the New Church is a publication unique in the history

of the New Church. There are several aspects which, taken
together, give it its speciaI character. Each ofthese aspects, as will
be seen, has value still today. Therefore there is a use in resuming
the publication of Wards.
The first of these aspects is the e~Qlicit devotion ta the §utbority of
the Writings and ta scholarship founded on that authority. In the era
in which Wards was first published, tao much time and energy was
l
Il being spent in the periodicaIs and publication ofthe Church, reasoning
whether the teachings of the Writings were true, rather than going 1\
JJ
! j 1 fQ!:W..ard with constructive work based 0l!.reasoning th<!:i the teachin.gs
w~.r.e-.true. At this day, men of the Church can work with this
assumption implicit. Nevertheless, there is still a use in returning, on
occasion, ta reaffirm the first principles explicitly and ta encourage
continuing scholarship which begins with these principles.
Secondly, Wardswas a seriaI, rather than periodica1 publication.
That is to say, it did come out in fascic1es or issues, but not at regularly
specified intervaIs or periods. It was published, then, from time ta time
as matêriaI became available and was properly polished for present
ation. In this there is a reflection of the principle, which was seen to
derive from the authority ofthe Writings, that doubt is cause for delay.
~ There was p.o rush ing> p!"Î.nt wi!h ~n,ythingJlot c~llysonsidere?
and reviewed. .
~ The seriaI formaI was aIso considered more appropriate for extended
studies. Seen in this light, Wards is more like a single work, published
in instaI1.Jnents, than a magazine which h~different focus ;ach
issue. This, again, is an expression ofthe unity of purpose that was felt
in..pLoceeding from the aJl1hority prin.ciple.
.3 - One further aspect of Wards is the ty:lonymity of the allthprs and
editars. This tao helps undeI:line the unity of viewpoint of those
57
58 WHY REVIVE WORDS FOR THE NEW CHURCH?
contributing ta th~ work. The intention was not secrecy, but simply ta
avoid association of the ideas expressed with any one name. Every
thing written in Words, with the exception of what was explicitly
quoted from other sources, was written, it might be said, from the
editarial viewpoint.
The present editars intend to follow the practices of the original
editars in maintaininK~ty. Our intention is that the readers
may conSlder the ideas presented on their own merits, apart from
personal attachment or disaffection. Many who read Words will soon
know who the editars are, ifthey do not already, but perhaps the lack of
a signature at the end of each article may still serve as a reminder of
the intention behind anonymity.
S - The editors are not afraid to be associated with the ideas here
presented. Nevertheless, as the doctrines point out, an idea is not true
merely because the leaders of the church say so, and their followers
. affirm it. Our hop~ is that no one would a~t what is_\Y!it!en here
{uncritically, becau8eOra name at t'Fie end, QQ!..r~ what is published
here without examining it. The Writings encourage us ta explore the
doctrines of the church in which we are born or with which we are
associated, ta see within ourselves whether or not they are true, before
we assent ta them and confirm them. This spirit of open-minded
examination ofthe teachings and common opmlOns within our church
is what we hope to cultivate with the renewed publication of Words for
the New Church.
In addition ta the new material we are publishing, we are reprinting
herein a section from the original Words called "Science in the Light of --! 1 3
1the New CQyrch." Besides drawing attention ta a foundation-fTOm
1which we h012e a pew science can arise, this rePûblication will
complement the Swedenborg Scientific Association's reprinting of the
\ section on "Scienœ_anctP111IOSophy," in which it was not mcludèd.
"'m~e 'mntnfilaiion of 'm~e ~orh"

1
So began a note in Words just over 100 years ago, which taok up the
subject of the King James or Authorized Version of the Bible, the
Revised Version being made at that time, and the question of a New
Church Version. The note continued:
"In a report ta the Ecclesiastical Committee of the General

Convention, June 1877, the writer opposes a new trans
lation of the Word ta be made by the New Ghurch for its
use, advising the LORD'S church ta look ta the vastate
church for any improvement in the present version.
THE TRANSLA TIaN OF THE WaRD 59
"We would here examine a few of the reasons given,

why the old church translation should be retained despite
its many mistakes, and why we should wait until the old
Church should make a better rendering, a rendering
which shall be accurate enough for deriving therefrom
the internai sense." (Words Vol. l, p. 252)
It is no accident that Words here and elsewhere concemed itself

with the translation of the Scriptures. The need for a New Church
version was much on the minds of those who wrote for Words.
Throughout the history of the New Church, those who have placed
the highest authority in the Writings have felt acutely the need of a
distinct New Church version of the Scriptures. This has not been
simply because of the general realization, as indicated in the
quota-tion just above, that the Old Church can't be counted on to
produce anything which the New Church can trust, but because of
the more specifie awareness that the theory of translation which is
suggested, both by explicit statements and by the practice of the
Writings, departs in several fundamental ways from Old Church
theories of translation.
As early as 1788, in a letter ta the New Church in London, a
correspondent observes:
"1 have lately applied to Swedenborg's Apocalypsis

Explicata, and do find it a most valuable and truly divine
work; but 1 cannot help being very sorry to fin d, that the
English Bible agrees so indifferently with most of the
-- f
l
quotations from the Old Testament in that work. This
can only be remedied by a new translation, which the
Lord in his good providence will, 1 am persuaded, before
long bring to pass." (Quoted in The New Magazine
Knowledge, 1791 p. 154)
We may note with sadness that almost 200 years have passed since
( this hopeful sentiment was expressed, and the Lord's good providence
has not yet given us the hoped-for translation. But this, of course, is
because the Lord provides onl)' through the efforts of the men of His 11
Church, men who are also subj~t to the interference.oLthe_hells,)J
J
. which must work earnestly against any such translation. Only when
l the conviction of the importance of such a translation grows strong

enough will it finally come to pass.
60 THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORD
Another important element in this letter is the fact that the writer
is quite c1ear about the nature of the defects in the King James
Version: It does not agree sufficiently with the scripture quotations
found in the Writings.
Soon after this, we find another early figure in the Church being
even more specific about the problems with Old Church versions of
A 1the Scriptures. As an example he cites Isaiah 5:1: "My beloved hath a
vipeyard in the horn of a son of oil," which, he points out, is mis
translated in "our common editions ofthe Bible" (i.e. the KJV): "M
.B 1Qeloved hath a vineyard in a very fr.uitful..h!W' After outlining the
spiritual sense, as it is given in the Writings (see AE 375:31), he
continues:
"The beauty which appears in this passage, when it is

explained according to the internaI sense, is not equalled
by the common translation, which seems to attempt to
amend the sacred text, as ifit was not properly expressed
bytIië-inspired writer. Such conduct in the translators is,
however, excusable, because they were not aware that the
~le Word was written b.Y-Wmspondenc,es. But the
New Church, in which the science of correspondences is
beginning to revive, must have a Jllain literaI translation,
not so much accommocIB:"'ted to the fluctuating taste, or
Jr
the peculiar idiom of our language, as strictly expressive
of the original terms of inspiration; for nothing else can
contain the true correspondences, or be the medium of
presenting to the mind the pure internaI sense of
scripture." (New Jerusalem Journal, 1792)
The author not only notes the divergence between the "common
version" and a version that would coincide with the rendering found
in the Writings, he also begins to discuss the nature ofthe difference,
namely, that a New Church version would be more literal than the
King James Version.
( It is interesting to note, in the face of this, that the tendency of the
) Old Church has been in just the opposite direction: Almost aU
translations done since the KJV have been less literal. AlI the
revisions of the KJV, sorne to a greater extent than others, fall
1 further than the original into the error of attempting to "amend the
sacred text, as ifit was not properly expressed by the inspired writer."
Part of the reason for this is the weakening, throughout the Christian
world, ofbeliefin the verbal inspiration ofthe Scriptures. At the same
THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORDS 61
time modern, secular theories of language and translation have

urged the idea that literalness is not the only measure of accuracy in
translation and that it may indeed render a translation less accurate.
One modern theorist suggests that there are three types of
translations:'(l) LiteraI translations, (2) translations ofthe general
idea, and (3) translations based upon the c10set equivalents." The
second of these is said to be achieved through applicaÙon of the
formula "What would the author have said if he had been using
English instead of Greek or Hebrew?" This type is rejected as too
interpretive. It is essentially paraphrase. The theorist suggests the
third type as a middle ground between the other two. It involves
transferring the meaning from the idiom of the original, or source
language into the natural idiomatic forms of the receptor, or target
language. This is known as "idiom to idiom" translation and is said
to represent "dynamic" equivalence, as opposed to the "formaI"
equivalence of literaI translation.
Such ideas strike many as useful insights deriving from the most
modern and advanced translation philosophy. Even within the
bounds of New Church organizations, it is suggested that earlier
generations oftranslators in the Church held to literaI translation as
their only standard of accuracy because they had not the advantage
of these modern insights as to other, nay, it is argued, superior
standards of accuracy in translation. Such suggestions betray
ignorance of the history of translation philosophy in the New
Church. In a commentary on the Psalms in 1837, for instance, the
introduction states:
"There are three ways by which a translation may be

accomplished. The first is a literaI translation, by which
every word is strictly rendered verbatim from the original.
The second is an idiomatic translation, by which the
original idiom is carefully conveyed into the idiom of
another language. The third is a free translation, in
which the sense of the author is regarded, abstractly from
the expressions he uses, and freely translated in the
manner in which the translator supposes the author
would have expressed it had he written in the language
into which his work is translated."
The resemblance ofthis analysis to the modern one cited above is

remarkable, especially considering that is was written almost 150
62 THE TRANSLATION OF THE WaRD
years ago. The understanding it reflects of the problems and

possibilities in translation is equally sophisticated. The conclusion
drawn, however, is quite different:
"The first of these ways, that is, the strictly literaI, is the
only way by which the Scriptures can be properly
translated; in this respect, as in every other, they are
essentially different from ail merely human compos
itions; in these it is only necessary to have an accurate
comprehension of the author's meaning, whereas in the
former the letter is divine, and cannot be departed from
withou t injuring the base upon which the in ternal sense
rests, as upon its proper foundation."
Here the important distinction is noted between translating the

Word and translating any other work.
{ This distinction is one that cannot be understood by those who
\ are not of the New Church, because, as mentioned in an earlier
, quotation, it is only in the New Church, to which the doctrine of
correspondence has been revealed anew, that it can be understood
how every word and expression in the Scriptures contains the
Divine Truth. Only the New Church translator is fully prepared to
see the expressions of Scripture as being, not in Hebrew or in Greek
idiom, but in the Divine idiom, in language that manifests the Lord
in a unique, correspondential way.
Example:
A specifie case mentioned repeatedly in the discussion of New

Church principles of translation is that of Isaiah 5:1, the first
reference to which was quoted above. It is a telling case because it
has been cited both by those who look to the Writings for guidance
(in addition to the reference given above, see Halcyon Luminary
Vol. l, p. 162. and Words Vol. l, pp. 143-145, and pp. 256·257), and
by those who are antagonistic to or ignorant of the teachings
THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORD 63
of the Writings and turn instead to the vastate world for guidance
(see Convention Journal, 1877, p. 54 and New Church Home, 1979, p.
45). This particular example illustrates the light that the Writings
can shed on the translation of difficult passages, but also raises the
very interesting question: Where do translators learn what the words
of the original mean?
For instance: How arewe to know the meaning, in Isaia'h 5:1, of the
Hebrew word QEREN, which the KJV and most other translations
render as "hill"? Hebrew lexicons give "horn" as a first definition,
but also include "the summit of a mountain" and compare this usage
to that ofthe Swiss (Matterhorn, etc.). Proponents ofthe translation
"a very fruitful hill" state matter-of-factly that conical hills were
sometimes called homs. But what authority do such sources cite as
support? None other than Isaish 5:1! It is the only place in the Bible to
which they can point where QEREN has this postulated meaning. In
the KJV QEREN is translated "hom" 75 times and "hill" only once.
( The lexicons refer only to Isaiah 5:1 for illustrations ofthis usage. In
) short, the argument that QEREN means hill in this passage is
) completely circular - the only real evidence is the context of the
( passage itself. We have taken the time to examine this case closely
because it shows dramatically how what may seem ta be authoritative
p!~~.!!!l.~~ts by worldly sëholars, m~~in fac~, ~~_ mere con·
jectures and that for the true meaning we must look to what the Lord
Himselftells us about what His Word means.
In the vastate world, the meaning of Biblical expressions is
generally determined from three things:
1) Study of expressions as they appear in different Sciptural

contexts
2) Traditions going back to the earliest versions of the Bible
3) Scholarly investigation, including etymology in the original
language and comparison with related languages
As can be seen, only the first of these can be counted on to give

Divine guidance as to the meaning of Scriptural vocabulary.
If one sets a priority on seeking the clues given by the Lord
Himself, however, there are other resources available. One is to take
into account not only the implicit contextual information, but also
( the explicit definitions given in the Word itself. These occur especially
) in regard ta names of people and places, and are generally disregarded
1by scholars, who consider them to be quaint folk-etymologies
inserted by those who wrote down or edited the books of the Bible.
64 THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORD
\ Here is a perfect example of the way the destruction of faith in the

complete inspiration ofthe Scriptures removes an important source of
1information on the meaning ofthe words ofScripture. One additional,
and highly important, resource we have in the New Church is the
testimony ofthe Writings conceming the meaning ofthe Old and New
Testaments. This includes both the translations into Latin used by the
Writings and the implications about the meaning of the literal sense
often contained in the explanations of the spiritual sense. This
sometimes even includes direct statements of the form ''This word in
the original language means ... ,"
Instead ofthe three sources from which the vastate world derives the
meaning of Scripture, the New Church can look to these:
1) Study of expressions as they appear in different Scriptural
contexts
2) Direct statements about the meanings ofterms in the Scriptures
3) The direct and indirect testimony of the Writings.
Using these as the standards for determining how to understand and
translate the Scriptures can yield very different results than can he
found in any translation produced by the vastate world.
Hence it is clear why those who trust in the authority ofthe Lord as
He speaks in the Writings have always sought after translations ofthe
Word produced br the New Church, andha~rbee~satisfied to
look to thé ~astate world for a v";;rsion acceptable to the New Church.
This too is why Words for the New Church was and is vitally
concemed with this issue.
Words for the New Church
Box 37008
Cintinnati, Ohio 45222
Dear Readcr, ..
We are sending this fascicle of Words for the New Church to those who may
be interested in its content. The prologue to this number explains our reasons
for reinstating this New Church seriaI which has not been issued for one
hundred years. The format and style of this SeriaI is also discussed in one
of our editorial notes at the end of this issue. This particular number foc uses
on the principles of Words for the New Church, which are set forth as clearly
and directly as possible. Also, we have included a reprint of the last section
of the third fascicle of the original Words,' "Science in the Light of the New
Church," as an example of how these principles can be applied to a particular
field of study. We include às weIl a "missing number" of the Apocalypse
Explained which has direct bearing on one of the fundamental principles of
Words for the New Church. .
This publication is not a periodical, but a seriaI, and as such it will

nct appear et set times. We hope to publish whenever we have received and
prepared sufficient material to be of interest and use to the New Crrurch.-The-
cost of publication must also be considered, being about two dollars per copy.
The frequency, therefore, with which Words for the New Church will be issued
will de pend upon contributions, both literary and monetary.
By sending out this fascicle of Words, we hope to reach as many interested

readers as possible. If you, or others who have not received a copy, would be
interested in receiving future numbers of this SeriaI, please inform us, as we
have no desire to continue sending fascicles to those who are uninterested.
Since this is a seriaI we do not feel that we can set a subscription priee. A
contribution for copies received would be appreciated, but there is no
obligation. Our intent is to communicate, to aIl those who are interested, the
principles of Words for the New Church and their application to every possible
field of study. And to the end that this communication may be reciprocal, we
hope to receive from men of the New Church either single articles or series on
specifie subjects. We would welcome such literary contributions as apply t~e
truths of the Second C20ing ta an s in the s irit of t e
affirmative principle.
Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
The Edi tors

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ANC Words For The New Church 1876 1886 XIV First Principles 1884 (Reprint Cincinnati 1984)

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WORD·S

THE NEW CHURCH

We quote from the prologue of th_fLfirst volume of the

The Heavenly Doctrines as unfolded in the Writings of Sweden­

l\:1a_n, and to the relation between the two.

WeB therefore may we devote ourselves to the development in

ourselves and others of a familiar knowledge of thi§! ~y~stem ~f

DiviQeTI:uth, -to an actual internal2rop~gandaofthel!!ith, -to th~

influenceofthese wonderful disclosures through the Word,'made by

This SERIAL truly was, and still remains, WORDS

II. -THE DEVASTATED AND CONSUMMATED

STATE OFTHB CHRISTIAN WORLD TODAY ... 13

III. - ALL THINGS ARE TO BE MADE

NEW IN TH~ NEW CHURCH 24

IV. -THE AFFIRMATIVE PRINCIPLE 32

~ SCIENCE IN THE LIGHT r. '> l

OF THE NEW CHURCH (REPRINT) , .. , 38

APPENDIX - A MISSING NUMBER FROM

THE APOCALYPSE EXPLAINED , 53

NOTES - WHY REVIVE WORDS FOR

THE N~W CHURCH? 57

"THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORD" ... 58

Happy are they who do his commandments, that their authority

The first and foremost principle of the Academy

6 THE DIVINE A UTHORITY OF THE WRITINGS

Our estimate of the Writings we have given in the previous

Such was the doctrinal position expressed in WORDS

I The-s&itual se!!s~ ~ord has been disclo~d by the Lord

And in responding to Ekebom's report he refers to the'

Writings, Swedenborg wrote: "Please read what is

written about the arcana that have been disclosed by

the Lord through me His servant in nos. 846-851 in the

latest work, 'l'RUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION." (Smalt

Theological Works and Letters, p. 198±) From this last

Memorable Relation of the work True Christian

Religion, referred to here by Swedenborg, it is evident

that the arcana disclosed by the Lord through

Swedenborginclude the whol; of die"Wrltings in aIl

the1r v~riety. Thus it 1Sëlear that the Lord Himself

revealed the Heavenly Doctrines, and Swedenborg His

servant was only. the means. by which i.hf8rtWclation

was made. (see also AR 43, SS 4, De V VII 21, AE 641:3,

670:4, Inv. [VII], NJHD 7, TCR 508, Cor Sum XLIX,

Now it may be argued that, although the Lord is the

absolutely necessary that someone should be intro­

The things which 1 learned from representations, visions, and

Thus it was possible for Swedenborg to be taught by

Lord." (AR Chap. X, 484) And the spiritual sense ofthe

Everyone is able to see that the Apocalypse cannot be expounded

As Swedenborg received the Heavenly Doctrines

Do not therefore suppose that 1 have taken anything there from

pleased the Lord ... to open the Word ... as to its

has been granted me by the Lord to see the wonderful

From aU these teachings quoted above, and from

The Second Advent of the Lord is effected bv means of a man

There are also many other passages which teach

When the Brie! Exposition was published, the angelic heaven

One of these copies has been found, on which was

We therefore reaffirm the principle of the Divine

THE DEVASTATED AND CONSUMMATED STATE 13

Another principle clearly and repeatedly stated in

i ltght,. sothat aIl things appear, less according to their

-r - - First:~toctrin~Ofa New Chu~ch are never revealed until the

The Heavenly Doctrines as unfolded in the Writings of Sweden

absolutely necessary that someone should be intro

evils and falsities. rAC45<f3j-\-

heaven and heIl are, nor that everyone lives immed

Through this subordination and reordering ofknow