The New Church (or Swedenborgianism) is any of several historically related

Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worsh ...

s that developed as a new religious group, influenced by the writings of scientist and mystic

Emanuel Swedenborg Emanuel Swedenborg (, ; born Emanuel Swedberg; 29 March 1772) was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian theologian, scientist, philosopher and mystic. He became best known for his book on the afterlife, ''Heaven and Hell'' (1758). Swedenborg had ...

(1688–1772). Swedenborgian organisations acknowledge what they believe to be the universal nature of God's church: all who do good in accordance with the truth of their religion will be accepted into heaven (since God is goodness itself), and doing good joins one with God.TCR, n. 536. Swedenborg published some of his theological works anonymously; his writings promoted one universal church based on love and charity, rather than multiple churches named after their founders and based on belief or doctrine.Swedenborg, Emanuel. ''Heavenly Arcana'' (or ''

Arcana Coelestia Arcana may refer to: Music * Arcana (American band), an American jazz band * Arcana (Swedish band), a Swedish dark wave band * Arcana (record label), a French classical record label * ''Arcana'' (album), a 2001 album by Edenbridge * ''Arcana'' ...

''), 1749–58 (AC). 20 vols. Rotch Edition. New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1907, in ''The Divine Revelation of the New Jerusalem'' (2012), n. 1799(4).

History

Although Swedenborg spoke in his works about a "New Church" that would be based on theology, he never tried to establish such an organisation. In 1768, a heresy trial began in Sweden against Swedenborg's writings and two men who promoted them; the trial questioned whether Swedenborg's theological writings were consistent with Christian doctrine. A royal ordinance in 1770 declared that his writings were "clearly mistaken" and should not be taught, but his theology was never examined.Jonsson, Inge, ''Swedenborg och Linné'', in Delblanc & Lönnroth (1999), pp.453–463. Swedenborg's clerical supporters were ordered to stop using his teachings, and customs officials were directed to impound his books and stop their circulation in any district unless the nearest

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church *Consistory ...

granted permission. Swedenborg begged the king for grace and protection in a letter from Amsterdam; a new investigation of him stalled, and was dropped in 1778. At the time of Swedenborg's death, few efforts had been made to establish an organised church. On 7 May 1787, however (15 years after his death), the New Church movement was founded in England – where Swedenborg had often visited, and where he died. A number of churches had sprung up around England by 1789, and in April of that year the first General Conference of the New Church was held in Great Eastcheap, London. New Church ideas were brought to the United States by missionaries, one of whom was John Chapman (Johnny Appleseed). Early missionaries also travelled to parts of Africa. Swedenborg believed that the "African race" was "in greater enlightenment than others on this earth, since they are such that they think more 'interiorly', and so receive truths and acknowledge them." African enlightenment was considered a liberal concept at the time, and Swedenborgians accepted freed African converts in their homes as early as 1790. Several Swedenborgians were also

abolitionists Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The Britis ...

Occultism The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism an ...

became increasingly popular during the 19th century (particularly in France and England), and some followers blended Swedenborg's writings with

theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...

, cabala,

alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...

, and

divination Divination (from Latin ''divinare'', 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy') is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout histor ...

. Swedenborg's mystical side fascinated them; they concentrated on '' Heaven and Hell'', which describes Swedenborg's visits to

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

and

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

to experience (and report on) the conditions there. In structure, it was related to Dante's ''

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and ...

''.

The U.S. church was organised in 1817 with the founding of the General Convention of the New Church (sometimes shortened to the Convention), now also known as the ''

Swedenborgian Church of North America The Swedenborgian Church in North America (also known as the General Convention of the Church of the New Jerusalem) is one of a few Christian sects that draws its faith from the Bible as illuminated by the teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1 ...

''. The movement in the United States strengthened until the late 19th century, and there was a New-Church Theology School in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

. Controversies about doctrine and the authority of Swedenborg's writings caused a faction to split off and form the Academy of the New Church. It later became known as the

General Church of the New Jerusalem The General Church of the New Jerusalem (also referred to as the ''General Church'' or just simply the '' New Church'') is an international church based in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, and based on the Old Testament, the New Testament, and the theo ...

– sometimes called the General Church – with its headquarters in

Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania Bryn Athyn is a home rule municipality in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It was formerly a borough, and its official name remains "Borough of Bryn Athyn". The population was 1,375 at the 2010 census. It was formed for religious reasons fro ...

(a suburb of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

). Other congregations felt doctrinally compelled to join the General Church at its inception. Two Convention congregations in Canada (one in Toronto and another in Kitchener) and two congregations from the British Conference – Michael Church in London and

Colchester New Church Colchester New Church is a Christian New Church in Colchester, England which has as its theological basis the Old and New Testaments and the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. Colchester New Church is part of the General Church of the ...

– joined the General Church.

Branches and membership

, the most recent membership figures for the four church organisations were: *General Conference of the New Church (Great Britain): 1,314 *

, also known as the General Convention (USA): 2,029 *

: 5,563 *The

Lord's New Church Which Is Nova Hierosolyma The Lord's New Church Which Is Nova Hierosolyma, usually referred to as the Lord's New Church, is an international, Christian church based on the Old Testament, the New Testament, and the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, which its membe ...

: 1,000 Membership in the New Church has always been small, and the organisations have been deeply involved in publishing.

Main doctrines

New Jerusalem Church, Bridgewater, Massachusetts

The New Church has two essential doctrines. The first is that there is one God,

Jehovah Jehovah () is a Latinization of the Hebrew , one vocalization of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the proper name of the God of Israel in the Hebrew Bible/ Old Testament. The Tetragrammaton is considered one of the seven names of God in Judais ...

, who incarnated as Jesus so that he may redeem mankind. The second is the obligation to live according to his commandments. "There are two essentials which constitute the church, and hence two principal things of doctrine—one, that the Lord's Human is Divine; the other, that love to the Lord and charity toward the neighbor constitute the church, and not faith separate from love and charity." These "two things, the acknowledgment of the Lord, and a life according to the precepts of the

Decalogue The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ� ...

..are the two essentials of the New Church." Adherents believe that these two doctrines bring about salvation and union with Jesus. "All things of the doctrine of the New Church have reference to these two, because they are its universals, on which all the particulars depend, and are its essentials, from which all the formalities proceed" If a person is unaware of the doctrines but has believed in one God and lived a good life, according to Swedenborg, they will learn them from angels after death. Swedenborg argued that the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

was not three persons—the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—but one, "the Father being the originating divine being itself, the Son the human embodiment of that divine soul, and the Holy Spirit the outflowing activity of Jesus, or the 'Divine Human'" He wrote that the doctrine of a three-person Trinity originated during the fourth century with the adoption of the

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...

to combat

Arianism Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...

, but it was unknown to the Apostolic Church (indicated by the

Apostles' Creed The Apostles' Creed (Latin: ''Symbolum Apostolorum'' or ''Symbolum Apostolicum''), sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". The creed most likely originated in 5th-century Ga ...

, which he believed preceded the Nicene Creed).

Doctrine of the Lord

The New Church's universal principle of faith is that the "Lord from eternity, who is Jehovah, came into the world to subjugate the hells and to glorify His Human; and without this no mortal could have been saved; and those are saved who believe in Him":TCR, n. 2. From this doctrine, the Trinity is defined as "the three essentials of one God, and they make one as soul, body, and operation make one in man. Before the world was created this Trinity was not; but after creation, when God became incarnate, it was provided and brought about; and then in the Lord God the Redeemer and Savior Jesus Christ."TCR, n. 163. As a trinity of body, soul, and spirit exists in every man, this became the Holy Trinity in Jesus. The doctrine of one God as one person distinguishes the New Church from other Christian churches, most of which define the Trinity as three

eternal Eternal(s) or The Eternal may refer to: * Eternity, an infinite amount of time, or a timeless state * Immortality or eternal life * God, the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith in monotheism Comics, film and television * ...

persons. The New Church sees Trinitarianism as illogical: "In the ideas of thought a Trinity of Divine Persons from eternity, or before the world was created, is a Trinity of Gods; and these ideas cannot be effaced by a lip-confession of one God."

Monotheism Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford ...

is defined as one God who is one person; only the Lord (

) is worshiped. Worship of, and faith in, Jesus is not worshiping a created being: although he was born with a human body, the New Church holds that his soul was eternally divine. When he rose from the dead, he discarded the human body he inherited from Mary and put on a human body from the divinity within him (known in the New Church as the Divine Human). According to Swedenborg,

God the Father God the Father is a title given to God in Christianity. In mainstream trinitarian Christianity, God the Father is regarded as the first person of the Trinity, followed by the second person, God the Son Jesus Christ, and the third person, God t ...

is the inner divinity which became outwardly manifest in human form known as the

Son A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative. Social issues In pre-industrial societies and some current c ...

. Since adherents believe that the

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or ar ...

is one with the Father, the

Lord's Prayer The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...

is directed to the Lord only. In the opening "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name", "name" is everything by which God is worshiped (particularly the Son, through whom he is approached). According to the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

, Jesus sometimes prayed to the Father and declared himself one with the Father at other times. New Church adherents believe that this was because Jesus progressed towards God during his life by gradually making his human body one with the divine.

Doctrines of faith and charity

New Church adherents believe that faith in Jesus brings salvation. Faith in Jesus is faith in a visible God. Jesus is the image and form of the invisible God, on whom the human mind can focus. According to the New Church, God is man himself. If a person is good and follows the truth, God lives in that person (who becomes an image and likeness of him). The New Church is said to be the "crown of all churches which preceded it", since the invisible God is worshiped in human form. The sum of the concept of faith in the New Church is that a person who lives well believes is saved. Faith is not defined as belief alone; the New Church holds that faith without charity is not faith, and charity without faith is not charity; in this way, faith and charity are intertwined. Faith and charity become one in acts of good works or repentance. The union of faith and charity is a central tenet of the New Church; all substantial things are related to divine love and divine wisdom, and the will and understanding of each person is a receptacle of God's love and wisdom. According to New Church adherents, a person must learn and live by the truth; in the union between humanity and the Lord, faith becomes living and spiritual. All the precepts of how one should live are contained in the

Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ� ...

. The first act of faith is repentance: self-examination, acknowledging one's sins, and turning away from evil.

The Bible

The Bible concerns God and his kingdom. The New Church has three pillars: God's divinity, the holiness of the Bible, and a life of good works. The Bible is divinely inspired; according to adherents, its spiritual sense has been revealed in the New Church through symbolic correspondence. Its literal meaning, similar to a parable, hides the inner, spiritual sense: "The truths of the sense of the letter of the Word are in part not naked truths, but are appearances of truth, and like similitudes and comparisons are taken from such things as are in nature; and thus are such as have been accommodated and adapted to the capacity of the simple and also of children." The Bible cannot be properly understood without doctrine, and church doctrine should be confirmed with it. Doctrine can only be known by those who are enlightened by God, and those who are not can fall into

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

. The Bible contains divine truth; according to New Church adherents, a person joins God and his angels when reading it.

Sacraments

Baptism and Eucharist

The New Church has two primary sacraments:

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

and the

Eucharist The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instit ...

(also known as communion, or holy supper). These external rituals symbolise inner, spiritual life. Baptism signifies entrance into Christianity and reformation of the mind, where falseness is replaced by truth. Although believers should be baptised at the age of reason (to make a decision to follow Jesus), Swedenborg said that baptised infants receive a guardian angel to guide them into the Christian faith.

Marriage

Marriage is a personal sacrament of the New Church, and its administration by a priest is desirable but not essential. According to Swedenborg, marriage should be administered by a priest "because marriages, considered in themselves, are spiritual, and thence holy; for they descend from the heavenly marriage of good and truth, and things conjugial correspond to the divine marriage of the Lord and the church; and hence they are from the Lord himself." Married love is founded in religion, since both originate from God. Without a religious foundation, a marriage can turn cold. According to the New Church, man is a form of truth and woman is a form of love; the two make one. Married love comes directly from heaven, and celibacy interferes with this. Therefore, marriage is preferable to celibacy. Marriage is considered a union of souls, and this can only exist between one man and one woman. Contrary to mainstream Christian beliefs, Swedenborg did not condemn all sexual activity between those who were not married. While he was particularly against

infidelity Infidelity (synonyms include cheating, straying, adultery, being unfaithful, two-timing, or having an affair) is a violation of a couple's emotional and/or sexual exclusivity that commonly results in feelings of anger, sexual jealousy, and riva ...

, Swedenborg believed that all erotic love between a man and a woman – even that which arose within unpropitious circumstances – still had the potential to develop into true conjugial love. He also believed that not all married couples necessarily experience conjugial love.

Afterlife

New Church adherents believe that there was no space and time before the universe was created, and the realm with no space and time is the spiritual world. The spiritual world, which is divided between heaven and hell, is where the soul is realised. "All who die and become angels put off those two things proper to nature, which ..are space and time; for they enter then into spiritual light, in which the objects of thought are truths, and the objects of sight are similar to the objects in the natural world, but correspondent to their thoughts." States of being replace time, and love replaces space or distance.

Origin of the soul

New Church adherents believe that the soul is the recipient of life from God, and the body is its clothing. The beginning of life (the soul) comes from the seed of the father, and the external body comes from the mother. Since most Christians believe that Jesus was born of a virgin by the Holy Spirit, his soul was God itself and he always preexisted as Jehovah. Since souls originate from the seed of the father, New Church adherents do not believe in

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a ...

. Spirits and angels, through whom one approaches heaven or hell (depending on one's actions), are associated with a person during their life. Although communication between spirits and humans does not generally occur, it was more widespread in ancient times. Angels and spirits retain their memories and, in a mental state where communication is open, a person may experience a spirit's memory as if it were their own. This mental state (which may be achieved under hypnosis) resembles

past life regression Past life regression is a method that uses hypnosis to recover what practitioners believe are memories of past lives or incarnations. The practice is widely considered discredited and unscientific by medical practitioners, and experts generally re ...

and was how some ancients came to believe in the preexistence of souls and reincarnation. However, the New Church does not consider this to be true, instead believing that one lives only once, and how one lives this life determines one's eternal destiny. At death, the soul sheds the physical body and becomes aware of the spiritual society with which one's soul was associated.

Spirit world

New Church adherents do not believe in

purgatory Purgatory (, borrowed into English via Anglo-Norman and Old French) is, according to the belief of some Christian denominations (mostly Catholic), an intermediate state after physical death for expiatory purification. The process of purgatory ...

; punishment occurs only in hell. Immediately after death, one enters the spirit world (an intermediate state) and awaits judgment of whether they will enter heaven or hell. Since the evil try to appear good and the good retain false ideas, one remains in this intermediate state until they are examined. Those who are good and know the truth go immediately to heaven, and those who are evil go to hell. Otherwise, one gradually withdraws from exterior appearances and fallacies into one's interior intentions and affections in the spirit world. This process is complete when one acts in complete freedom without exterior restraint, and a person's character is open and manifest. "Thus hidden things are laid open and secret things are uncovered, according to the Lord's words: 'There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, and hid that shall not be known: whatsoever ye have said in the darkness, shall be heard in the light, and what ye have spoken in the ear in closets, shall be preached on the housetops' (Luke xii. 2, 3). And in another place: 'I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment' ( xii. 36)."

Hell

When all external restraints are removed in the spirit world, nothing remains to stop evil spirits except punishment. Since evil spirits act in accordance with their nature, they are drawn towards hell: New Church adherents believe that God sends no one to heaven or hell; since hell is the internal state of evil and heaven the internal state of good, each person enters a state matching his or her internal nature. Because every spirit joins the like-minded group after death in which it feels the most comfortable according to Swedenborg, hell is believed to be a place of happiness for the spirits which delight in evilness. Each person will remain eternally in accordance with their will or love.

Heaven

New Church adherents believe that heaven proceeds from God, who is seen by the angels as the light of heaven and occasionally appears in angelic form. Jesus said that he was the light of the world, and the apostles once saw his face shining like a sun. For this reason, the ancients aligned their temples with the rising sun. In heaven, countless societies fulfill a particular purpose, each according to their love. Since angels and demons were human, angels have a human form. There is no individual devil (or Satan): "In the whole heaven there is not one angel who was so created from the beginning, nor in hell any devil who was created an angel of light and cast down; but that all, both in heaven and in hell, are from the human race; in heaven those who lived in the world in heavenly love and faith, in hell those who lived in infernal love and faith; and that hell taken as a whole is what is called the devil and satan."

Free will, morality and salvation

New Church adherents believe that the free will to choose between good and evil originates from one's spiritual equilibrium between heaven and hell. Hell influences humans to do evil, and heaven influences them to do good. This spiritual equilibrium frees humans to think rationally, which can lead to spiritual reform by acknowledging evil in oneself, ceasing to do evil and avoiding it. This choice is spiritual because every thought and action influences the soul and mind.HH, n. 599. Good works join a person with angels, and evil joins them with evil spirits. Reform and salvation are possible with divine truth, which fights evil and falseness. When the truth is accepted and one has an evil desire, temptation (conflict) results. Although one must resist temptation, it is really a combat between God and the devil (or hell). Thus, "He who thinks that he fights from himself against the devil is enormously deceived." Salvation (or condemnation) is a result of moral choices, based on intentions. Good is only considered good when evil is removed, and must be done out of love for God (not for profit or honour). Good comes only from God, who can conquer temptation (a continuous, lifelong process). Jesus came to save humanity because the spiritual equilibrium between heaven and hell had become unbalanced; more people began to choose evil, threatening the entire human race. By taking human form, God could fight hell directly; Jesus experienced temptation. Remission of sins is their removal after repentance. The New Church differs from older Christian churches on this point. "The belief that the passion of the cross was redemption itself is a fundamental error of the church; and that error, together with the error concerning three Divine persons from eternity, has perverted the whole church, so that nothing spiritual is left in it." The

crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagin ...

was the last temptation endured by Jesus.

Biblical canon

New Church adherents believe that the word of God is in the Bible, which has a symbolic, hidden spiritual meaning. Swedenborg's visions told him how (and why) the Bible is divinely inspired and are described in his multi-volume (''Heavenly Secrets''). He called its symbolic language, where passages follow each other coherently and logically, correspondence. This inner meaning was kept hidden, and was revealed when humanity was ready. This hidden meaning distinguishes the Bible from other books, and Swedenborg supports his statements with biblical passages. The books with this inner, spiritual meaning forms the New Church

biblical canon A biblical canon is a set of texts (also called "books") which a particular Jewish or Christian religious community regards as part of the Bible. The English word ''canon'' comes from the Greek , meaning " rule" or "measuring stick". The use ...

Old Testament

According to Swedenborg, the original text of the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

is preserved in the Hebrew

Masoretic Text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; he, נֻסָּח הַמָּסוֹרָה, Nūssāḥ Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Text of the Tradition') is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. ...

, where letters were counted by the

Masoretes The Masoretes ( he, בַּעֲלֵי הַמָּסוֹרָה, Baʿălēy Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Masters of the Tradition') were groups of Jewish scribe-scholars who worked from around the end of the 5th through 10th centuries CE, based primarily in m ...

to ensure that the text remained accurate. Like Judaism does, he divides the Old Testament into three parts: the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms. The Old Testament books with an internal spiritual sense (and, thus, divinely inspired) include: *The Law of Moses *The Prophets *The

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

Swedenborg's grouping differs from Judaism's; he assigned Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings to the Law of Moses, but according to the Jewish biblical canon the Law of Moses (the

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...

) refers to the first five books—Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings belong to the Prophets (

Nevi'im Nevi'im (; he, נְבִיאִים ''Nəvīʾīm'', Tiberian: ''Năḇīʾīm,'' "Prophets", literally "spokespersons") is the second major division of the Hebrew Bible (the ''Tanakh''), lying between the Torah (instruction) and Ketuvim (wri ...

). Elsewhere, however, Swedenborg says that

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

and

Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Books of ...

represent the Law and the Prophets respectively. The other books of the Old Testament (which are not generally believed to be divinely inspired) include those grouped by the Jews as "Writings" (

Ketuvim The Ketuvim (; hbo, , Modern: ''Kəṯūvīm'', Tiberian: ''Kăṯūḇīm'' "writings") is the third and final section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), after Torah (instruction) and Nevi'im (prophets). In English translations of the Hebrew Bi ...

). The Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...

incorporated other writings into the Hebrew texts, which

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Reformation, Protestant Refo ...

removed and placed in the

Apocrypha Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...

. Although the Jews included Lamentations, Daniel and the Psalms in the Ketuvim, New Church adherents consider them divinely inspired.

New Testament

The New Church regards the words of Jesus as divinely inspired, and considers the

Gospels of

Matthew Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...

Mark Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

Luke People *Luke (given name), a masculine given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke (surname) (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke. Also known as ...

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

and the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...

as sacred scripture. The church holds the

Acts of the Apostles The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...

and the

epistle An epistle (; el, ἐπιστολή, ''epistolē,'' "letter") is a writing directed or sent to a person or group of people, usually an elegant and formal didactic letter. The epistle genre of letter-writing was common in ancient Egypt as par ...

s in esteem, similar to the Jewish regard for the Old Testament writings. Swedenborg wrote that these books were included as an act of

divine providence In theology, Divine Providence, or simply Providence, is God's intervention in the Universe. The term ''Divine Providence'' (usually capitalized) is also used as a title of God. A distinction is usually made between "general providence", which ...

, since books for the general public explaining Christian doctrine were needed. He believed that although Paul's letters did not contain a word-for-word symbolic correspondence, they were still divinely influenced: "Paul indeed spoke from inspiration, but not in the same way as the prophets, to whom every single word was dictated but that his inspiration was that he received an influx, according to those things which were with him, which is quite a different inspiration, and has no conjunction with heaven by correspondences."

Pre-biblical texts

Swedenborg believed that sacred texts of an "Ancient Church" in the Middle East preceded Judaism, but the texts have been lost. Some, such as ''The Wars of Jehovah'' (mentioned in Numbers 21:14–15) and another book similar to those in the Prophets (mentioned in Numbers 21:27–30), are quoted in the Bible (see

non-canonical books referenced in the Bible The non-canonical books referenced in the Bible includes non-Biblical cultures, and lost works of known or unknown status. By the "Bible" is meant those books recognised by most Christians and Jews as being part of Old Testament (or Tanakh) as well ...

). Another work that Swedenborg believed belonged to the ancient church was the Book of Jasher, which is also quoted in the Bible (Joshua 10:12–13, 2 Samuel 1:17–18); according to him, this book still existed in

Tartary Tartary ( la, Tartaria, french: Tartarie, german: Tartarei, russian: Тартария, Tartariya) or Tatary (russian: Татария, Tatariya) was a blanket term used in Western European literature and cartography for a vast part of Asia bounde ...

. A Hebrew

midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

, was published in Venice in 1625; an English translation was published in 1840. The Hebrew text was examined by the 19th-century biblical scholar

George Bush George Bush most commonly refers to: * George H. W. Bush (1924–2018), 41st president of the United States and father of the 43rd president * George W. Bush (born 1946), 43rd president of the United States and son of the 41st president Georg ...

(a relative of the

Bush family The Bush family is an American dynastic family that is prominent in the fields of American politics, news, sports, entertainment, and business. They were the first family of the United States from 1989 to 1993 and again from 2001 to 2009, and w ...

), who later became a Swedenborgian minister. Although the New Church has no official position on this Hebrew text, Swedenborg said that the first parts of Genesis were taken from the "Ancient Word" and are found in the book of Jasher.

Assessment of other beliefs

The doctrines of the New Church review and assess the doctrines of earlier churches. Swedenborg believed that before the New Church can be received, the doctrines of older churches must be exposed and rejected; the New Church is so opposed to the doctrines of the older Christian churches that they cannot coexist.

Former Christian creeds

In the New Church, authority is based on divine revelation rather than creeds or church councils. All doctrine should be confirmed by scripture. The interpretation of scripture is determined by doctrine, however, and enlightenment by God should be sought when reading his words.

Apostles' Creed

The

, the creed of the Apostolic Church, does not refer to a trinity: "I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary: also in the Holy Spirit." This creed is in agreement with the New Church, since it does not mention an eternally-existing son.

Nicene Creed

The

Nicene The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...

and

Athanasian Creed The Athanasian Creed, also called the Pseudo-Athanasian Creed and sometimes known as ''Quicunque Vult'' (or ''Quicumque Vult''), which is both its Latin name and its opening words, meaning "Whosoever wishes", is a Christian statement of belief ...

s introduced the trinity. The Nicene Creed is a modified version of the Apostles' Creed; according to the New Church, a trinity of persons is a trinity of gods. The creed also introduces the concept of a son "begotten from eternity", which the New Church considers erroneous: "the Human, by which God sent Himself into the world, is the Son of God."

Athanasian Creed

The New Church considers the

, like the Nicene, incorrect in defining a trinity of persons. However, the church believes that the Athanasian Creed can be corrected if a trinity of one person in God is understood when it speaks of a trinity of persons. The creed expresses the church's doctrine of the divine human: "That our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is both God and Man; and although He is God and Man, still there are not two, but there is one Christ. He is one, because the Divine took to itself the Human; yea, He is altogether one, for He is one Person: since as the soul and the body make one man, so God and Man is one Christ." According to the New Church, God's human nature was made divine.

Council of Chalcedon

The

Council of Chalcedon The Council of Chalcedon (; la, Concilium Chalcedonense), ''Synodos tēs Chalkēdonos'' was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, Bith ...

declared that Jesus has two natures (divine and human), which contradicts New Church doctrine. Swedenborg said that it was revealed to him in a heavenly vision that: Although most other churches maintain that Jesus has two natures, the New Church believes that his human nature was made divine.

Socinianism and Arianism

Socinianism Socinianism () is a nontrinitarian belief system deemed heretical by the Catholic Church and other Christian traditions. Named after the Italian theologians Lelio Sozzini (Latin: Laelius Socinus) and Fausto Sozzini (Latin: Faustus Socinus), uncle ...

, Jesus' divinity is denied.

is similar, believing that Jesus was a created being. Both are considered heretical by the New Church, which believes that the divine human is the means by which humanity is saved; since all those who are in heaven are in his presence, Christians who deny Jesus' divinity go to hell. However, this does not apply to those who have been born and lived outside Christianity. According to New Church revelation, many Christians are Socinian at heart and deny that Jesus is divine; this derives from a trinitarian doctrine, from dividing Christ into two natures, and from calling Jesus merely the son of Mary.

Islam

The New Church considers

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

to have been established by divine providence to eliminate

idolatry Idolatry is the worship of a cult image or "idol" as though it were God. In Abrahamic religions (namely Judaism, Samaritanism, Christianity, the Baháʼí Faith, and Islam) idolatry connotes the worship of something or someone other than the A ...

. The New Church considers it a partial (or introductory) revelation; Islam worships one God, teaches one to live well and shun evil and teaches that Jesus was a great prophet and the son of the virgin Mary, but not the son of God (as in Christianity). The

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...

contains teachings from sacred scripture. The church believes that Islam is a religion adapted to societies that practice

polygamy Crimes Polygamy (from Late Greek (') "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, sociologists call this polygyny. When a woman is married ...

. Since polygamy is an opposite love from monogamous marriage, and a marriage between a husband and wife corresponds to the marriage of God and the church, spiritual matters were not revealed in Islam. It is regarded differently from Socinianism or Arianism because only Christians can profane what is holy by distorting scripture; non-Christians, such as Muslims, cannot. Muslims oppose any Trinitarian Christian church. The New Church believes that Muslims may enter heaven, but only those who reject polygamy can learn the true nature of God.

Catholicism

According to Swedenborgianism, the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

has perverted scripture to obtain primacy and dominion in spiritual matters. The Council of Chalcedon declared that Jesus has a divine and human nature so that the pope could claim to be the vicar of Christ and appropriate spiritual powers to the priesthood that belong to God alone. Authority is claimed by the pope and the priesthood over that of scripture. The desire to spiritually rule others or appear pious for honour and reputation originates from self-love, which is opposite the love of God and others. Papal primacy is claimed by the Catholic Church from an interpretation of Matthew 16:18–19, where the apostle Peter is appointed the rock on which the church will be built and given the keys to heaven. In the New Church, this passage is understood spiritually; the "rock" signifies the truth that Jesus is God, "Peter" signifies faith in God, and the "keys of the kingdom of heaven" signify the faith that allows one to enter heaven. Divine providence gave the Catholic Church spiritual dominion, since it helped spread

the gospel The gospel or good news is a theological concept in several religions. In the historical Roman imperial cult and today in Christianity, the gospel is a message about salvation by a divine figure, a savior, who has brought peace or other benefits ...

and prevented the Christian church from being destroyed by Arianism or Socinianism. Catholics who do not read scripture worship externally only, to prevent the scriptures from being profaned. New Church adherents believe that Catholics who have avoided idolatry, worshiped God alone and done good works can receive spiritual truth from scripture more easily.

Protestantism

Although the

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

churches have broken away from the Catholic Church and rejected many of its traditions, their basic theology remains the same. Catholics and Protestants agree on the belief in the trinity, original sin, and justification by faith; the main difference is that the Protestants believe that faith alone saves, without acts of charity. The

reformers A reformer is someone who works for reform. Reformer may also refer to: *Catalytic reformer, in an oil refinery *Methane reformer, producing hydrogen * Steam reformer *Hydrogen reformer, extracting hydrogen *Methanol reformer, producing hydrogen f ...

separated faith from charity to separate completely from the Catholic Church. In the New Church, good works must be done with the acknowledgment that good originates from God and not from self. The Protestant separation of faith and good works is derived from an epistle by

Paul the Apostle Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

saying that humanity is justified by faith, without "works of the law" (Romans 3:28). New Church adherents consider this is a false interpretation, for by "works of the law" Paul meant the external rituals of

Mosaic law The Law of Moses ( he, תֹּורַת מֹשֶׁה ), also called the Mosaic Law, primarily refers to the Torah or the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. The law revealed to Moses by God. Terminology The Law of Moses or Torah of Moses (Hebrew ...

(not the Ten Commandments or acts of charity). There is no instantaneous salvation by paying lip service to a belief in Christ. A person acquires a nature according to their works, and must repent for their sins by refusing to do evil. "The faith of the former church is, that repentance, remission of sins, renewal, regeneration, sanctification, and salvation, follow of themselves the faith that is given and imputed, without any thing of man being mingled or joined with them: but the faith of the New Church teaches repentance, reformation, regeneration, and thus remission of sins, with man's cooperation. The faith of the former church teaches the imputation of Christ's merit, and the imputation embraced in the faith that is given: but the faith of the New Church teaches the imputation of good and evil, and at the same time of faith, and that this imputation is according to the Sacred Scripture, while the other is contrary to it." Some Protestant churches (including the New Church) have withdrawn from the doctrine of faith alone: "The Word is read by them, and the Lord is worshipped, and hence with them there is the greatest light; and spiritual light, which is from the Lord as the Sun, which in its essence is Divine love, proceeds and extends itself in every direction, and enlightens even those who are in the circumferences round about, and opens the faculty of understanding truths, so far as they can receive them in accordance with their religion."

Eschatology

New Church adherents do not believe in an end of the world. The church has passed through several ages, each ending with a spiritual

Last Judgement The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

; the last of these occurred in 1757. Judgments also occurred at the time of

Noah's Flood The Genesis flood narrative (chapters 6–9 of the Book of Genesis) is the Hebrew version of the universal flood myth. It tells of God's decision to return the universe to its pre- creation state of watery chaos and remake it through the micro ...

and Jesus' crucifixion. The purpose of the judgments is to separate good from evil in the intermediate spiritual world lying between heaven and hell. As a result of the judgments, a new age (or new church) begins among the people on earth. The New Church is a result of revelation. Four churches have preceded the New Church. The first was the "Most Ancient Church" before the flood, when contact with heaven was direct. The second was the "Ancient Church", following the flood, which was destroyed by idolatry. The third was Judaism, which began with the revelation of the

Mount Sinai Mount Sinai ( he , הר סיני ''Har Sinai''; Aramaic: ܛܘܪܐ ܕܣܝܢܝ ''Ṭūrāʾ Dsyny''), traditionally known as Jabal Musa ( ar, جَبَل مُوسَىٰ, translation: Mount Moses), is a mountain on the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. It is ...

. The fourth was Christianity, established by Jesus and his apostles, which divided into the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

, the

, and Protestantism. Adherents believe that the New Church, the final phase, is a renewal of Christianity based on Jesus'

Second Coming The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is a Christian (as well as Islamic and Baha'i) belief that Jesus will return again after his ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The idea is based on messi ...

. It is the fulfilment of the prophecy of a

New Jerusalem In the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible, New Jerusalem (, ''YHWH šāmmā'', YHWH sthere") is Ezekiel's prophetic vision of a city centered on the rebuilt Holy Temple, the Third Temple, to be established in Jerusalem, which would be the c ...

in the

. Swedenborg said that the New Church would be established gradually, since the false beliefs of the former churches had to be set aside.

Criticism

Swedenborg stated that he had distributed his books to English bishops and nobility, who considered them well-written but of little value and advised against reading them. Some members of other Christian denominations have criticised the church's denial of a trinity and Jesus' atonement. The New Church believes that there is one God in Jesus, and some Christian theologians classify the church as a cult. Others reject Swedenborg's visions.

Walter Ralston Martin Walter Ralston Martin (September 10, 1928 – June 26, 1989) was an American Baptist Christian minister and author who founded the Christian Research Institute in 1960 as a parachurch ministry specializing as a clearing-house of information ...

quoted a critic that Swedenborg's spiritual experiences "were admittedly of such a character, that in an ordinary man they would have sufficed to qualify him for an asylum." According to Martin, however, his theological writings were so systematic that "no one can reasonably say that Swedenborg was insane":Walter, p. 631. "Swedenborg was a rationalist, and paradoxically, a mystic. He was one who absorbed the introspective and subjective philosophy of Rene Descartes, and the empiricism of John Locke, which he combined with the transcendentalism of lmmanuel Kant, thus forming a mold into which Christian theology was poured, and what would not go into the mold (selected Old Testament works, the Pauline epistles, Acts, James, Peter, Jude, etc.), he simply discarded. What emerged was a deeply speculative philosophical system of theology, couched in a redefined Christian terminology, and buttressed with mystical visions, trances, and dreams."Walter, p. 641 The earliest assessment of Swedenborg came from contemporary German philosopher

Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (, , ; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and ...

. Swedenborg was relatively unknown until 1759, when a fire broke out in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

and threatened to burn down his house and his writings. At a dinner in

Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

, away, he reportedly turned pale and described to the guests exactly what was happening until the fire was put out (three houses away from his house). This was investigated by Kant, who wrote ''Dreams of a Spirit-Seer'' criticising Swedenborg and knowledge derived from dreams and visions. Kant wrote in letters that he privately admired Swedenborg, but did not publicly admit it in fear of ridicule. Swedenborg stated that all teachings came to him from the Lord while reading scripture in a full waking state, and although allowed to converse with angels and spirits to give an account of the afterlife all doctrinal teachings were received from Jesus alone. Religious critics disagree, saying that he received his information from evil spirits and his revelations are "among the most antibiblical and anti-Christian material ever printed." According to Martin, Swedenborg "was apparently well aware of the fact that Pauline theology, if accepted at face value, would vitiate almost en toto his own. So he began with the basic assumption that he was right, and that the apostle Paul was wrong! In some of his visions and dreams, he stated that he actually argued with Paul, Luther, Calvin, and others. And, as ego triumphed, these great thinkers all retreated before Swedenborg's new revelations. However, one factor must never be forgotten, and that is the statement that the New Testament is the criterion for measuring all subsequent revelations, and whatever is found to be contrary to it, must be and always has been, rejected by the Christian church." Christians emphasise that in distinguishing an evil spirit from an angel, angels must glorify Jesus and teachings must be based on scripture. New Church adherents say that Swedenborg would agree, since he said no evil spirit can utter the name of Jesus; it signifies salvation, and those in the spiritual world speak as they think. Unlike many

spiritualists Spiritualism is the metaphysical school of thought opposing physicalism and also is the category of all spiritual beliefs/views (in monism and dualism) from ancient to modern. In the long nineteenth century, Spiritualism (when not lowercase) b ...

, Swedenborg praises Jesus as the God of heaven and earth and his doctrines are derived from scriptural references. According to Swedenborg, none of the teachings originated from an angel or spirit and the spiritual world was revealed to him so humanity would know that there is life after death: "When I think of what I am about to write and while I am writing, I enjoy a complete inspiration, for otherwise it would be my own; but now I know for certain that what I write is the living truth of God."Doc. II, page 404 "That the Lord manifested Himself before me His servant, and sent me to this office, and that He afterward opened the sight of my spirit, and so has admitted me into the spiritual world, and has granted to me to see the heavens and the hells, also to converse with angels and spirits, and this now continuously for many years, I testify in truth; likewise, that from the first day of that call I have not received any thing which pertains to the doctrines of that church from any angel, but from the Lord alone while I read the Word." Critics note that Swedenborg viewed only 36 books in the Bible as divinely inspired. According to them, masquerading as a being of light is a demonic tactic; Swedenborg's allegorical, esoteric interpretations and paranormal encounters (bordering on the

occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

) contradict the scriptures and make his claims spurious.Walter, pp. 638–641 This criticism ignores the fact that the majority of Swedenborg's writings are based on direct scriptural quotations with numerous cross references. As for the writings of Paul, Swedenborg clarified the distinction between the epistles of Paul with the rest of scripture in his private diary: "Paul indeed spoke from inspiration, but not in the same way as the prophets, to whom every single word was dictated but that his inspiration was that he received an influx, according to those things which were with him, which is quite a different inspiration, and has no conjunction with heaven by correspondences."

Influence

Mormonism

D. Michael Quinn suggests that

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...

, the founder of

Mormonism Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects of t ...

, was influenced by Swedenborg's writings. Like Swedenborg, Mormons believe in

eternal marriage Celestial marriage (also called the New and Everlasting Covenant of Marriage, Eternal Marriage, Temple Marriage) is a doctrine that marriage can last forever in heaven. This is a unique teaching of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ...

. However, they require that the ritual be performed in a

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

. Smith's concept of three heavens is similar to Swedenborg's view. Both Swedenborg and Smith refer to heaven as "celestial", similar to Paul's (see 2 Corinthians 12:2) description of a visit to the "third heaven". Edward Hunter (a Swedenborgian who became a member of the Church) reported that in 1839 Joseph Smith told him that he was familiar with Swedenborg's writings.

New Thought

New Thought The New Thought movement (also Higher Thought) is a spiritual movement that coalesced in the United States in the early 19th century. New Thought was seen by its adherents as succeeding "ancient thought", accumulated wisdom and philosophy from ...

, a spiritual movement that began in the United States during the late 19th century, promotes positive thinking and healing.

Phineas Quimby Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (February 16, 1802 – January 16, 1866) was an American clockmaker, mentalist and mesmerist. His work is widely recognized as foundational to the New Thought spiritual movement. Biography Born in the small town of Leba ...

, a healer who said that illness in the body originated in false beliefs, was an early proponent. Quimby healed

Warren Felt Evans Warren Felt Evans (December 23, 1817 – September 4, 1889) was an American author of the New Thought movement. He became a student of the movement in 1863, after seeking healing from its founder, Phineas Parkhurst Quimby. He was the founder of a ...

, a Swedenborgian minister who became a healer and published several books promoting New Thought in New Church doctrines. According to Swedenborg, there is a correspondence from heaven with all things on earth.

Psychology

Carl Jung Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work has been influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, philo ...

, founder of

analytical psychology Analytical psychology ( de , Analytische Psychologie, sometimes translated as analytic psychology and referred to as Jungian analysis) is a term coined by Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, to describe research into his new "empirical science" ...

and a contemporary of

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies explained as originatin ...

, was familiar with Swedenborg's works. He cited Swedenborg's reported clairvoyance about the 1759 Stockholm fire as an example of

synchronicity Synchronicity (german: Synchronizität) is a concept first introduced by analytical psychologist Carl G. Jung "to describe circumstances that appear meaningfully related yet lack a causal connection." In contemporary research, synchronicity ...

: "When ..the vision arose in Swedenborg's mind of a fire in Stockholm, there was a real fire raging there at the same time, without there being any demonstrable or even thinkable connection between the two".

Notable figures with Swedenborgian connections

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

: His ''The Marriage of Heaven and Hell'' satirised Swedenborg's ''Heaven and Hell''. Blake and his wife, Catherine, attended the first General Conference of the New Jerusalem Church in 1789. Blake was influenced by an earlier version of the New Church. His doctrine, however, later evolved. *

Daniel Burnham Daniel Hudson Burnham (September 4, 1846 – June 1, 1912) was an American architect and urban designer. A proponent of the '' Beaux-Arts'' movement, he may have been, "the most successful power broker the American architectural profession has ...

: American architect and urban designer. His parents were Swedenborgians. *

Robert Carter III Robert "Councillor" Carter III (February 28, 1728 – March 10, 1804) was a lawyer and planter from the Northern Neck of Virginia, in what became the United States. For two decades he sat on the Colonial Virginia Governor's Council. After the ...

(1728–1804): a planter from the Northern Neck of Virginia, "Virginia's first emancipator," was influenced by Swedenborg's views *

Johnny Appleseed John Chapman (September 26, 1774March 18, 1845), better known as Johnny Appleseed, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Ontario, as well as the northern coun ...

(John Chapman): American missionary and pioneer who planted apple trees throughout the midwestern United States *

Robert Frost Robert Lee Frost (March26, 1874January29, 1963) was an American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was published in the United States. Known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloq ...

: American poet who was baptised in the church *

Leonard Gyllenhaal Leonard Gyllenhaal (3 December 1752 – 13 May 1840) was a Swedish military officer and entomologist. Born on the Ribbingsberg manor in Västergötland in west Sweden, Leonard Gyllenhaal was son of an army officer and belonged to a family ...

: entomologist and Swedenborgian, an ancestor of American Oscar-nominated actor

Jake Gyllenhaal Jacob Benjamin Gyllenhaal (; ; born December 19, 1980) is an American actor. Born into the Gyllenhaal family, he is the son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, and his older sister is actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. He beg ...

Stephen Gyllenhaal Stephen Roark Gyllenhaal (; born October 4, 1949) is an American film director and poet. He is the father of actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Personal life Gyllenhaal was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Virginia Lowrie (née Childs) and ...

: descendant of Leonard, who was raised Swedenborgian *

William Harbutt William Harbutt (13 February 1844 – 1 June 1921) was a British artist and the inventor of Plasticine. Early life Born in North Shields, England, the son of Thomas Harbutt (5 August 1803 – 1880) and Elizabeth Whitehouse Jefcoate (27 June 1804 ...

: inventor of

plasticine Plasticine is a putty-like modelling material made from calcium salts, petroleum jelly and aliphatic acids. Though originally a brand name for the British version of the product, it is now applied generically in English as a product categor ...

George Inness George Inness (May 1, 1825 – August 3, 1894) was a prominent United States, American landscape painting, landscape painter. Now recognized as one of the most influential American artists of the nineteenth century, Inness was influenced b ...

: American landscape painter * Helen Keller: wrote '' Light in My Darkness'', which advocated Swedenborg's ideals *

James Tyler Kent James Tyler Kent (1849–1916) was an American physician best remembered as a forefather of modern homeopathy. In 1897 Kent published a massive guidebook on human physical and mental disease symptoms and their associated pseudoscientific home ...

: late-19th-century American

homeopathic Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a dise ...

physician who incorporated Swedenborgian principles into the homoeopathic theory of disease, as described in his ''Lectures on Homeopathic Philosophy''Peter Morrell, "Kent's Influence on British Homeopathy," ''Journal of the American Institute of Homeopathy,'' vol. 92 (1999–2000) *

George Lauder, Sr. George Lauder Sr. (9 May 1815 – 18 November 1901) was a political leader in Scotland who was the father of Scottish industrialist George Lauder and surrogate father to his nephew Andrew Carnegie. He was the also the progenitor of the Lauder G ...

: Scottish educator and political leader for the Chartist cause. Father to George Lauder and uncle to

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

, mentor to both. *

Lucius Lyon Lucius Lyon (February 26, 1800September 24, 1851) was a U.S. statesman from the state of Michigan. Along with Louis Campau, Lucius Lyon is remembered as one of the founding fathers of Grand Rapids, Michigan, the state's second-largest city. A D ...

(1800–1851): American statesman *

William Rainey Marshall Willian Rainey Marshall (October 17, 1825January 8, 1896) was an American politician. He was the fifth Governor of Minnesota from January 8, 1866 to January 9, 1870 and was a member of the Republican party. He served as an officer in the 7th M ...

(1825–1896): fifth governor of

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and advocate for African-American

suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in representative democracy, public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally i ...

Mehmet Oz Mehmet Cengiz Öz (; born June 11, 1960), known professionally as Dr. Oz (), is an Turkish American former professor of cardiothoracic surgery at Columbia University, television presenter, author and former political candidate. The son of Tur ...

( 1960): influenced by Swedenborg *

Isaac Pitman Sir Isaac Pitman (4 January 1813 – 22 January 1897) was a teacher of the :English language who developed the most widely used system of shorthand, known now as Pitman shorthand. He first proposed this in ''Stenographic Soundhand'' in 183 ...

(1813–1897): inventor of

shorthand Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed and brevity of writing as compared to longhand, a more common method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Greek ''ste ...

and member of the New Jerusalem church in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, England *

Arthur Sewall Arthur Sewall (November 25, 1835 – September 5, 1900) was an American shipbuilder from Maine, best known as the Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States in 1896, running mate to William Jennings Bryan. From 1888 to 1896 he se ...

(1835–1900): Democratic candidate for vice-president in the 1896 US presidential election *

Ernest George Trobridge Ernest George Trobridge (1884–1942) was an architect and developer. He was active in domestic architecture during the first half of the 20th century, especially in what became the North Western suburbs of London. Career Trobridge was an adhe ...

(1884–1942): architect and developer active in domestic architecture during the first half of the 20th century, particularly in London's northwestern suburbs * Lois Wilson (1891–1988): founder of

Al-Anon Al-Anon Family Groups, founded in 1951, is an international mutual aid organization for people who have been impacted by another person's alcoholism. In the organization's own words, Al-Anon is a "worldwide fellowship that offers a program of rec ...

, who was raised Swedenborgian *

Lisa Oz Lisa Oz ( Lemole,Bruni, Frank ''The New York Times'', April 16, 2010 born July 20, 1963) is an American author and radio and television personality who has been an occasional co-host of '' The Dr. Oz Show''. She has appeared on the '' Oprah and ...

( 1963), author and television personality

References

External links

Official Site

Library of the Swedenborgian Church

History of the New Church

Heavenly Doctrines

Bayside Swedenborgian Church

Digital Swedenborg Library

Swedenborg Foundation Press

Swedenborg Society

Swedenborg Open Learning Centre

Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools

Swedenborgian House of Studies

The New Christian Bible Study

The New Church theology: sermons, doctrinal classes, history
{{DEFAULTSORT:New Church, Swedenborgian 1787 establishments in England Swedenborgian denominations Members of the National Council of Churches Nontrinitarian denominations Protestant denominations established in the 18th century Religious organizations established in 1787

History

Branches and membership

Main doctrines

Doctrine of the Lord

Doctrines of faith and charity

The Bible

Sacraments

Baptism and Eucharist

Marriage

Afterlife

Origin of the soul

Spirit world

Hell

Heaven

Free will, morality and salvation

Biblical canon

Old Testament

New Testament

Pre-biblical texts

Assessment of other beliefs

Former Christian creeds

Apostles' Creed

Nicene Creed

Athanasian Creed

Council of Chalcedon

Socinianism and Arianism

Islam

Catholicism

Protestantism

Eschatology

Criticism

Influence

Mormonism

New Thought

Psychology

Notable figures with Swedenborgian connections

See also

References

External links