Spiritual Life and the Word of God

by Emanuel Swedenborg

Overview

Who at this day can believe that the delight of adultery is hell in man, and that the delight of marriage is heaven in him, consequently so far as he is in the one delight he is not in the other, since so far as man is in hell he is not in heaven? -from "VI: The Sixth Commandment" Emanuel Swedenborg, an 18th-century inventor and man of science, experienced a spiritual epiphany at the age of 56, when he began to explore Christianity from a mystic standpoint, a stunning change of heart that has since intrigued and fascinated generations of rationalists and philosophers, from Immanuel Kant to Arthur Conan Doyle to C.G. Jung. Did Swedenborg go mad, or is he a genuine prophet? In this work, an extract from Swedenborg's 1757 Apocalypse Explained, he explores the meaning of each of the 10 commandments and discusses good, truth, and what it means to live a righteous life. Swedish scientist and philosopher EMANUEL SWEDENBORG (1688-1772) made notable contributions in the fields of biology, geology, and astronomy before embarking upon his Scriptural commentary. His religious writings include The Divine Love and Wisdom, The Apocalypse Revealed, The True Christian Religion, and The Last Judgment.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781684222018
Publisher:	Martino Fine Books
Publication date:	03/21/2018
Pages:	162
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.37(d)

About the Author

The life of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) was steeped simultaneously in the rational world of the physical sciences and a deep Christian faith. He lived during the height of the Enlightenment, a period when intellectuals rejected dogmatic religious teachings in favor of science and reason, and his theology reflects a long struggle to understand the world of spirit through investigation of the physical world. Ultimately, that struggle was resolved when (as he described it) his spiritual senses were opened and he began to interact directly with the denizens of heaven, hell, and the world of spirits between. Although his theological writings are based on experiences and visions that may seem unbelievable to a modern audience-as they did to many of Swedenborg's contemporaries-he writes with full awareness of how difficult his accounts may be to accept. In keeping with his early scholarly training, he presents his ideas in a logical order, drawing examples from everyday life as proof of the truth of his words, inviting readers to judge for themselves.