From The Doctrines For Spiritual Christianity
Everyone in the heavens knows, believes and even perceives that he wills and does nothing good from himself; and that he thinks and believes nothing of truth from himself; but from the Divine, thus from the Lord, and that the good and truth which are from himself are not good and truth because they have no life from the Divine in them. The angels of the inmost heaven also clearly perceive and feel the influx, and the more of it they receive, the more they seem to themselves to be in heaven, because the more are they in love and faith and in the light of intelligence and wisdom and in heavenly joy therefrom. Since all those [states] proceed from the Divine of the Lord and in these the angels have their heaven, it is clear that it is the Divine of the Lord that makes heaven, and not the angels from anything of their proprium. (Heaven and Hell 8)
Uses in the heavens are likewise in all variety and diversity, and in no case is the use of one wholly the same as, and identical with the use of another; so neither is the happiness of one the same as, and identical with the happiness of another. Furthermore, the delights of each use are innumerable, and these innumerable delights are likewise various, and yet conjoined in such order that they mutually have regard to each other, like the uses of each member, organ, and viscus, in the body, and still more like the uses of each vessel and fibre in any one member, organ and viscus; each and all of which are so associated together that they behold their own good in another, and thus in all, and they behold all in each. From this universal and individual aspect they act as one. (Heaven and Hell 405)
The combination of the angelic communities into one heaven takes place in accord with the following laws, 1. Every complete whole in heaven arises from the pattern of many sharing their lives with one another in accord with the harmony of heaven. 2. Love is spiritual togetherness, which leads to the harmony of heaven. 3. There must be a universal bond, in order that the individual constituents may be held in combination and interconnection. 4. The universal bond must enter into and create the individual bonds. 5. The universal bond is the Lord, that is, it is the love that comes from Him, and from this the love directed towards Him. 6. The individual bonds are derived from the universal; they are the bonds of mutual love or charity towards the neighbour. These are the laws by virtue of which heaven, consisting of countless angelic communities, nevertheless exists as one total human being. (Arcana Coelestia 9613{3})
In addition it should be realised that one community is never utterly and completely like another, nor one member within a community like any other member. Instead unanimous and harmonious variety of all exists, and these variations have been so ordered by the Lord that they strive towards one single end, which is attained through love and faith in Him. From this arises their unity. For the same reason one heaven and form of heavenly joy is never utterly and completely like another. Indeed variations in love and faith are what determine the nature of heaven and its joy. (Arcana Coelestia 690)
Mutual love in heaven consists in the fact that they love the neighbor more than themselves, the effect of which is that the whole heaven represents as it were one man; for by means of mutual love all are so consociated by the Lord, and hence it is that the happinesses of all are communicated to each one, and those of each one to all. Consequently the heavenly form is such that everyone is as it were a kind of center, thus a center of communications, and consequently of happinesses, from all; and this in accordance with all the differences of mutual love, which are innumerable. And because those who are in that love perceive the highest happiness in being able to communicate to others that which flows into them, and this from the heart, the communication becomes perpetual and eternal; and on this account, as the Lord’s kingdom increases, so the happiness of each angel increases…. Nothing else endeavours to destroy this form and this order than the love of self, and therefore all in the other life who are in the love of self are more deeply infernal than others, for the love of self communicates nothing to others, but extinguishes and suffocates their delights and happinesses. Whatever delight flows into them from others, they receive to themselves, concentrate it within themselves, turn it into the filthiness of self, prevent its going any further, and thus destroy all that tends to unanimity and consociation. From this comes disunion, and consequently destruction. And as every such person desires to be served, courted, and adored by others, and loves no one but himself, hence comes dissociation. (Arcana Coelestia 2057)
Not only is the Lord in heaven but He also is heaven itself, because love and wisdom make the angel, and these two with angels are the Lord’s. Hence it follows that the Lord is heaven. For angels are not angels from their proprium. Their proprium is exactly like that of a man and this is evil. That an angel’s proprium is such is because all angels have been men, and that proprium adheres to them from birth. It is only removed, and to the extent that it is removed, to that extent they receive love and wisdom, that is, the Lord in themselves. Anyone can see if only he will raise his understanding a little that the Lord can dwell with angels only in what is His, that is, in what is His Very Own, which is Love and Wisdom, and certainly not in the angels’ proprium which is evil. Hence it is that so far as evil is removed, so far the Lord is in them, and so far they are angels. The very angelic itself of heaven is the Divine Love and Wisdom. This Divine is called the angelic when it is in angels. From this again it is clear that angels are angels from the Lord, and not from themselves; consequently, the same is true regarding heaven. (Divine Love and Wisdom 114)
Key Points From The Video
Renouncing Self-Will for Divine Reception: Angels receive heavenly love by surrendering personal desires and aligning with the Lord’s will.
Heavenly Love and Performance of Uses: Heavenly love inspires angels to perform roles that benefit others, contributing to the happiness and well-being of the heavenly community.
Harmony in the Heavenly Community: Mutual love and shared happiness create a harmonious operation among the distinct minds in heaven.
Unity in Diversity: Divine Love integrates individual distinctions into a cohesive whole, enhancing the collective improvement and stability of the heavenly community.
The Incompatibility of Selfish Gratifications: Selfish desires disrupt the reception of Divine Love, leading to disunity and spiritual decline.
Destruction of Heavenly Joy through Selfishness: Selfishness undermines the spiritual bonds and joy of heaven, emphasising the need for selflessness and mutual love.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. What is essential for the continuous reception of heavenly love in Spiritual Christianity?
a) Accumulating knowledge
b) Renouncing self-will
c) Achieving physical strength
d) Seeking personal ambitions
Answer: b)
2. How do angels perform roles that benefit the heavenly community?
a) By competing with each other
b) Through selfish desires
c) By aligning with the Lord’s will
d) By isolating themselves
Answer: c)
3. What fosters a harmonious operation among the distinct minds in heaven?
a) Individual competition
b) Mutual love and shared happiness
c) Personal achievements
d) Isolation from others
Answer: b)
4. What causes disunity and spiritual decline in heaven?
a) Accumulating wealth
b) Following personal ambitions
c) Seeking knowledge
d) Selfish gratifications
Answer: d)
5. What undermines the spiritual bonds and joy of heaven?
a) Mutual love
b) Selflessness
c) Collective unity
d) Selfishness
Answer: d)
Reflective Questions
1. How can you apply the principle of renouncing self-will in your daily life to foster a more harmonious environment?
2. What roles or actions in your life reflect the heavenly love that benefits others and contributes to collective well-being?
3. How do you experience the tension between self-will and Divine guidance, and what steps can you take to align more closely with the Lord’s will?
Experiential Integration
Alignment Practice
- Morning Reflection: Start your day with a meditation focusing on surrendering personal desires and opening yourself to Divine guidance.
- Throughout the Day: Consciously practice aligning your actions with the principles of mutual benefit and collective well-being.
- Evening Journal: Reflect on instances where you chose Divine guidance over self-will and how it affected your state of mind and interactions.
Further Exploration
Angels do indeed possess supreme wisdom and intelligence, yet all their wisdom and intelligence comes to them from the Lord’s Divine. They have no wisdom or intelligence at all that originates in themselves, that is, in their proprium. Therefore it is only insofar as they are governed by truths and goods received from the Lord’s Divine that they are wise and intelligent. The fact that angels have no wisdom or intelligence at all originating in themselves they themselves openly confess. Indeed they are also quite angry if anyone attributes to them any wisdom or intelligence at all, for they know and perceive that it would be taking away from the Divine that which is His and it would be claiming for themselves that which is not theirs, and so would be engaging in the crime of spiritual theft. Angels also say that their entire proprium consists in evil and falsity, both because of their heredity and also because of their own conduct in the world when they were men, 1880. Nor, they say, is evil or falsity separated – that is, wiped away – from them, whereby they are made righteous; rather, the whole of it remains with them, though the Lord withholds them from that evil and falsity and keeps them in good and truth. (Arcana Coelestia 4925{2})
Innumerable things might be said about man’s Own in describing its nature with the corporeal and worldly man, with the spiritual man, and with the celestial man. With the corporeal and worldly man, his Own is his all, he knows of nothing else than his Own, and imagines, as before said, that if he were to lose this Own he would perish. With the spiritual man also his Own has a similar appearance, for although he knows that the Lord is the life of all, and gives wisdom and understanding, and consequently the power to think and to act, yet this knowledge is rather the profession of his lips than the belief of his heart. But the celestial man discerns that the Lord is the life of all and gives the power to think and to act, for he perceives that it is really so. He never desires his Own, nevertheless an Own is given him by the Lord, which is conjoined with all perception of what is good and true, and with all happiness. The angels are in such an Own, and are at the same time in the highest peace and tranquility, for in their Own are those things which are the Lord’s, who governs their Own, or them by means of their Own. This Own is the veriest celestial itself, whereas that of the corporeal man is infernal. But concerning this Own more hereafter. (Arcana Coelestia 141)