关于“论改造与重生”的灵界见闻
621# 于此附加以下可记之事。
第一则：我看见一群灵，全都跪着，向上帝祈求，愿祂差遣天使到他们那里，使他们可以面对面交谈，并向天使敞开心中的思想。他们起来时，便见有三位身穿细麻衣的天使站在他们面前。天使说：“主耶稣基督听见了你们的祈求，所以差我们到你们这里来；你们可以向我们敞开心中的思想。”
【2】他们回答说：“祭司们曾告诉我们，在神学事务上，理智并无效用，惟有信仰才有用；并且，在这些事上有理智的信仰并无助益，因为它从人而来，带有人的意味，而不是从上帝而来。我们是英格兰人，也从我们神圣的圣职人员那里听过许多教导，并且相信了；可是，当我们与另一些也自称为改教者的人交谈，又与另一些自称为罗马天主教徒的人交谈，再与各宗派人士交谈时，他们个个都显得有学识；然而在许多事情上，彼此没有一个人与另一个人相合，却又都说：‘你们要相信我们。’有些人还说：‘我们是上帝的仆役，我们知道。’
但我们知道，所谓信仰的神性真理，也就是教会的真理，并不是任何人单凭出生或遗传就有的，而是从天上、从上帝而来的；又因这些真理指示通往天堂的道路，并与仁义的良善一同进入生命，从而引向永生，所以我们心中不安，便跪下向上帝祈求。”
【3】于是天使回答说：“你们要阅读圣言，并信主；你们就会看见那些将成为你们信仰与生命的真理。基督教界所有人都从圣言汲取他们的教义，如同从唯一泉源汲取一样。”
但那群人中有两人说：“我们读过，却不明白。”
天使回答说：“你们没有就近主；祂就是圣言；并且你们先前已经在伪谬中坚固了自己。”
天使又说：“没有光的信仰是什么？没有理解的思想又是什么？这并非人的样式。乌鸦和喜鹊也能学会说话，却没有理智。我们可以向你们确切保证：凡灵魂渴慕的人，都能在光中看见圣言的真理。没有一种动物在看见自己生命所需食物时，会不知道那是食物；而人是理性且属灵的动物。人若饥渴这些真理，并向主祈求，便能看见自己生命的食物；这食物不是身体的食物，而是灵魂的食物，即信仰的真理。
【4】凡不被理智接受的东西，就其本身而言，也不会附着在记忆中，只会就字句附着在那里。因此，当我们从天上俯视世间时，并没有看见什么，只听见声音，而且多数是不和谐的声音。
现在我们要列举一些事，是教士中的学者把它们从理智中排除出去的；他们不知道，通向理智有两条路：一条来自世界，另一条来自天堂；当主光照理智时，祂便将理智从世界中提升出来。可是，如果理智因宗教而被关闭，那么从天堂来的路也向它关闭；这时，人从圣言中所看见的，就不比瞎子更多。我们看见许多这样的人跌入坑中，并且不能起来。
【5】举例说明：你们岂不能明白什么是仁义、什么是信仰吗？仁义就是善待邻舍；信仰就是正确思想邻舍以及教会的本质之事。由此可知，行善并正确思想的人，也就是生活良善并信仰正确的人，便得救。”
他们听了这些话，说他们明白。
【6】天使又说：“人若要得救，必须为罪悔改；人若不悔改，就仍留在他出生时所带的罪中。悔改，就是不愿意行恶，因为恶是违背上帝的；并且每年数次省察自己，察看自己的恶，在主面前承认这些恶，恳求帮助，停止作恶，并开始新的生命。人这样做多少，并信主多少，他的罪就得赦免多少。”
于是那群人说：“这些我们明白；因此，我们也明白什么是赦罪。”
【7】随后，他们请求天使进一步教导他们；这一次，是论到上帝、灵魂不朽、重生和洗礼。
天使回答说：“凡你们不能理解的，我们不说；否则，我们的话就会像雨落在沙地上，也落在那里的种子上；这些种子即使从天上得了浇灌，仍会枯干而灭亡。”
论到上帝，天使说：“凡进入天堂的人，都照着他们对上帝的观念，在那里分得自己的地方，并由此得着永恒的喜乐；因为这观念普遍支配敬拜中的一切。若把上帝看作灵，而所谓灵又被认为如以太或风，那么这种关于上帝的观念就是空洞的；但若把上帝看作人，这才是正确的观念。因为上帝是神性之爱与神性智慧，并有其一切性质；而这些的主体乃是人，并非以太或风。天堂中关于上帝的观念，就是关于主救主的观念；祂是天地之神，正如祂自己所教导的。愿你们关于上帝的观念与我们的相同，这样我们就能彼此相联。”
他们说这些话时，面容便发出光辉。
【8】论到灵魂不朽，天使说：“人永远活着，因为他能借着爱与信仰同上帝结合；人人都能如此。你们若对此稍微更深地思想，就能明白：这种能力使灵魂具有不朽。”
【9】论到重生，天使说：“谁看不见，每个人都有自由去思想上帝，也有自由不思想祂，只要他已受教知道有上帝？因此，每个人在属灵事上都有自由，正如在公民事务和自然事务上有自由一样。主不断将这自由赐给所有人；所以，人若不思想上帝，便有罪责。人之所以为人，是由于有这种能力；兽之所以为兽，是由于没有这种能力。因此，人能够改造自己、重生自己，如同由自己而为；只要他心里承认这是由主而来。
凡悔改并信主的人，都得改造和重生。人必须如同由自己而行这两件事；但‘如同由自己’乃是由主而来。诚然，人凭自己对此毫无贡献，连一丝一毫也没有；然而你们被造并不是雕像，而是人，为要从主而行这些事，如同由自己而行。这是主绝对愿意人向祂作出的唯一相互回应，即爱与信仰的回应。总之，你们要由自己去行，并相信这是由主而来；这样，你们就是如同由自己而行。”
【10】这时他们问：“如同由自己而行，是否是人受造时被赋予的？”
天使回答说：“这并非被赋予为人的固有之物；因为由自己而行，唯独属于上帝。但它是不断被赐下的，也就是不断加添给人的。这样，人行良善并信真理，若是如同由自己而行，他就在这程度上是天堂的天使；但人行邪恶并因此信伪谬，若也是如同由自己而行，他就在这程度上是地狱的灵。你们惊讶于这也是如同由自己而行；然而，当你们祈求免受魔鬼侵害，免得它引诱你们、进入你们里面如进入犹大里面一样、使你们充满一切不义、并毁灭你们的灵魂与身体时，你们便能看见这一点。
凡相信自己是由自己而行的人，不论所行是善是恶，都有罪责；但凡相信自己只是如同由自己而行的人，便没有罪责。因为人若相信善是出于自己，就是把属于上帝的归给自己；若相信恶是出于自己，就是把属于魔鬼的归给自己。”
【11】论到洗礼，天使说：“洗礼是属灵的洗净，也就是改造与重生。婴孩在长大成人后，若行其代父母为他所许诺之事，就得改造和重生；这些事有两样：悔改与信上帝。因为他们首先许诺，要弃绝魔鬼及其一切作为；其次许诺，要信上帝。天堂中的所有婴孩都被引入这两样；只是对他们而言，魔鬼就是地狱，上帝就是主。此外，洗礼在天使面前乃是一个标记，表明此人属于教会。”
听了这些话，那群人说：“这些我们明白。”
【12】但这时从旁边传来一个声音，喊着说：“我们不明白。”又有另一个声音说：“我们不愿明白。”于是便查问这些声音出自何人；结果发现，它们出自那些在自己里面坚固信仰伪谬的人，并且他们希望别人把他们当作神谕来相信，从而敬奉他们。
天使说：“不要惊讶；今日这样的人极多。从天上看，他们在我们眼中就像用某种巧艺制成的雕像，能够动嘴唇，并像乐器一样发声；却不知道发出声音的气息究竟是从地狱来的，还是从天堂来的，因为他们不知道这是伪谬还是真理。他们推理又推理，确证又确证，却看不见事实是否果真如此。但你们要知道，人的聪明才智能够确证它所愿意的一切，直到使其显得仿佛确是如此。因此，异端者能这样作，不敬虔者能这样作，甚至无神论者也能这样作，以此确证没有上帝，只有自然。”
【13】此后，那群英格兰人被求知求智的愿望点燃，便对天使说：“关于圣餐，人们说法各异；请告诉我们什么是真理。”
天使回答说：“真理是：凡仰望主并悔改的人，借着那至圣之礼与主结合，并被引入天堂。”
但那群人说：“这是奥秘。”
天使回答说：“这是奥秘，但仍是可以理解的奥秘。饼和酒本身并不成就这事；它们本身没有任何神圣。然而物质的饼与属灵的饼彼此对应，物质的酒与属灵的酒彼此对应；属灵的饼是爱的圣物，属灵的酒是信仰的圣物，二者都来自主，并且二者都是主。因此，主与人结合，人与主结合；并不是与饼和酒结合，而是与已经悔改之人的爱与信仰结合；而与主结合，也就是被引入天堂。”
随后，天使又把对应的道理教导了他们一些。那群人说：“现在，我们第一次也能明白这件事了。”
他们说这话时，看哪，有火焰般的光从天降下，使他们与天使相联；他们便彼此相爱。
621# 对此，我补充以下记事。记事一：
我曾看见一群灵人，他们都跪下祷告，求神派天使到他们这里来，好让他们可以与天使面对面交谈，向他们吐露心声。他们起身时，只见三位白衣天使站在他们面前，说：“主耶稣基督垂听了你们的祷告，所以派我们到你们这里来；请向我们敞开心扉吧。”
这些灵人回答说：“我们的牧师告诉我们，在神学问题上，有帮助的不是理性，而是信仰；在这些问题上，理智的信仰是无益的，因为它源于人，带有人的味道，而不是来自神。我们是英国人，从我们所相信的神圣事工中听到了许多事；但当我们与一些自称新教徒的人，一些自称天主教徒的人，以及各个教派的人交谈时，他们似乎都很有学问，但在许多问题上彼此却意见不一；然而，他们却都声称‘相信我们’，有的说：‘我们是事奉神的人，我们知道。’可我们知道，被称为信之真理的神性真理，也就是教会的真理，不是任何人天生或遗传的产业，而是由神那里从天而降的；这些真理指示了通往天堂的道路，并与仁之良善一起进入生活，从而通向永生。所以我们很焦虑，就跪下来向神祷告。”
然后天使们回答说：“你们要阅读圣言、信靠主，就会看到进入你们信仰和生活的真理。在基督教界，所有人都从圣言中，如同从唯一的源泉中汲取他们的教义。”但这群人中有两个人说：“我们读过，但不明白。”天使们回答说：“你们没有靠近作为圣言的主，又确认了虚假。” 天使们进一步说：“没有光的信仰是什么呢？没有理解的思考又是什么呢？这不是人的。就连乌鸦和喜鹊也能在没有理解的情况下学会说话。我们可以向你们肯定地说，凡灵魂渴望真理的人，都能在清晰的光中看见圣言的真理。没有一种动物在看到适合自己生命的食物时不认识它，而人是一种理性和属灵的动物；只要他渴求生命的食物，并从主那里寻求它，就会看到它，不是他身体的食物，而是他灵魂的食物，即信之真理。
“此外，凡理解力没有接受的东西，就其实质而言，都不会留在记忆中，仅就口头的话语而言留在其中。因此，我们从天堂俯瞰世界时，什么也看不见，只听见声音，大部分是不和谐的声音。不过，我们会列出神职人员中的一些学者从理解力中逐出的一些事，因为他们不知道，有两条路通向理解力，一条来自世界，一条来自天堂；当主光照理解力时，祂会使理解力从世界中退出。然而，如果理解力因宗教而关闭，那么从天堂通向它的道路就会关闭，在这种情况下，人就和瞎子一样在圣言中看不到任何东西。我们看到许多这样的人掉进坑里，再也爬不出来。
“举例说明：难道你们不能明白何为仁爱、何为信仰吗？不明白仁爱在于善待邻舍，信仰在于正确地思考神和教会的本质，因此，谁行事良好、正确思考，也就是说，生活良好、信仰正确，谁就会得救吗？”对此，他们回答说，他们明白了。
天使们进一步说：“人必须从罪中悔改，才能得救，除非他悔改，否则他继续留在他所生在的罪中。悔改在于人停止意愿邪恶，因为它们违背神，还在于一年检查自己一两次，看到自己的邪恶，在主面前忏悔它们，祈求帮助，停止邪恶，开始新的生活；只要他如此行，并相信主，他的罪就会得到赦免。”这时，这群人中的一些人说：“我们明白这一切，所以我们也明白什么是罪得赦免。”
然后，他们请求天使们给他们更多信息，尤其是关于神，灵魂不朽，重生和洗礼的。对此，天使们回答说：“我们不会说你们不明白的话；否则，我们的话就像雨落在沙子上，落在那里的种子上，无论从天上如何浇灌，这些种子仍会枯萎、死亡。”关于神，他们说：“所有进入天堂的人，在那里都照着他们对神的观念而获得一个地方，从而拥有永恒的喜乐，因为这种观念在与敬拜有关的一切事物中普遍掌权。当灵被认为要么像以太，要么像风时，神是一个灵的观念就是一个空洞的观念；但神是一个人的观念才是一个正确的观念；因为神是神性之爱和神性智慧，以及属于它们的一切品质，这些的主体是人，不是以太或风。在天堂里，对神的观念是，祂是主救主；祂是天地之神，如祂自己所教导的。倘若你们对神的观念与我们的一样，我们就会联系在一起。” 说完这些话，他们的脸变得光彩照人。
关于灵魂不朽，他们说：“人会活到永远，因为他能通过爱和信与神结合；每个人都拥有这种能力。你若对这个问题稍微深入思考一下，就会明白，这种能力构成了灵魂的不朽。”
关于重生，他们说：“谁看不出，每个人都有思想神，或不思想神的自由，只要他被教导有一位神？因此，每个人在属灵事物上都拥有自由，就像在民事和属世的事物上拥有自由一样。主不断将这种自由赐给所有人；因此，如果一个人不思想神，那是他的错。人之所以是人，正是由于这种能力；而动物之所以是动物，正是由于没有这种能力。因此，人能貌似凭自己改造和重生自己，只要他从心里承认这是靠着主。凡悔改并信靠主的人都在被改造和重生。人貌似凭自己做这两件事；但这“貌似凭自己”来自主。诚然，人凭自己对这项工作毫无贡献，一丁点也没有；但你们不是被造为雕像，而是被造为人，好叫你们可以从主那里貌似凭自己如此行。这爱与信的唯一回应，是主最希望人向祂所做的。总之，凭你们自己行动，并相信这是来自主；这就是貌似凭你们自己行动。”
但这时，他们问，貌似凭自己行动是否自创造时就被植入人。一位天使回答说：“不是，因为凭自己行动唯独属于神，但祂不断赐下它，也就是说，不断把它与人相连；然后，只要人貌似凭自己实行良善、相信真理，他就是一位天堂天使；但只要他实行邪恶，从而相信虚假（这种事也是貌似凭他自己做的），他就是一个地狱灵。你们可能会疑惑，他这样做也是貌似凭他自己，但当你们祷告，求自己得到保护，免受魔鬼伤害，不让魔鬼迷惑你们，进入你们，就像进入犹大那样，使你们充满一切罪孽，摧毁灵魂和肉体时，你们就会看到，事实就是如此。但当人认为他凭自己行动，无论行善还是作恶时，人就有罪了；而当他认为他貌似凭自己行动时，他就没有罪了；因为当他认为良善来自他自己时，他就是在声称属于神的东西是他自己的；而当他认为邪恶来自他自己时，他就是在将属于魔鬼的东西归给自己。”
关于洗礼，他们说：“洗礼是属灵的洗涤，就是改造和重生；小孩子长大成人后，就被改造和重生，他要做他的教父母为他承诺的事，就是这两件事：悔改和信神。因为他们首先承诺，他要弃绝魔鬼及其一切作为，其次承诺，他要信神。在天堂里，所有小孩子都被引入这两件事；但对他们来说，魔鬼是地狱，神是主。此外，在天使面前，洗礼是一个标志，表明一个人属于教会。”听到这些话，这群人中的一些人说：“这个我们明白。”
然后就听见一旁有一个声音喊着说：“我们不明白。”又有一个声音说：“我们不想明白。”调查这些声音来自谁，发现它们来自那些确认信之虚假，想被视为神谕，从而受到崇拜的人。天使们说：“不要惊讶；如今像这样的人有很多；对我们来说，从天上来看，他们就像雕像，制作得如此巧妙，以至于它们可以驱动嘴唇，发出像发音器官一样的声音，却不知道他们用来发出这些声音的呼吸是来自地狱，还是来自天堂，因为他们不知道它是假的，还是真的。他们推理了又推理，确认了又确认，却根本不看事情是否如此。然而，要知道，人类的独创性能确认它想要的任何东西，甚至直到它似乎确实是真的；因此，异端分子和恶人都能这样做；事实上，甚至连无神论者也能证明，没有神，只有大自然。”
此后，这群英国人充满对变得智慧的渴望，就对天使们说：“关于圣餐，可谓众说纷纭，请告诉我们真相是什么。”天使们回答说：“真相是：一个仰望主，并悔改的人，通过这最神圣的圣礼与主结合，并被引入天堂。” 但这群人中的一些人说：“这是个秘密。”天使们回答说：“这的确是个秘密，但仍是可以理解的。饼和酒不会产生这种效果；它们里面没有任何神圣的东西；但物质的饼和属灵的饼相互对应，物质的酒和属灵的酒也相互对应，属灵的饼是爱的神圣，属灵的酒是信的神圣，这两者都来自主，并且都是主。这会产生主与人，并人与主的结合，不是与饼和酒的结合，而是与已经悔改之人的爱和信的结合；与主结合也是引入天堂。”后来，天使们教导了他们关于对应的事，这群人中的一些人说：“现在我们第一次明白了。”当他们说这话时，看哪，一团带着光的火焰从天而降，把他们与天使们联系在一起，他们彼此相爱。
621. To these points I will add the following memorable occurrences.
The first memorable occurrence. On one occasion I saw a group of spirits who were all on their knees praying to God to send them angels so that they could speak with the angels face to face and open up to them the thoughts that were in their hearts.
When they got up from praying they saw three angels in fine linen standing nearby. The angels said, "The Lord Jesus Christ heard your prayers and sent us to you. Open up to us the thoughts that are in your hearts. "
"Our priests have told us," they replied, "that in matters of theology the intellect is no help. Faith is what is needed. And an intellectual kind of faith is not well suited in these matters, they say, because it originates from, and smacks of, self rather than God.
[2] "We are English. We have heard many things from our own holy ministers and we believe them; but when we speak with others who also call themselves Protestants, and with others who call themselves Roman Catholics, and with Protestant Dissenters, they all seem well informed and yet on many points they disagree with each other. Nevertheless they all say, 'Believe us!' And some say, 'We are ministers of God - we know these things!'
"What we ourselves know is that the divine truths that are called the truths of faith - the truths of the church - do not come from one's native soil or by heredity; they come out of heaven from God. They show the way to heaven. Along with good actions that come from goodwill, these truths become part of our lives. They lead us to eternal life. [Because we had heard differing views of what is true,] we therefore became anxious and prayed to God on our knees. "
[3] "Read the Word and believe in the Lord," the angels said, "and you will see the truths that are to be part of your faith and your life. The Word is the only common source from which all who are in the Christian world draw their teachings. "
Two members of the group said, "We have read it but we didn't understand it. "
"You did not turn to the Lord, who is the Word," the angels replied, "and you had already convinced yourselves of falsities.
"What is faith without light?" the angels went on. "What is thinking without understanding? It is not human. Ravens and magpies can learn to talk without understanding. This we can assure you: every single human being whose soul desires it has the capability to see the truths of the Word in light. All animals know, just by seeing it, what food will keep them alive. We human beings are animals that are rational and spiritual. We too see the food that will keep us alive - not the food for our body but the food for our soul, which is the truth that relates to faith - if we are hungry for it and ask the Lord for it.
[4] The true substance of any information we take in without understanding will not remain in our memory; only the words will remain.
"For this reason, when we angels look down from heaven at the world [these days], we don't see anything. We just hear sounds, and most of them are discordant.
"Allow us, however, to list some teachings that learned clergy have taken out of the realm of the intellect, because they are unaware that there are two ways of understanding, a worldly way and a heavenly way. When the Lord enlightens people, he lifts up our worldly way of understanding. If we have closed our intellect for religious reasons, however, the heavenly way of understanding is closed, and then we see nothing more in the Word than a blind person would see. We have seen many people of this type fall into pits from which they did not rise again.
[5] "For the sake of illustration, let's take examples of such teachings. Surely you are able to understand what goodwill is and what faith is. Goodwill is treating our neighbor well, and faith is having accurate thoughts about God and about the essential teachings of the church. Therefore, people who treat others well and think properly, that is, who live a good life and believe the right things, are saved. "
The English spirits replied that they did indeed understand those things.
[6] "In order to be saved," the angels went on, "you have to practice repentance from your sins. Those who do not practice repentance remain in the sins they were born with. The practice of repentance is to not will evils, because they are against God. It involves examining yourselves once or twice a year, seeing your evils, confessing them before the Lord, begging for his help, no longer doing them, and launching into a new life. More and more as you do this and believe in the Lord, your sins are forgiven. "
Some from the group said, "We understand this, and this also tells us what 'forgiveness of sins' means. "
[7] The group then asked the angels to tell them more, particularly on the subjects of God, the immortality of the soul, regeneration, and baptism.
"We will not say anything you don't understand," the angels replied, "since otherwise what we say might fall like rain on a sandy place and on seeds there that are bound to shrivel up and die no matter how much water they get from heaven. "
On the subject of God the angels said, "All who come into heaven are allotted a place there, and experience eternal joy, on the basis of their idea of God. One's idea of God is what rules universally in everything having to do with worship. An idea of God as a spirit - if a spirit is believed to be like ether or wind - is a meaningless idea. An idea of God as a human being is a true idea. God is divine love and divine wisdom and all the attributes that go along with them. A human being has love and wisdom; ether and wind do not. The idea of God that we have in heaven is the idea of the Lord our Savior; he is the God of heaven and earth, as he himself taught [Matthew 28:18]. If your idea of God becomes like ours, then we will all be able to be together. "
As the angels said these things the faces of the English spirits shone.
[8] On the subject of the immortality of the soul they said, "Human beings live to eternity because they are capable of forming a partnership with God through love and faith - absolutely everyone is capable of forming a partnership like this. If you think a little more deeply about it, you can understand that this capability is what allows the soul to be immortal. "
[9] On the subject of regeneration they said, "Who cannot see that everyone (at least everyone who has been taught that God exists) possesses the freedom either to think about God or not to think about God? All people, then, have just as much freedom in spiritual matters as they do in civic and earthly matters. The Lord constantly grants this freedom to everyone. Therefore we are at fault if we do not think about God. Our ability to have such thoughts is what makes us human; the inability of animals to have such thoughts is what makes them animals. Therefore we have the ability to reform and regenerate ourselves as if we are doing so on our own, provided that at heart we admit that the Lord is the one doing the work. Everyone who practices repentance and believes in the Lord is reformed and regenerated. We have to do both of these things as if we are acting on our own, even though the ability to act seemingly on our own comes from the Lord. Now, it is true that left to ourselves we would be able to contribute nothing to our regeneration - absolutely nothing. Nevertheless, you were not created as statues; you were created as human beings so that you would be able to do this with the help of the Lord but as if you were acting on your own. Developing love and faith as our response is the sole thing that the Lord truly wants us to do for him.
"To sum this up: Do these things on your own, but believe that you do them with the help of the Lord; then you will be doing them as if you were acting on your own. "
[10] The group then asked, "Is this 'doing things as if one is acting on one's own' an attribute that human beings have had from creation?"
"It is not that kind of attribute," the angels replied, "because acting on one's own is actually something that belongs to God alone. It is, however, granted to us continually; that is, it is always with us. If we do what is good and believe what is true as if we were doing so on our own, we are angels of heaven. If we do what is evil and therefore believe what is false, however - which is actually something that is also done as if we were acting on our own - we are spirits of hell. You are surprised to hear that this too is done as if we were acting on our own. But you see this, don't you, when you say that familiar prayer to be kept safe so that the Devil does not seduce you and take possession of you the way he took possession of Judas, fill you with all wickedness, and destroy both your soul and your body?
"All who believe that they are acting on their own, regardless of whether the thing they are doing is good or evil, become at fault for what they do. Those who believe they are acting as if they were on their own do not become at fault. If we believe that some good deed comes from ourselves, we claim for ourselves something that actually belongs to God. If we believe that some evil deed comes from ourselves, we attribute to ourselves something that actually belongs to the Devil. "
[11] On the topic of baptism the angels said, "Baptism is a spiritual washing, which is reformation and regeneration. The child is reformed and regenerated when, having become an adult, he or she does the things the godparents promised on his or her behalf. There are two such promises in baptism: repentance, and faith in God. The godparents promise first that the child will renounce the Devil and all his works, and second that the child will believe in God. All children in heaven are initiated into these two practices, although to them 'the Devil' is hell and 'God' is the Lord. For another thing, baptism is a sign to the angels that someone belongs to the church. "
When they had heard all this, some from the group said, "We understand. "
[12] A voice was heard off to the side, however, that shouted, "We don't understand. "
Another voice shouted, "We don't want to understand. "
Someone went to find out who those voices came from and learned that they came from people who had convinced themselves of false beliefs and who wanted to be trusted in as oracles and worshiped on that account.
"Don't be surprised at that," the angels said. "There are a tremendous number of people like that these days. From our point of view in heaven they look like sculptures skillfully made in such a way that the lips can move and they can make sounds as if they were alive. They are unaware, however, of whether the breath that supports their sound comes from hell or heaven, because they don't know whether what they are saying is false or true. They reason and reason and provide one supporting argument after another, but cannot tell at all whether something is true or not. It is important to be aware that human ingenuity can provide arguments to support any assertion it wants, even to the point that the assertion appears to be true. Heretics have this ability; godless people, too; in fact, atheists are able to argue that there is no God except nature alone. "
[13] After that, the group of English spirits was stirred with a desire for wisdom. They said to the angels, "There is such a wide range of opinions on the Holy Supper. Tell us what the truth is. "
"The truth is," the angels replied, "that through that most holy act, people who turn to the Lord and practice repentance form a partnership with the Lord and become part of heaven. "
Some in the group said, "That is a mystery!"
"It is a mystery," the angels replied, "but one that can be understood nevertheless. Bread and wine do not produce this effect - there is nothing holy about them; but physical bread and spiritual bread have a mutual correspondence. So do physical wine and spiritual wine. Spiritual bread is holy love and spiritual wine is holy faith. Each is from the Lord, and each is the Lord. Therefore a partnership of the Lord with us, and of us with the Lord, comes about not through the bread and wine but through the love and faith in the individual who has practiced repentance. To join in a partnership with the Lord is also to become part of heaven. "
After the angels taught them something about correspondences, some in the group said, "Now for the first time we can understand this, too!"
When they said that, to my surprise something flamelike from heaven came down with light and united them with the angels, and the angels and the spirits felt love for each other.
621. 1 At this point I shall insert some accounts of experiences, of which this is the first.
I saw a gathering of spirits all on their knees praying God to send them angels, with whom they could talk face to face, and open to them the thoughts of their hearts. When they got up, three angels dressed in fine linen were to be seen standing before them. 'The Lord Jesus Christ,' they said, 'has heard your prayers and has therefore sent us to you. Open to us the thoughts of your hearts.'
[2] 'Our priests have told us,' they answered, 'that in theological matters it is not the understanding but faith which is effective; and that faith based on the understanding is no help in such matters, because it derives from and smacks of man, not of God. We are English, and we have heard a lot from our ministers of religion, which we believed. But when we talked with others, who also called themselves Reformed, and with others who called themselves Roman Catholics, and even with members of sects, they all appeared to be learned, yet on many subjects there was not one who agreed with another. All the same, they all said, "Believe us," and some said, "We are God's ministers, and we know." But we know that the Divine truths, which are called the truths of faith and are possessed by the church, do not come to anyone from his native soil or by heredity, but from God out of heaven; and they show the way to heaven, entering a person's life together with the good of charity, and so leading to everlasting life. So we became worried, and prayed on our knees to God.'
[3] 'Read the Word,' the angels said to this, 'and believe in the Lord, and you will see truths which will be your guides to faith and life. All Christian people draw their doctrines from the Word as being their one and only source.' But two of the gathering said, 'We have read it, but not understood it.'
'You did not approach the Lord,' replied the angels, 'and He is the Word. Also you had first convinced yourselves of falsities.' The angels went on: 'What is faith without light, and what is thinking without understanding? This is not how human beings act. Ravens and jays can learn to talk without understanding too. We can assure you that every person whose soul so desires can see the truths of the Word in light. There does not exist an animal which does not know the food it needs to live on, when it sees it. Man is a rational and spiritual animal, so he knows the food not so much his body as his soul needs to live on. That is the truth of faith, provided he is hungry for it and begs the Lord for it.
[4] 'Moreover, anything that the understanding does not take in is not retained by the memory as a fact, but merely as words. So when we looked down on the world from heaven, we could see nothing, but only heard sounds, which were for the most part discordant. But we shall mention some things which the learned among the clergy have banished from the understanding, being unaware that there are two routes to the understanding, one from the world and the other from heaven. The Lord withdraws the understanding from the world, as He enlightens it. But if religion dictates that the understanding is to be shut off, the route to it from heaven is shut off, and then one sees no more in the Word than a blind man. We have seen many such people fall into pits, and be unable to get out of them again.
[5] 'Let us give some examples to illustrate this. Surely you can understand what charity and faith are - that charity is doing good to the neighbour, and faith is having a correct idea of God and the essential doctrines of the church? And as a result, that a person who does good and has a correct idea, that is to say, who lives a good life and has a correct belief, is saved?' They said that they understood this.
[6] The angels went on to say that for a person to be saved he must repent of his sins, and unless he does so, he remains in the sins to which he was born. Repentance consists in not willing evils because they are sins against God; and once or twice a year examining oneself, seeing one's evils and confessing them to the Lord, asking for help, desisting from those evils and starting a new life. So far as a person does this and believes in the Lord, so far are his sins forgiven. 'We understand this,' said some of the gathering, 'and so we know what the forgiveness of sins is.'
[7] Then they asked the angels to tell them more, and this time about God, the immortality of the soul, regeneration and baptism.
'We shall not say anything,' the angels replied, 'which you cannot understand. If we did, our words would be like rain falling on a desert and the seeds it holds, which, despite being watered from heaven, still wither away and die.'
On the subject of God they said: 'All who come to heaven are allotted their place, and thus have everlasting joy, depending upon the idea they have of God, because it is this idea which is universally dominant in every detail of worship. To think of God as a spirit, if a spirit is believed to be like the ether or the wind, is meaningless. But to think of God as Man is a correct notion, because God is Divine love and Divine wisdom, with all their attributes; and that of which love and wisdom can be predicated is man, not ether or wind. In heaven they think of God as the Lord the Saviour; as He taught us, He is the God of heaven and earth. Make your idea of God like ours, and we shall welcome you into our company.' When they said this, the faces of the others lit up.
[8] On the immortality of the soul they said: 'Man lives for ever, because by means of love and faith he can be linked with God. Every single person has this capacity. And if you think a little more deeply about it, you can understand that this capacity constitutes the immortality of the soul,'
[9] On regeneration: 'Anyone can see that any person is free to think about God or not to think about Him, so long as he has been taught that there is a God. So anyone has just as much freedom in spiritual as in social or natural matters. The Lord continually grants this to all; so a person is to blame, if he fails to think about God. It is this capacity which makes man a man, and its absence makes an animal an animal. Man can therefore reform and regenerate himself as if of himself, so long as he acknowledges in his heart that this comes from the Lord. Everyone who repents and believes in the Lord is reformed and regenerated. A person should do both as if of himself, but this as if of himself comes from the Lord. It is true that a person cannot from himself contribute anything, not in the slightest, to that process. Yet you have not been created statues; you were created human beings, so that you could do it from the Lord as if of yourselves. It is this and this alone which is the reciprocal offering of love and faith, which the Lord expressly wills should be made to Him by man. In short, act from yourselves and believe that it is from the Lord; that is how to act as if of yourselves.'
[10] Then they asked whether acting as if of oneself was implanted in man from creation. The angel replied: 'It is not implanted, because acting from himself is an attribute only of God. But it is continually given, that is to say, it is continually being applied; and then so far as a person does good and believes truth as if of himself, he is an angel of heaven. But so far as he does evil and thus believes falsity, and this too is as if of himself, so far is he a spirit of hell. You may be surprised that this too is as if of oneself, but still you can see this, when you pray to be protected from the devil seducing you, from him entering into you as he did into Judas, from filling you with every wickedness and destroying you both soul and body. But everyone becomes responsible, if he believes he is acting of himself, whether it is good or evil that he does. But he does not incur guilt, if he believes he is acting as if of himself. For if he believes that he does good of himself, he is claiming for himself what belongs to God; and if he believes that he does evil of himself, he is attributing to himself what belongs to the devil.'
[11] On baptism they said that it was a spiritual washing, and this is reformation and regeneration. 'A child is reformed and regenerated when on growing up he does what his godparents pledged on his behalf, the two promises of repentance and faith in God. For they first pledge that he will renounce the devil and all his works, and secondly, that he will believe in God. All children in heaven are taught those two promises, but for them the devil is hell and God is the Lord. Moreover, baptism is a sign visible to the angels that a person belongs to the church.' When they heard this, some in the gathering said: 'We understand this.'
[12] But at this point a voice was heard from one side shouting: 'We do not understand;' and another: 'We do not want to understand.' They made enquiry to discover whose voices these were, and discovered that they came from those who had convinced themselves of false beliefs, and wanted to be believed like oracles, so receiving worship.
'Do not be surprised,' said the angels, 'there are many like this at the present time. To us seeing them from heaven they look like carved images so cunningly made that they can move their lips and make noises, like musical instruments. But they are quite unaware whether the breath that makes them sound blows from hell or from heaven, because they do not know whether a thing is false or true. They keep on reasoning and producing proofs, yet cannot see whether anything is so or not. But you should know that the human brain can prove anything it wants, so that it really appears to be so. So this is something heretics or irreligious people can do; in fact atheists can prove that God does not exist, only nature.'
[13] After this the gathering of Englishmen was fired with a desire for wisdom and said to the angels: 'Such varying ideas are expressed regarding the Holy Supper, tell us what is the truth.'
'The truth is,' the angels answered, 'that a person who looks to the Lord and repents is by that most holy act linked to the Lord and brought into heaven.'
But people in the gathering said: 'This is a mystery.' 'It is a mystery,' the angels replied, 'but one that can be understood. The bread and wine do not bring this about; there is nothing holy about them. But material bread and spiritual bread correspond to each other, and so do material wine and spiritual wine. Spiritual bread is the holiness of love, spiritual wine the holiness of faith. Both of these are from the Lord, and both are the Lord. Thus there is a linking of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord. It is not with the bread and wine, but with the love and faith of the man who has repented. Being linked with the Lord is also being brought into heaven.'
Now that the angels had taught them something about correspondence, some in the gathering said: 'Now for the first time we can understand this.' As soon as they said this, a flaming radiance came down from heaven and joined them to the angels' company, and they loved one another.
Footnotes:
1. This section is repeated with modifications from Apocalypse Revealed 224.
621. To this the following Memorable Relations shall be added. First:
I saw an assembly of spirits, all on their knees praying to God to send angels to them, with whom they might speak face to face, and to whom they might open the thoughts of their hearts. And when they rose up, there appeared three angels in white standing in their presence. And the angels said "The Lord Jesus Christ has heard your prayers, and has therefore sent us to you; open to us the thoughts of your hearts."
[2] And the spirits replied, "Our priests have told us that in theological matters it is not the understanding but faith that avails, and that an intellectual faith does not profit in such matters, because it springs from and savors of man, and is not from God. We are Englishmen, and we have heard many things from our sacred ministry which we believed; but when we have spoken with others who also called themselves reformed, and with some who called themselves Roman Catholics, and again with those of various sects, they all seemed learned, and yet in many things they did not agree with one another; although they all said, 'Believe us,' and some said, 'We are ministers of God, and we know.' But as we know that Divine truths, which are called truths of faith and are the truths of the church, are no one's by birthright alone, or by inheritance, but are from God out of heaven; and as they point the way to heaven and enter the life together with the goods of charity, and thus lead to eternal life; we have become anxious, and on our knees have prayed to God."
[3] Then the angels answered, "Read the Word and believe in the Lord, and you will see the truths which must be the truths of your faith and of your life. All in the Christian world draw their doctrinals from the Word as the one only fountain."
But two of the assembly said, "We have read, but have not understood."
The angels replied, "You have not approached the Lord, who is the Word, and also have first confirmed yourselves in falsities." The angels said further, "What is faith without light; and what is thinking without understanding? It is not human. Ravens and magpies can also learn to talk without understanding. We can assure you that every man whose soul desires it, is able to see the truths of the Word in clear light. There is no animal that does not know its life's food when it sees it; and man is a rational and spiritual animal; he sees the food of his life, not his body's but his soul's food, which is the truth of faith, provided he hungers for it and seeks it from the Lord.
[4] Moreover, the substance of anything that is not received in the understanding, does not remain in the memory, but only the verbal statement of it. So when we looked down from heaven into the world, we have not seen anything, but have only heard sounds, and for the most part discordant ones. But we will enumerate some things which the learned of the clergy have separated from the understanding, not knowing that there are two ways to the understanding, one from the world and the other from heaven, and that when the Lord is enlightening the understanding He withdraws it from the world. But if the understanding is closed in regard to religion, the way to it from heaven is closed; and then man sees no more in the Word than a blind man. We have seen many such fall into pits out of which they did not rise.
[5] Let this be made clear by examples. Can you not understand what charity is and what faith is, that charity is doing rightly with the neighbor, and faith is thinking rightly respecting God and the essentials of the church; and consequently that he who does rightly and thinks aright, that is, lives well and believes aright, is saved?"
To this the spirits answered that they understood.
[6] The angels said further, "Man must repent of his sins in order to be saved, and unless he repents he remains in the sins into which he was born; and repentance consists in man's ceasing to will evils because they are contrary to God, searching himself once or twice a year, seeing his evils, confessing them before the Lord, praying for help, refraining from evils, and beginning a new life; and so far as he does this, and believes in the Lord, his sins are forgiven."
Then some of those from the assembly said, "That we understand, and consequently what the forgiveness of sins is."
[7] Then they asked the angels to give them still further information, and first of all about God, the immortality of the soul, regeneration, and baptism.
To this the angels replied: "We shall not say anything but what you will understand; otherwise our words would fall like rain upon the sand, and upon the seeds therein which wither and die, however they may be watered from heaven."
And about God they said, "All who enter heaven are allotted a place there, and thus eternal joy according to their idea of God, because this idea universally reigns in everything pertaining to worship. The idea of God as a Spirit, when spirit is supposed to be something like ether or wind, is an idea without meaning; but the idea of God as a Man is the right idea; for God is Divine love and Divine wisdom, together with every quality thereof, and the subject of these is not ether or wind, but Man. In heaven the idea of God is that He is the Lord the Savior; He is the God of heaven and earth, as He Himself has taught. Let your idea of God be like ours, and we shall be associated together." When this had been said, their faces beamed.
[8] Of the immortality of the soul they said, "Man lives forever, because he is capable of conjunction with God through love and faith; every man is capable of this. That this capability is what constitutes the immortality of the soul you can understand if you think a little more deeply about the matter."
[9] Of regeneration they said, "Who does not see that every man has the freedom to think about God, or not to think about Him, provided he has been taught that there is a God? Thus every man has freedom in spiritual things as well as in civil and natural things. The Lord gives this to all unceasingly; therefore it is man's fault if he does not think. It is because of this ability that man is man; while it is because of the absence of it that a beast is a beast. Man consequently has the ability to reform and regenerate himself as if from himself, provided he acknowledges in his heart that it is from the Lord. Everyone who repents and believes in the Lord is being reformed and regenerated. Man does both as if from himself; but the as if from himself is from the Lord. It is true that man cannot contribute anything to this work from himself, not an iota; nevertheless, you were not created statues but men, in order that you may do this from the Lord as if from yourselves. This one and only reciprocation of love and faith, is what the Lord above all things wishes man to make to Him. In a word, act from yourselves, and believe that it is from the Lord; this is acting as if from yourselves."
[10] Then they asked whether this acting as if from himself was implanted in man from creation.
An angel replied, "It was not, because to act from himself belongs to God alone, but He gives it unceasingly, that is, joins it [to man] unceasingly; and then so far as man does good and believes truth as if from himself, he is an angel of heaven; while so far as he does evil and therefrom believes falsity, which he also does as if from himself, he is a spirit of hell. You may wonder that he does this also as if from himself, nevertheless you can see that it is so, when you pray to be guarded from the devil lest he seduce you, and enter into you as he did into Judas, and fill you with all iniquity, and destroy you soul and body. But a man becomes guilty when he believes that he acts from himself, whether in doing good or evil, and not when he believes that he acts as if from himself; for when he believes that the good is from himself, he claims as his own what belongs to God, and when he believes the evil to be from himself he attributes to himself what belongs to the devil."
[11] Respecting baptism they said, that baptism is spiritual washing, which is reformation and regeneration; that a child is reformed and regenerated when, having become an adult, he does the things that his sponsors promised for him, namely, these two, repents, and believes in God. For they promise first that he will renounce the devil and all his works, and secondly, that he will believe in God. All infants in heaven are initiated into these two duties; but to them the devil is hell and God is the Lord. Moreover, baptism is a sign to the angels that a man belongs to the church."
Hearing this, those of the assembly said, "We understand that."
[12] Then a voice was heard from the side, crying out, "We do not understand," and another, "We do not wish to understand." Inquiry was made from whom those voices came, and it was found that they came from those who had confirmed themselves in falsities of faith, and who wished to be believed as oracles, and so to be worshiped.
The angels said, "Do not be surprised; there are many such at this day; to us from heaven they appear like sculptured images made with such skill that they can move the lips and make sounds like those of the vocal organs, but do not know whether the breath which the sound comes from is from hell or from heaven, because they do not know whether it is false or true. They reason and reason, and they confirm and confirm, and yet do not see whether anything is so or not. But know this, that human ingenuity can confirm whatever it will, even until it seems to be actually true; therefore heretics can do so, and impious persons; and atheists are more able to prove that there is no God, but nature only."
[13] After this the assembly of the English, inflamed with a desire to be wise, said to the angels, "They say so many different things about the holy supper, tell us what the truth is about it."
The angels replied, "The truth is, that the man who looks to the Lord and repents, is by that most holy ordinance conjoined with the Lord and introduced into heaven."
Those of the assembly said, "That is a mystery."
The angels replied, "It is a mystery, and yet such as may be understood. The bread and wine do not effect this; from these there is nothing holy; but material bread and spiritual bread, as also material wine and spiritual wine correspond to each other mutually, spiritual bread being the holy principle of love, and spiritual wine the holy principle of faith, both from the Lord, and both being the Lord. From this comes the conjunction of the Lord with man and of man with the Lord, not with the bread and wine, but with the love and faith of the man who has repented; and conjunction with the Lord is also introduction into heaven."
And after the angels had taught them something about correspondence, those of the assembly said, "Now for the first time we can understand this also." And when they had said this, behold, a flame with light descended from heaven and affiliated them with the angels, and they loved each other mutually.
621. MEMORABILIA.
To the above will be added the following Memorabilia. The first. I once saw a company of spirits, all on their knees, praying to God to send angels to them, with whom they might speak face to face and disclose the thoughts of their hearts. When they arose, three angels in fine linen appeared standing before them, who said: "The Lord Jesus Christ has heard your prayers, and has therefore sent us to you; tell us the thoughts of your hearts.
[2] They replied: "Our priests have told us that in theological matters the understanding is of no avail, but faith only; and that in such things intellectual faith serves no useful purpose, because it is derived from man, and savors of his wisdom and not of God. We are English, and we have heard many things from our sacred ministry which we believed; and we have conversed with some who called themselves Reformed, with others who called themselves Roman Catholics, and also with sectarians. They all seemed learned, and although on many points they did not agree, yet they all said: 'Believe us;' and some added, 'We are ministers of God and we know.' Now we know that Divine truths, which are called the truths of faith and which pertain to the Church, are no man's birthright or inheritance, but come to him out of heaven from God; and these point the way to heaven and enter into a man's life together with the good of charity, and thus lead to eternal life. We, therefore, became anxious, and fell on our knees in prayer to God."
[3] Then the angels said: "Read the Word and believe on the Lord, and you will see the truths that will enter into your faith and life. All in the Christian world derive their doctrine from the Word as the one and only source." But two of the company said: "We have read the Word, and did not understand it." "Then you did not approach the Lord who is the Word," the angels answered, "and you have also previously confirmed yourselves in falsities."
The angels continued: "What is faith without light, and what is thought without understanding? It is not human. Ravens and magpies may be taught to speak without understanding. We can assure you that every man whose soul desires it, can see the truths of the Word in clear light. Every animal knows the food suitable for its life as soon as it sees it. Now man is a rational and spiritual animal, and he sees the food suitable for his life, not only the food for his body but also for his soul which is the truth of faith, if he hungers for it and seeks it from the Lord.
[4] Moreover, what is not received by the understanding does not remain in the memory as to its substance, but only as to the words; and this is the reason why, when we have at times looked down from heaven into the world, we have seen nothing, but have only heard sounds, and those for the most part discordant. But we will mention some things which the learned among the clergy have removed from the scope of the understanding. They do not know that there are two ways to the understanding, one from the world and the other from heaven; and that the Lord withdraws the understanding from the world when He enlightens it. If, however, the understanding is closed by religious dogma, the way to it from heaven is closed, and the man sees no more in the Word than a blind man. We have seen many such persons fall into pits from which they have never risen.
[5] Some examples may serve for illustration. Can you not understand what charity and faith are? You surely understand that charity is to act well with the neighbor, and that faith is to think rightly about God and the essentials of the Church; and consequently that whoever acts well and thinks aright, that is, who lives well and believes aright, will be saved." They replied that they did understand that.
[6] The angels said further: "There must be repentance from sins in order that a man may be saved, and unless he repents he remains in the sins in which he was born. Repentance consists in not willing evils because they are contrary to God, in examining oneself once or twice a year, in seeing one's evils, confessing them before the Lord, imploring help, desisting from them, and beginning a new life; and so far as a man does this and believes on the Lord, his sins are remitted." Then some of the company said: "We understand all this, and consequently what is meant by the remission of sins."
[7] They entreated the angels to give them some further instruction, especially concerning God, the immortality of the soul, regeneration and baptism. To this request the angels replied: "We will not say anything but what you understand; otherwise our words would fall like rain upon sand, or upon seeds sown there which, although watered from heaven, still wither and perish." Concerning God they said: "All who come into heaven obtain a place there and a measure of eternal joy according to their idea of God; for this idea reigns universally in all that pertains to worship. An idea of God as a spirit, when spirit is supposed to be like ether or wind, is an empty idea, but an idea of God as Man is a just idea; for God is Divine Love and Divine Wisdom with all their qualities, and the subject of these is man, 1 and not ether or wind. In heaven the idea of God is that of the Lord the Savior; He is the God of heaven and earth, as He Himself taught. Let your idea of God, then, be like ours, and you shall enter into conjunction with us." When they said this, the faces of the others shone with a bright lustre.
[8] Concerning the immortality of the soul they said: "Man lives for ever, because he is capable of being conjoined with God by means of love and faith; and every one has this capacity. This is the reason of the soul's immortality, as you may understand if you consider the matter a little more deeply.
[9] Concerning regeneration they said: "Every one sees that a man has freedom to think about God or not, provided he has been instructed that there is a God. Thus every man has the same freedom in spiritual as in civil and natural things. The Lord grants this continually to all; and, therefore, a man is to blame if he does not think about God. A man is a man by virtue of this power, whereas a beast is a beast from want of it. Therefore, a man can, as of himself, reform and regenerate himself, provided he acknowledges in heart that he does so from the Lord. Every one who repents and believes on the Lord, is being reformed and regenerated; and a man must do both as of himself, but as of himself means 'from the Lord.' It is true that of himself a man cannot contribute anything whatever to this work; but you were not created statues but men, in order that you may do this from the Lord as of yourselves. This is the only return of love and faith which the Lord expressly desires should be made to Him by man. In short, act of yourselves, and believe that it is from the Lord, for in this way you act as of yourselves."
[10] But then they asked: "Is this power to act as of himself inherent in man from creation?" "It is not inherent," the angel replied, "because to act of oneself belongs to God alone, but it is continually imparted, that is, continually adjoined; and then, so far as a man does good and believes truth as of himself, he is an angel of heaven; but so far as he does evil and consequently believes what is false, also as of himself, he is a spirit of hell. You wonder that he does this, also as of himself; but still you acknowledge that this is the case when you pray that you may be protected from the devil, lest he lead you astray, and enter into you as he entered into Judas, fill you full of all iniquity and destroy both soul and body. Every one is chargeable with wrong who believes that of himself he does either good or evil, but he is not chargeable who believes that he does so as of himself. For if he believes that good is from himself he claims for himself what belongs to God; and if he believes that evil is from himself, he attributes to himself what belongs to the devil."
[11] Concerning baptism they said: "It is a spiritual washing, which is reformation and regeneration. An infant is reformed and regenerated when, on arriving at adult age, he observes what his god-parents promised for him, namely, two things, repentance and faith in God; for they promise firstly, that he shall renounce the devil and all his works; and secondly, that he shall believe on God. All children in heaven are initiated into these two things; but to them the devil is hell, and God is the Lord. Moreover, baptism is a sign before the angels that the person baptized belongs to the Church."
[12] On hearing this, some of the company said: "We understand this." But then a voice was heard near at hand calling out: "We do not understand;" and another, "We have no desire to understand." A search was made and it was found that these words came from those who had confirmed in themselves the falsities of faith, and who wished to be reputed as oracles, and thus to be adored.
Thereupon the angels said: "Do not be surprised; at the present day there are many like these. To us from heaven they appear like graven images so skillfully fashioned that they can move their lips and make sounds like organs. Yet they do not know whether the breath that causes the sounds is from hell or from heaven, because they do not know whether they speak falsity or truth. They argue and confirm their views over and over again, but are never satisfied with their conclusions; for you must know that human ingenuity can confirm whatever it pleases, even making it appear to be true. Heretics and the irreligious can do this, and in fact atheists can prove that there is no God but nature."
[13] After this the company of Englishmen, as the desire to become wise burned within them, said to the angels: "We have heard various opinions concerning the Holy Supper; please tell us what is the truth." The angels replied: "The truth is that a man, who looks to the Lord and repents, is conjoined with the Lord by that most holy rite, and introduced into heaven." But some of the company said, "This is a mystery;" and the angels answered, "It is a mystery, but still one that can be understood. The bread and wine do not bring about this result, nor does anything holy proceed from them; but there is a mutual correspondence between material bread and spiritual bread, and between material wine and spiritual wine. Spiritual bread is the holiness of love, and spiritual wine is the holiness of faith, each being from the Lord, and each being the Lord. Hence there is conjunction of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord; not indeed with the bread and wine, but with the love and faith of the man who has repented; and conjunction with the Lord is also introduction into heaven." After the angels had taught them something about correspondence, some of the company said: "Now for the first time we can understand this also." As they said this, behold! a flaming light coming down from heaven united them with the angels, and they showed their love one to another.
Footnotes:
621. His adjicientur haec MEMORABILIA. PRIMUM; Vidi Caetum Spirituum, omnes super genubus, orantes ad Deum, ut mitteret ad se Angelos, cum quibus loquantur ore ad os, et quibus aperiant cordis sui cogitata; et cum surrexerunt, visi sunt tres Angeli in byssino stantes in conspectu illorum, et dixerunt, audivit Dominus Jesus Christus preces vestras, et ideo nos misit ad vos; aperite nobis cordis vestri cogitata,
[2] et responderunt; dixerunt nobis Sacerdotes, quod in rebus Theologicis non valeat Intellectus sed Fides, et quod Fides Intellectualis in illis non conducat, quia haec trahit et sapit ex homine et non a Deo. Nos sumus Angli, et audivimus plura ex Sacro nostro Ministerio, quae credidimus, sed cum loquuti sumus cum aliis, qui etiam se vocabant Reformatos, et cum aliis qui se vocabant Romano-Catholicos, et porro cum Sectariis, apparebant omnes docti, et tamen in rebus multis non unus consensit cum altero, et usque omnes dixerunt, 1 CREDITE NOBIS, et aliqui, SUMUS MINISTRI DEI, ET SCIMUS: at quia novimus, quod Divinae Veritates, quae vocantur fidei et sunt Ecclesiae, non sint alicui ex Solo natali, nec ex haereditario, sed e Coelo a Deo; et quia illae monstrant viam ad Coelum, ac intrant vitam una cum bono charitatis, et sic ducunt ad vitam aeternam, anxii facti sumus, et super genubus oravimus ad Deum.
[3] Tunc responderunt Angeli, legite Verbum, et credite in Dominum, et videbitis Veritates, quae fidei et vitae vestrae erunt; omnes in Christiano Orbe ex Verbo ut ex unico Fonte hauriunt sua Doctrinalia; at duo ex Caetu dixerunt, legimus sed non intelleximus; et responderunt Angeli, non adivistis Dominum, qui est Verbum, et quoque prius confirmavistis vos in falsis: et porro dixerunt Angeli, quid fides absque luce, et quid cogitare absque intelligere; hoc non est Humanum; corvi et picae etiam possunt discere loqui absque intellectu; possumus vobis asseverare, quod unusquisque homo, cujus anima desiderat, possit videre veritates Verbi in luce; non datur animal, quod non scit suae vitae cibum, dum videt illum, et homo est Animal rationale et spirituale; hic videt suae vitae, non ita corporis, sed animae cibum, qui est verum fidei, si esurit illum, et petit illum a Domino;
[4] quicquid etiam non recipitur intellectu, hoc nec inhaeret memoriae quoad rem, sed solum quoad voces; quare cum despeximus e Coelo in Mundum, non vidimus quicquam, sed modo audivimus sonos, plerosque disharmonicos: sed enumerabimus aliqua, quae Docti e Clero removerunt ab intellectu, non scientes quod binae viae ad Intellectum sint, una e Mundo et altera e Coelo, et quod Dominus subducat intellectum e Mundo, dum illustrat illum; at si Intellectus clauditur ex Religione, clauditur ei via e Coelo, et tunc homo non plus videt in Verbo quam caecus; vidimus plures tales cecidisse in foveas, e quibus non surrexerunt.
[5] Sint Exempla illustrationi, annon intelligere potestis quid Charitas et quid Fides, quod Charitas sit bene cum proximo agere, et quod Fides sit recte de Deo, et de essentialibus Ecclesiae cogitare, et inde quod qui bene agit et recte cogitat, hoc est, qui bene vivit et recte credit, salvetur; ad haec dixerunt quod intelligant.
[6] Porro dixerunt Angeli, quod Poenitentia a peccatis agenda sit, ut homo salvetur, et quod nisi homo poenitentiam agit, maneat in peccatis, in quae natus est, et quod poenitentiam agere sit non velle mala quia sunt contra Deum, ac semel aut bis in anno scrutari se, videre sua mala, confiteri illa coram Domino, implorare opem, desistere ab illis, et vitam novam inire, et quantum hoc facit, et credit in Dominum, tantum peccata remittantur; tunc dixerunt e Caetu, haec intelligimus, et sic etiam quid Remissio peccatorum.
[7] Et tunc rogaverunt Angelos ut informarent illos amplius, et quidem nunc de Deo, de Imortalitate animae, de Regeneratione, et de Baptismo; Angeli ad haec respondebant, non dicemus quicquam nisi quod intelligitis, alioquin cadit sermo noster, sicut pluvia in arenam, et in semina ibi, quae utcunque e Coelo irrigata, usque emarcescunt et pereunt. Et dixerunt de Deo; omnes qui in Coelum veniunt, ibi sortiuntur locum, et inde aeternum gaudium, secundum ideam Dei, quia haec idea universaliter regnat in omnibus Cultus; idea de Deo ut Spiritu, dum spiritus creditur sicut aether aut ventus, est idea inanis; at idea de Deo ut Homine, est idea justa; Deus enim est Divinus Amor et Divina Sapientia, cum omni quali eorum, et horum Subjectum est Homo, et non aether aut ventus; idea Dei in Coelo est idea Domini Salvatoris; Ipse est Deus Coeli et Terrae, ut ipse docuit; sit vestra idea Dei similis nostrae, et consociabimur; cum haec dixerunt, exsplenduerunt facies illorum.
[8] De IMORTALITATE ANIMAE dixerunt; homo vivit in aeternum, quia potest conjungi Deo per amorem et fidem; hoc potest unusquisque; quod hoc Posse faciat imortalitatem animae, potestis intelligere, si aliquantum altius de eo cogitatis.
[9] De REGENERATIONE; quis non videt, quod sit cuivis homini liberum cogitare de Deo, et non cogitare de Illo, modo instructus est, quod Deus sit; ita liberum cuivis est in spiritualibus aeque ut in civilibus et naturalibus; Dominus hoc dat continue omnibus, quare reus fit si non cogitat; homo est homo ex posse hoc, at bestia est bestia ex non posse hoc; quare homo se potest reformare et regenerare sicut a se, modo corde agnoscat, quod sit a Domino; omnis qui poenitentiam agit, et credit in Dominum, reformatur et regeneratur, utrumque faciet homo sicut a se, sed SICUT A SE est a Domino. Verum est, quod homo ex se ad id non quicquam possit conferre, ne hilum, attamen non creati estis statuae, sed creati estis Homines, ut faciatis id a Domino sicut a vobis; hoc unicum reciprocum 2 amoris et fidei est, quod Dominus omnino vult ut fiat Ipsi ab homine; verbo, facite a vobis, et credite quod a Domino, sic facitis sicut a vobis:
[10] at tunc quaesiverunt, num facere sicut a se, sit 3 inditum homini a creatione; respondit Angelus, non inditum est, quia facere a se est Solius Dei, sed datur continue, hoc est adjungitur continue, et tunc quantum homo facit bonum et credit verum sicut a se, est Angelus Coeli, at quantum facit malum et inde credit falsum, quod etiam est sicut a se, tantum est Spiritus Inferni; quod hoc etiam sit sicut a se, miramini, sed usque videtis hoc, dum oratis ut a diabolo custodiamini ne vos seducat, ne intret in vos sicut in Judam, impleat vos omni iniquitate, ac destruat et animam et corpus; sed omnis reus fit, qui credit quod faciat a se, sive sit bonum sive sit malum, sed non reus fit qui credit quod faciat sicut a se; nam si credit quod bonum sit a se, vindicat sibi id quod Dei est; et si credit quod malum sit a se, attribuit sibi id quod diaboli est.
[11] DE BAPTISMO dixerunt, quod sit Lavatio spiritualis, quae est Reformatio et Regeneratio, et quod Infans reformetur et regeneretur, dum adultus factus facit illa, quae Patrini pro illo spoponderunt, quae sunt duo, Poenitentia et Fides in Deum; nam PRIMUM spondent, ut abdicet diabolum et omnia ejus opera; SECUNDUM, ut credat in Deum; omnes Infantes in Coelo in illa duo initiantur, sed his diabolus est infernum, ac Deus est Dominus: praeterea Baptismus est signum coram Angelis, quod homo sit ab Ecclesia: his auditis dixerunt e Caetu, haec intelligimus.
[12] Sed tunc audita est vox a latere, clamans, non intelligimus, et alia vox, non volumus intelligere; et inquisitum a quibus illae voces, et compertum quod ab illis, qui apud se confirmaverunt falsa fidei, et qui voluerunt credi ut oracula, et sic adorari; dixerunt Angeli, ne miremini; tales sunt hodie permulti; apparent nobis e Coelo sicut Sculptilia tali arte facta, ut possint movere labia, ac sonare sicut organa, et non sciunt, num halitus, ex quo sonant, ex Inferno sit, vel num e Coelo, quia non sciunt num falsum sit, vel Numeri verum; ratiocinantur et ratiocinantur, tum confirmant et confirmant, nec vident quicquam Numeri ita sit: sed sciatis quod Ingenium humanum possit confirmare quicquid vult, usque ut appareat sicut ita sit, quare hoc possunt haeretici, hoc impii, imo athei quod Deus non sit sed Natura sola.
[13] Post hac Caetus ille ex Anglis accensus desiderio sapiendi, dixit ad Angelos, loquuntur tam varia de SACRA COENA; dicite nobis quid Veritas; responderunt Angeli, Veritas est, quod homo, qui spectat ad Dominum, et poenitentiam agit, per sanctissimum illud conjungatur Domino, ac introducatur in Coelum; sed dixerunt e Caetu, hoc mysterium est, et responderunt Angeli, est mysterium, sed usque tale, ut possit intelligi; Panis et Vinum hoc non faciunt; non aliquid sanctum est ab illis, sed correspondent sibi mutuo Panis Materialis et Panis spiritualis, ac Vinum materiale et Vinum spirituale, et Panis spiritualis est Sanctum amoris, et Vinum spirituale est Sanctum fidei, utrumque a Domino, et utrumque Dominus, inde conjunctio Domini cum homine, et hominis cum Domino, non cum pane et vino, sed cum amore et fide hominis qui poenitentiam egerat, et conjunctio cum Domino est quoque introductio in Coelum; et postquam Angeli docuerunt illos aliquid de Correspondentia, dixerunt e Caetu, nunc primum etiam hoc possumus intelligere; et cum hoc dixerunt, ecce flammeum e Coelo cum luce descendens consociavit illos cum Angelis, et amaverunt se mutuo.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: dixerunt.
2. Prima editio: reciproeum.
3. Sic Apocalypsis Revelata 224. Prima editio: fit.