79、我们说，凡一个人出于自由照着他的思维所行的，都是永久的，因为凡一个人已经归给自己的东西，都是无法根除的。它已经成为他的爱，同时他的理性，或他的意愿，同时他的理解力，因而他生命的一部分。事实上，它能被移走，但不能被根除。当被移走时，可以说它从中心被转移到周边，在那里住下来，这就是“永久”的意思。
例如，如果一个人在青少年和成年早期因出于爱的享受而行了某种邪恶，如欺诈、亵渎、报复或奸淫，由于这些事是出于自由照着他的思维而行的，所以他将它们变成自己的一部分；但如果他后来悔改了，避开它们并视之为必须恨恶的罪，从而出于自由照着理性避免作这些恶，那么与它们对立的良善就会归给他。那时，这些良善构成中心，并照着他厌恶和远离这些邪恶的程度而把它们移到越来越远的周边。然而，邪恶仍无法被逐出到根除的地步，尽管它们看似被根除，这一切是通过主使人避免作恶，并将他保持在良善中实现的。人的一切遗传之恶和一切实际邪恶都是这种情况。
此外，我曾看见这一点被天堂里的一些人的经历所证明，这些人以为他们摆脱了邪恶，因为他们被主保持在良善中。但为了防止他们认为他们实际拥有了他们正在享有的良善，他们从天堂下来，被带回到他们的邪恶中，直到他们最终认识到，凭自己，他们只会沉浸于邪恶，但靠着主被保持在良善中。一旦认识到这一点，他们就被带回天堂。
很重要的是，要知道，这些良善只有在永远属于人里面的主的意义上才会变成他的一部分。人承认这一点到何等程度，主就在何等程度上允许他体验到良善是他自己的，也就是说，在他看来，似乎是他自己在爱邻舍，或拥有仁爱，似乎是他自己相信或拥有信仰，似乎是他自己在实行良善和理解真理，因而似乎是他自己有智慧。凡被光照的人由此都能看出主愿意人所享有的这种表象的性质和力量；主愿意这样是为了拯救人；因为没有这种表象，没有人能得救。关于这个主题，可参看前面的说明（42-45节）。
79. We say that what a person does in freedom in accordance with his thought also remains. For nothing whatever that a person has attached to himself can be eradicated, as it has been made part of his love and at the same time of his reason, or of his will and at the same time of his intellect, and so part of his life. This can indeed be moved aside, but still it cannot be cast out. And when it is moved aside, it is transferred as though from the center to the peripheries, and there stays. This is what we mean by its remaining.
[2] So, for example, if a person in his childhood and youth attached to himself some evil by doing it out of a delight of his love - if, for instance, he defrauded, blasphemed, took revenge, or behaved licentiously - then because he did these things in freedom in accordance with his thought, he also attached them to him. But if he afterward repents, refrains from them, and views them as sins to be shunned, and so in freedom in accordance with his reason desists from them, then he has attached to him the goods of which those evils were the opposite. These goods then form the center, and they move the evils toward the peripheries, moving them further and further according to the person's aversion to and rejection of them. But still they cannot be so cast out as to be said to be eradicated. Nevertheless, by their being moved aside they can appear as though eradicated. This is achieved by the person's being withheld from evils by the Lord and kept engaged in goods. Such is the case with all hereditary evil and likewise with all a person's actual evil.
[3] I have also seen this attested by my experience with some people in heaven who, because they were kept by the Lord in a state of good, thought themselves to be without any evils. But to prevent them from believing that the state of good in which they were was their own, they were sent down from heaven and conveyed back into their evils, until they acknowledged that they were of themselves impelled by evils, but by the Lord were impelled by goods. And after that acknowledgment they were taken back into heaven.
[4] Be it known, therefore, that these goods become attached to a person only in such a way as to be constantly the Lord's in the person, and that to the extent a person acknowledges this, the Lord grants that the good appear to the person to be his, that is to say, that it appear to the person that he loves his neighbor or has charity as though of himself, that he believes or has faith as though of himself, and that he does good and understands truth, thus is wise, as though of himself. An enlightened person can see from this the nature and force of the appearance in which the Lord wills a person to be. And the Lord wills it for the sake of the person's salvation, as no one can be saved without this appearance.
On this subject see also what we showed in nos. 42-45 above.
79. We say that whatever we do freely and in keeping with our thought is permanent because nothing we make part of ourselves can be eliminated. It has become part of both our love and our reasoning, part of both our volition and our discernment, that is, and therefore part of our life. Actually, it can be displaced, but it still cannot be ousted. When it is displaced, it is moved from the center to the periphery, and there it dwells. This is what "being permanent" means.
[2] For example, suppose that in youth and early maturity we have taken into ourselves a pattern of doing something wrong because of the pleasure it gives to our love--cheating, perhaps, or blasphemy, or revenge, or promiscuity. Since we have done so freely, in keeping with our thought, we have made this part of ourselves. Later, though, if we repent, turn away from this behavior, and regard it as sin that is to be rejected, and therefore refrain from it freely and rationally, then we make part of ourselves the good behavior that is opposite to the evil. This good behavior then takes its place in the center and moves the evil toward the periphery, farther and farther out depending on our distaste for and rejection of it. The evil still cannot be ousted to the point of being uprooted, even though it may seem to be so. What is happening is that the Lord is restraining us from the evil behavior and keeping us in the good. This is what happens with all the evil we inherit and with all the evil we act out.
[3] I have seen things that bore witness to this in some people in heaven, people who thought they were free of evils because the Lord was keeping them involved in what is good. To prevent them from thinking that they actually owned the good qualities they were enjoying, they were let down from heaven and back into their evils until finally they recognized that on their own, they were immersed in evils, but were being held in what is good by the Lord. Once they recognized this, they were brought back into heaven.
[4] It is important to know also that these good qualities are made part of us only as long as they are the Lord's within us. To the extent that we recognize this, the Lord allows us to experience the goodness as our own, so that it seems to us as though we ourselves love our neighbor or are truly considerate, as though we ourselves have faith, and do what is good and understand what is true, as though we ourselves are therefore wise. Such examples help us see the nature and the strength of the appearance the Lord wants us to enjoy for the sake of our salvation; for without this appearance, none of us could be saved.
On this subject, see also 42-45 above.
79. What a man does from freedom according to his thought is also said to remain with him, since nothing that a man has appropriated to himself can be eradicated; for it has come to be of his love and at the same time of his reason, that is, of his will and at the same time of his understanding, and consequently of his life. This can be removed indeed, but still it cannot be expelled; and when it is removed it is transferred as it were from the centre to the circumference, and there it stays. This is what is meant by its remaining.
[2] For instance, if a man in his boyhood and youth has appropriated to himself a certain evil by doing it from the delight of his love, such as fraud, blasphemy, revenge or adultery; and if he has committed those evils from freedom according to thought, he has indeed appropriated them to himself; but if he afterwards repents, shuns them and regards them as sins that are to be abhorred, and so from freedom according to reason desists from them, then there are appropriated to him the good principles to which those evils are opposed. These good principles then constitute the centre, and they remove the evils towards the circumference further and further as he abhors and turns away from them. Still, however, they cannot be so expelled that they can be said to be extirpated, although by their removal they may appear to be extirpated. This results from man being withheld from evil and being held in good by the Lord. All man's hereditary evil as well as his actual evil may be treated in this way.
[3] Moreover, I have seen this proved by experience with some in heaven, who thought they were free from evil because they were held in good by the Lord; but lest they should believe that the good in which they were was their own, they were sent down from heaven and again let into their evils, until they acknowledged that they were in evils from themselves but in good from the Lord. After this acknowledgment they were led back to heaven.
[4] It should be known, therefore, that such good is appropriated to man only in the sense that it is always the Lord's in man; and that so far as man acknowledges this the Lord grants that the good may appear to man to be his own; that is, that it may appear to man that he loves the neighbour or has charity as from himself, that he believes or has faith as from himself that he does good and understands truth, and thus is wise, as from himself. From these considerations one who is enlightened may see the nature and the strength of the appearance in which the Lord wills that man should be; and the Lord wills this for the sake of his salvation; for without this appearance no one can be saved. On this subject see also what has been shown above (n. 42-45).
79. It is said that whatever one does from freedom in accordance with his thought remains, since nothing that a man has appropriated to himself can be eradicated; for it has come to be of his love and at the same time of his reason, or of his will and at the same time of his understanding, and consequently of his life. It can be removed, but it cannot be eliminated; and when removed it is as it were transferred from the center to the circumference, and there it stays. This is what is meant by its remaining.
[2] For instance, if a man in his boyhood and youth has appropriated to himself a certain evil by doing it from the enjoyment of his love, like fraud or blasphemy or revenge or whoredom, as these things have been done from freedom in accordance with his thought, he has appropriated them to himself; but if he afterwards repents of them, shuns them, and looks upon them as sins that must be hated, and thus refrains from them from freedom in accordance with reason, then the good things to which those evils are opposed are appropriated to him. These goods then constitute the center and remove the evils toward the circumferences further and further, to the extent that he loathes and turns away from them. Nevertheless, they cannot be so cast out as to be said to be extirpated, although by such removal they may appear to be extirpated, which is effected by man's being withheld from evils and held in goods by the Lord. This is true both of all man's inherited evil and of all his actual evil.
[3] Moreover, I have seen this proved by experience with some in heaven who thought themselves to be free from evils because they were held in good by the Lord. But lest these should believe the good in which they were to be their own, they were let down from heaven and again let into their evils, until they acknowledged that from themselves they were in evils, but from the Lord were in goods. After this acknowledgment they were led back into heaven.
[4] Let it be understood, therefore, that these goods are appropriated to man only in the sense that they are always the Lord's in man; and that so far as man acknowledges this the Lord grants that the good may appear to man to be his, that is, that it may appear to man that he loves the neighbor or has charity as if from himself, that he believes or has faith as if from himself, that he does good and understands truths and thus is wise as if from himself. From all this any one who is enlightened can see the nature and strength of the appearance in which the Lord wills man to be; and this the Lord wills for the sake of man's salvation; for without this appearance no one could be saved. On this subject see what has been shown above (42-45).
79. Dicitur quod id quod homo ex libero secundum cogitationem suam facit, etiam remaneat; nam nihil quicquam quod homo sibi appropriavit, eradicari potest, factum enim est amoris et simul rationis ejus, seu voluntatis et simul intellectus ejus, et inde vitae ejus: potest hoc quidem removeri, sed usque non ejici; et cum removetur, transfertur 1sicut a centro ad peripherias, et ibi moratur: hoc intelligitur per quod remaneat.
[2] Ut pro exemplo; si homo in pueritia et adolescentia appropriaverit sibi quoddam malum faciendo id ex jucundo amoris ejus, ut si defraudaverit, blasphemaverit, vindicaverit, scortatus sit, tunc quia ex libero secundum cogitationem fecerat illa, etiam appropriavit illa sibi; at si postea poenitentiam agit, fugit illa, et aspicit illa ut peccata quae aversanda sunt, et sic ex libero secundum rationem desistit ab illis, tunc appropriantur illi bona, quibus mala illa opposita sunt; haec bona tunc centrum faciunt, et removent mala versus peripherias, ulterius et ulterius secundum aversionem et aversationem illorum; at usque illa non possunt ita ejici, ut dici queant exstirpata; sed usque per remotionem illam apparere possunt sicut exstirpata; quod fit per quod homo a Domino detineatur a malis, et teneatur in bonis: ita fit cum omni malo haereditario, et similiter cum omni malo actuali hominis.
[3] Hoc quoque testatum vidi per experientiam apud aliquos in Coelo, qui quia a Domino tenebantur in bono, putabant se absque malis esse; sed ne crederent [quod] bonum, in quo erant, illorum proprium esset, demissi sunt e coelo, et remissi in sua mala, usque dum agnoscerent quod in malis essent a se, sed in bonis a Domino; post quam agnitionem in coelum reducti sunt.
[4] Sciatur itaque, quod bona illa non aliter approprientur homini, quam quod constanter sint Domini apud hominem, et quod quantum homo hoc agnoscit, tantum det Dominus, ut bonum appareat homini sicut ejus, hoc est, ut appareat homini amare proximum seu habere charitatem sicut a se, credere seu fidem habere sicut a se, facere bonum ac intelligere verum, ita sapere, sicut a se; ex quibus illustratus videre potest, qualis est et quam fortis est apparentia, in qua Dominus vult ut homo sit, et hoc vult Dominus propter salvationem ejus, nam nemo absque illa apparentia salvari potest. De his etiam videantur quae supra 42-45, ostensa sunt.
Footnotes:
1 Prima editio: ttansfertur