ACV9 6724 When a man is being reformed, he is kept by the Lord as to his internal in good and truth, but as to his external he is let into his evils and falsities, consequently among infernal spirits who are in these evils and falsities. 6726 The waters compassed me about even to the soul; the deep was round about me, the sedge [here seaweed] was bound about my head (Jonah 2:5); in this prophetic utterance is described a state of temptations; “the waters which compassed even to the soul” denote falsities (that “inundations of waters” denote temptations and… Read more »
I’m being kind to myself in terms of embedding LP. I reread the reminders from David in respect of the 14 days of an LP reading cycle, to help me see more clearly what is recommended in my Practice. I free range when I process, so it’s challenging to bring only the salient points from my journal experience of the Task to the table for group work. I’m flagging up that I had my Task conversations with my husband, and that marriage is a cornerstone of New Church teaching. He is not New Church. I will share my experience with… Read more »
Gray Glenn
November 23, 2023 1:28 pm
AC 6697…That the earths [human bodies] which are visible to our [my] eyes, being within the boundaries of this solar system [of what the Divine has provided for the experience of existence], are earths [human beings] may be clearly known from the fact that they are bodies of earthy material, because they reflect the sun’s light [Lord’s Life]; also that they, like our earth [my body], revolve around the sun [revolve within the Lord’s Providence], and thereby make years and seasons of the year-spring, summer, autumn, and winter [thereby go through states in orderly sequence]-with variation according to climate [with… Read more »
Judy & Len Robinson
November 23, 2023 10:05 am
ACV9S4-Judy #6705….”Hence the doctrine of their church contained the laws of life, and hence they saw of what quality was this or that man of the church whom they called “brother,” but with a distinction in the internal sense in accordance with his exercise of charity from the genuine doctrine of the church, or from the doctrine as changed by himself; for as everyone desires to appear blameless, he defends his own life, and therefore either explains or changes the laws of doctrine in his own favor.” Principle: True Doctrine can only come from the Lord alone. Task: To observe… Read more »
6711. But those who do not love themselves more than others – which is true of everyone belonging to the Lord’s kingdom – will make the origin of the neighbour reside in Him whom they ought to love above all else, that is, in the Lord. And they will see the neighbour in all others according to the nature of their love for Him. People therefore who love others as themselves, and especially those who, like the angels, love others more than themselves, all make the origin of the neighbour reside in the Lord; for good has the Lord Himself… Read more »
Summary: I came across a video on gratefulness a few years ago, based on Brother David Steindl-Rast’s message on the importance of appreciating life and expressing gratitude. (You can see the the video on the home page of https://grateful.org/ Just look for the video-play-icon next to ‘A grateful day’ at the bottom-right-hand-corner of the top image of the page.) In exploring the website which brings hope and trust to life, one can see that this work is in alignment with feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty and clothing the naked. Yesterday I was looking at the beautiful orchid… Read more »
6712…everyone is the neighbour in the degree in which he is near the Lord Principle: I am in the neighbour when I am in the work of self-observation and repentance. Task: To observe the neighbour and the opposite of the neighbour within myself through my spiritual work, or lack thereof and see what insights come. Submission: I noticed my unwillingness to be in the neighbour when I observed the love of self and lack of self-observation and repentance in hindsight. However,0 I did notice my attempts at a neighbour state when the proprial sense of self was attacked by someone… Read more »
Michael Lock
November 20, 2023 12:29 am
EXTRACT CHOSEN FOR ME: AC6699 ‘I have sometimes seen as it were a great continuous stream, at a considerable distance to the right, in the plane of the sole of the foot; and it was said by angels that they who come from the worlds come that way, and that they appear as a stream by reason of their multitude. From the size and rapidity of the stream I could judge that some myriads of men flow to it daily. From this also it has been given me to know that the planets are very numerous.’ PRINCIPLES THAT APPEAR TO… Read more »
Denyse Daurat
November 16, 2023 6:30 am
6709 Since the character of people’s good determines the different ways in which each person is the neighbor, love is the determining factor in those differences. For no form of good is possible which is not the good of some love; every form of good springs from love and derives its character from it.
Task: Ponder the meaning of this.
6705 Hence the doctrine of their church contained the laws of life, and hence they saw of what quality was this or that man of the church whom they called “brother,” but with a distinction in the internal sense in accordance with his exercise of charity from the genuine doctrine of the church, or from the doctrine as changed by himself; for as everyone desires to appear blameless, he defends his own life, and therefore either explains or changes the laws of doctrine in his own favour. 6709. As it is the quality of the good which determines how everyone is… Read more »
I don’t seem to have gone anywhere too much this session. I have enjoyed concentrating on loving, and because of friends in difficult situations I have found that easier to follow than maybe otherwise. I have tried to help practically and with prayer and healing. I have also gone back a lot into old memories of my childhood in thinking about my mother and preparing for her funeral so that seems appropriate with the emphasis on memory knowledges. I remember my mother talking to me about Jesus and heaven quite a lot. And when I was four years old, I was persuaded… Read more »
AC 6698… the visible universe, resplendent with countless stars, is so immense, and yet is only a means to the ultimate end of creation, which is a heavenly kingdom, in which the Divine can dwell. For the visible universe is a means for the existence of earths, and of men upon them, from whom is the heavenly kingdom. 6700. As regards the Divine worship of the inhabitants of other earths, all who are not idolaters acknowledge the Lord as the only God. They do not indeed know, except very few, that the Lord assumed the Human in this earth and… Read more »
Submission Experiences of the stars aligning. The pressure on the stars when they fall into self-attribution of life, like falling stars. A beautiful, moving, seeing of alignments … The earth where the Word is ultimated as it sits in the 70% body of water and to the appearances, it is encased or enveloped by the starry dome or sphere of the universe ….. And this starry dome contains all the variations and permutations of the human form and the mixtures therein- all the different others, the states of the neighbours … like the bituminated encasing of the ark. The ever-returning state… Read more »
Janna King
November 14, 2023 3:38 am
AC 6700 …When told by the spirits of our earth that the Lord took upon Himself the Human in this earth, they mused a while, and presently said that this was done for the sake of the salvation of the human race; Principle: Love of what is good unites. Truth apart from good divides. Task: None but a very few know that the Lord assumed a human on our planet. Appreciate the rarity of those who will be part of the church specific, and do not grieve this or rail against the Lord’s mercy. In what sense is conformity important… Read more »
Last edited 1 year ago by Janna King
Mandy Millar
November 12, 2023 12:46 pm
6713 In this chapter in the internal sense the subject treated of is truth Divine, its beginnings and successive states with the man of the church.
Task: Gather the knowledges and facts of the reading offered so they may form an “ark of rush” that the beginnings of truth Divine may be placed. Be heedful and pay attention to successive states.
Submission: Reading the first part of the inhabitants of other earths was interesting to note the states that arose. A state of an affirmative belief of not judging appearances opened the possibility and birthing of new life (the midwife) of what this could be within. A state of a negative belief that rejected it as worthless because it doesn’t make sense, shut down and inhibited the birthing of new life and possibility of what it could be within (Pharaoh). The inmost of the Lord is continually flowing and working into the externals. The practice of this life being experienced as an awareness… Read more »
Liz Coggins
November 11, 2023 3:36 pm
6696: there are spirits who in the grand man bear relation to the memory, and they are from the planet Mercury. They are allowed to wander about, and acquire knowledges of things that are in the universe; and they are also allowed to pass out of this solar system into others. They have said that there are planets, with men upon them… Task: I find this exciting, and wonder how it relates to my own interiors. The solar system in the physical world is only a fraction of the known universe, so there is a sense of immensity, and something whose boundaries… Read more »
Submission: Swedenborg talks of the internal memory as our ‘book of life’, so again, (and eternally), the task is of looking into the historical and unconscious store of events, relationships and reactions that are tainted by sin and self-love, and trying to sincerely identify, acknowledge, and repent them. When this is even partially done the internal seems less cluttered, with more possible options. But probably what was really new this time is the wonderful experience of interior vastness and space, having a picture of it and holding onto that. I think my view has been quite limited, and vague –… Read more »
AC 6724 When a man is being reformed, he is kept by the Lord as to his internal in good and truth, but as to his external he is let into his evils and falsities, consequently among infernal spirits who are in these evils and falsities. These hover round him, and endeavor by every method to destroy him. But the good and truth which flow in through the internal render him so safe that the infernal spirits cannot do him the least harm; for that which acts inwardly prevails immeasurably over that which acts outwardly; because what is interior, in… Read more »
So, what came up in this session was a return to an examination of what is the “Church”, “in me”, as laid out in 6637 and the rest of Chapter 1 through 6711. “The Church, (in me) is (supposed to be) the Church from spiritual good and from derivative truths. He who is not in spiritual good, that is, in the good of charity, and in spiritual truths, that is, in the truths of faith, is not of the church, in spite of his having been born within it. For the whole heavenly kingdom of the Lord is in the… Read more »
ACV9 6724 When a man is being reformed, he is kept by the Lord as to his internal in good and truth, but as to his external he is let into his evils and falsities, consequently among infernal spirits who are in these evils and falsities. 6726 The waters compassed me about even to the soul; the deep was round about me, the sedge [here seaweed] was bound about my head (Jonah 2:5); in this prophetic utterance is described a state of temptations; “the waters which compassed even to the soul” denote falsities (that “inundations of waters” denote temptations and… Read more »
I’m being kind to myself in terms of embedding LP. I reread the reminders from David in respect of the 14 days of an LP reading cycle, to help me see more clearly what is recommended in my Practice. I free range when I process, so it’s challenging to bring only the salient points from my journal experience of the Task to the table for group work. I’m flagging up that I had my Task conversations with my husband, and that marriage is a cornerstone of New Church teaching. He is not New Church. I will share my experience with… Read more »
AC 6697…That the earths [human bodies] which are visible to our [my] eyes, being within the boundaries of this solar system [of what the Divine has provided for the experience of existence], are earths [human beings] may be clearly known from the fact that they are bodies of earthy material, because they reflect the sun’s light [Lord’s Life]; also that they, like our earth [my body], revolve around the sun [revolve within the Lord’s Providence], and thereby make years and seasons of the year-spring, summer, autumn, and winter [thereby go through states in orderly sequence]-with variation according to climate [with… Read more »
ACV9S4-Judy #6705….”Hence the doctrine of their church contained the laws of life, and hence they saw of what quality was this or that man of the church whom they called “brother,” but with a distinction in the internal sense in accordance with his exercise of charity from the genuine doctrine of the church, or from the doctrine as changed by himself; for as everyone desires to appear blameless, he defends his own life, and therefore either explains or changes the laws of doctrine in his own favor.” Principle: True Doctrine can only come from the Lord alone. Task: To observe… Read more »
6711. But those who do not love themselves more than others – which is true of everyone belonging to the Lord’s kingdom – will make the origin of the neighbour reside in Him whom they ought to love above all else, that is, in the Lord. And they will see the neighbour in all others according to the nature of their love for Him. People therefore who love others as themselves, and especially those who, like the angels, love others more than themselves, all make the origin of the neighbour reside in the Lord; for good has the Lord Himself… Read more »
Summary: I came across a video on gratefulness a few years ago, based on Brother David Steindl-Rast’s message on the importance of appreciating life and expressing gratitude. (You can see the the video on the home page of https://grateful.org/ Just look for the video-play-icon next to ‘A grateful day’ at the bottom-right-hand-corner of the top image of the page.) In exploring the website which brings hope and trust to life, one can see that this work is in alignment with feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty and clothing the naked. Yesterday I was looking at the beautiful orchid… Read more »
6712…everyone is the neighbour in the degree in which he is near the Lord Principle: I am in the neighbour when I am in the work of self-observation and repentance. Task: To observe the neighbour and the opposite of the neighbour within myself through my spiritual work, or lack thereof and see what insights come. Submission: I noticed my unwillingness to be in the neighbour when I observed the love of self and lack of self-observation and repentance in hindsight. However,0 I did notice my attempts at a neighbour state when the proprial sense of self was attacked by someone… Read more »
EXTRACT CHOSEN FOR ME: AC6699 ‘I have sometimes seen as it were a great continuous stream, at a considerable distance to the right, in the plane of the sole of the foot; and it was said by angels that they who come from the worlds come that way, and that they appear as a stream by reason of their multitude. From the size and rapidity of the stream I could judge that some myriads of men flow to it daily. From this also it has been given me to know that the planets are very numerous.’ PRINCIPLES THAT APPEAR TO… Read more »
6709 Since the character of people’s good determines the different ways in which each person is the neighbor, love is the determining factor in those differences. For no form of good is possible which is not the good of some love; every form of good springs from love and derives its character from it.
Task: Ponder the meaning of this.
6705 Hence the doctrine of their church contained the laws of life, and hence they saw of what quality was this or that man of the church whom they called “brother,” but with a distinction in the internal sense in accordance with his exercise of charity from the genuine doctrine of the church, or from the doctrine as changed by himself; for as everyone desires to appear blameless, he defends his own life, and therefore either explains or changes the laws of doctrine in his own favour. 6709. As it is the quality of the good which determines how everyone is… Read more »
I don’t seem to have gone anywhere too much this session. I have enjoyed concentrating on loving, and because of friends in difficult situations I have found that easier to follow than maybe otherwise. I have tried to help practically and with prayer and healing. I have also gone back a lot into old memories of my childhood in thinking about my mother and preparing for her funeral so that seems appropriate with the emphasis on memory knowledges. I remember my mother talking to me about Jesus and heaven quite a lot. And when I was four years old, I was persuaded… Read more »
AC 6698… the visible universe, resplendent with countless stars, is so immense, and yet is only a means to the ultimate end of creation, which is a heavenly kingdom, in which the Divine can dwell. For the visible universe is a means for the existence of earths, and of men upon them, from whom is the heavenly kingdom. 6700. As regards the Divine worship of the inhabitants of other earths, all who are not idolaters acknowledge the Lord as the only God. They do not indeed know, except very few, that the Lord assumed the Human in this earth and… Read more »
Submission Experiences of the stars aligning. The pressure on the stars when they fall into self-attribution of life, like falling stars. A beautiful, moving, seeing of alignments … The earth where the Word is ultimated as it sits in the 70% body of water and to the appearances, it is encased or enveloped by the starry dome or sphere of the universe ….. And this starry dome contains all the variations and permutations of the human form and the mixtures therein- all the different others, the states of the neighbours … like the bituminated encasing of the ark. The ever-returning state… Read more »
AC 6700 …When told by the spirits of our earth that the Lord took upon Himself the Human in this earth, they mused a while, and presently said that this was done for the sake of the salvation of the human race; Principle: Love of what is good unites. Truth apart from good divides. Task: None but a very few know that the Lord assumed a human on our planet. Appreciate the rarity of those who will be part of the church specific, and do not grieve this or rail against the Lord’s mercy. In what sense is conformity important… Read more »
6713 In this chapter in the internal sense the subject treated of is truth Divine, its beginnings and successive states with the man of the church.
Task: Gather the knowledges and facts of the reading offered so they may form an “ark of rush” that the beginnings of truth Divine may be placed. Be heedful and pay attention to successive states.
Submission: Reading the first part of the inhabitants of other earths was interesting to note the states that arose. A state of an affirmative belief of not judging appearances opened the possibility and birthing of new life (the midwife) of what this could be within. A state of a negative belief that rejected it as worthless because it doesn’t make sense, shut down and inhibited the birthing of new life and possibility of what it could be within (Pharaoh). The inmost of the Lord is continually flowing and working into the externals. The practice of this life being experienced as an awareness… Read more »
6696: there are spirits who in the grand man bear relation to the memory, and they are from the planet Mercury. They are allowed to wander about, and acquire knowledges of things that are in the universe; and they are also allowed to pass out of this solar system into others. They have said that there are planets, with men upon them… Task: I find this exciting, and wonder how it relates to my own interiors. The solar system in the physical world is only a fraction of the known universe, so there is a sense of immensity, and something whose boundaries… Read more »
Submission: Swedenborg talks of the internal memory as our ‘book of life’, so again, (and eternally), the task is of looking into the historical and unconscious store of events, relationships and reactions that are tainted by sin and self-love, and trying to sincerely identify, acknowledge, and repent them. When this is even partially done the internal seems less cluttered, with more possible options. But probably what was really new this time is the wonderful experience of interior vastness and space, having a picture of it and holding onto that. I think my view has been quite limited, and vague –… Read more »
AC 6724 When a man is being reformed, he is kept by the Lord as to his internal in good and truth, but as to his external he is let into his evils and falsities, consequently among infernal spirits who are in these evils and falsities. These hover round him, and endeavor by every method to destroy him. But the good and truth which flow in through the internal render him so safe that the infernal spirits cannot do him the least harm; for that which acts inwardly prevails immeasurably over that which acts outwardly; because what is interior, in… Read more »
So, what came up in this session was a return to an examination of what is the “Church”, “in me”, as laid out in 6637 and the rest of Chapter 1 through 6711. “The Church, (in me) is (supposed to be) the Church from spiritual good and from derivative truths. He who is not in spiritual good, that is, in the good of charity, and in spiritual truths, that is, in the truths of faith, is not of the church, in spite of his having been born within it. For the whole heavenly kingdom of the Lord is in the… Read more »