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Review Summary: It has the ring of truth... |
Date: 2008-11-25 |
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Details: Every time I pick up Heaven and Hell I am a amazed at how much sense it makes. And not just in a logical way but in that deep down calm "it just seems right and true" kind of way. I have never had an NDE, but I have studied religious, philosophical and mystical literature for a long time and this one is a true gem. It's conservative and simple on one hand but reaches beyond the regular dogma of mainstream Christianity on the other, with a modern (from the 1700's?) perspective similar to many near death visions of today. Highly recommended for anyone. |
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Review Summary: Start Here |
Date: 2008-11-13 |
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Details: If you are interested in Swedenborg, I would start here, with this beautifully written peek into to what happens after you die. Concrete, gorgeous imagery, and poetic vistas weave a complete and transcendent view of heaven and hell. This translation, (from the original Latin) is beautifully wrought and a pleasure to read. |
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Review Summary: A Great Spiritual Classic! |
Date: 2008-06-16 |
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Details: Simply put: friends don't let friends go into the "Light" without reading Emanuel Swedenborg.
Swedenborg wrote over 30 volumes of work, so figuring out where to dive into this ocean of material can be confusing. "Heaven and Hell" is a great place to start. Have you ever wondered about what Heaven looks like or what goes on there? If you have ever been curious about Angels and what they spend their time doing, you will have all these questions and more answered in this detailed account. Did God create hell so there would be a place to send sinners to be punished? Swedenborg says, "No." God does not punish or judge anyone. God is pure love and incapable of even frowning in our direction. Want to know who created hell and who goes there? You have to buy the book....
I highly recommend this book to anyone having a human experience. |
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Review Summary: How to belive this? No animals or other Creation? |
Date: 2008-03-30 |
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Details: I have read several of Swedenborg's works and was charmed by the ideals. The visions of the conversations in beautiful gardens are lovely. The hells are plausible. However the gardens must be silent ones. The gardens mere mirages. Swedenborg is highly human-centric and gives animals short shrift indeed. They are merely "souless beasts" that when dead are just that. Dead. No animals, no plants and long winded human converstions forever are my ideas of pure hell. That said, there is much good in the ideas presentd by Swedenborg and they are very profitable reading, the ideas of service should be acted upon. Those who have had near death experiences will be able to relate well. I suppose that if indeed he did have these experiences he was in his ideal of heaven. However heavens that do not include all of God's creation are sadly incomplete indeed. |
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Review Summary: A thought provoking book |
Date: 2008-02-19 |
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Details: I first became acquainted with Emanuel Swedenborg, through Helen Keller's book, My Religion. Eventually my daughter and I were baptized in The New Church.
There are different interpretations to Swedenborg's writings, but here are a few basic ideas.
*Swedenborg did not want a church started in his name. He thought it would be better if his writings were incorporated into the existing churches.
His church did not exist when he was alive.
*Evil exists because it helps you understand what is good.
*One basic purpose in life is to be USEFUL to others.
*Hell is not for ever. If you end up there you can get out.
*There are different levels to hell and heaven.
*The traditional concept of trinity is wrong. It divides God too much.
Swedenborg communicated with different spirits. He believed that it was useful to analyzed dreams. Swedenborg believed that different religions led to God. For most of this life Swedenborg was a scientist, who worked for the king of Sweden. Latter in life he had a spiritually awakening. He was a genius, ahead of his time.
I have also read True Christian Religion volumes I & II as well. I am not a scholar on Swedenborg, but I have studied him since the 1980's. Not everyone in his church believes in the conclusions that I have come to.
Many of the twelve step program ideas are from Swedenborg's teachings.
Another person influenced by Swedenborg was Martin Luther King Jr.
Recently his library collection was sold by Sotheby's New York. In his collection was Emerson's book, A Modern Man Anthology, in it Mr. King wrote:
"Swedenborg enables us to understand why we were created, why we are alive and what happens to us after we die. Swedenborg enables us to have the best possible understanding of God's message as it exists in those Bible books which constitute God's word."
If you decide to read Swedenborg, be sure to obtain a good translation.
George Dole is a good translator.
Swedenborg is not easy to understand, it is a challenge to read his writings.
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out of 25 Reviews
