Smyrna times., 1893-01-18
A View of Heaven.
THE REV. THOMAS A. KING DESCRIBES
THE swEDENBORGIAN DOCTRINE.

Sutro hall, Baltimore, sunday, upon
the Swedenborgian doctrine of Heaven
What it is and Where it Isl the Rec
ognition of Friends After Death"
Mr. King said we live in an intel
lectual age, and the growth of intel
lectual manhood has put the rational |
mind in doubt as to the nature of the |
human soul and its immortality; that |
religion in the past has ignored this
great element of reason. He stated u
rational age had to come before God
could reveal the doctaines OF the new
church, because man was formerly
ignorant of the great secrets of creation
and the natural laws of the universe.
"The doctrine" he continued, "Of
the new church concerning Heaven is
scripitural, rationslistic andphilosoph-
ical. Where is Heaven? 1t is mag
niicent country in the spiritual world.
1t is a p!ace-where all good people
have passed through death. In the
Bible the spiritual world is set forth IS
distinctly substantial. The new church
teaches that God is the only substance.
From him grew the spiritual sun, and
as various atmOspheres went forth
from that sun, settling into state OF
rest, they formed spiritual worlds cor
responding to the material sun aud
universe. The spiritual world, created
out Of the spiritual substance, is
real to its inhabitants as is our world
10 lis inhabitants. We must not think
of Heaven az a prOmiscuous gathering
of the good. Order is Heavens first
law, and in Heaven there are two
! kingdoms. The law of the celestial
Kingdom is love of the Lord, where
the angels are governed by love more
than by duty. The celestial kingdom
corresponds to the heart in the human
body. The spiritual kingdom is for
angels who, although beautiful and
pure, have not attained TO the love Of
the celestial kingdom Love of their
neighbors and of charity control the
angels in the spiritual klndom. Truth
is more To them than love. The spirit
ual Kingdom fills the the place in
Heaven that the lungs 90 in the human
body. One is the kingdom OF love or
goodness aud the other the kingdom
of wisdom or truth. The operation
of these Two principles is called the
Holy Ghost. Some men are reached
only through the affections, or yiow all
things from the standpoint OF the heart
Others view all things from tne stand
point Of the inteloci Tne celestial
kingdom, according to the Bible is the
Fathers Kingdom, and the spiritual or
true kiugdom is called the sons king
dom"
Mr.. King then spoke of the organiza.
tion OF the heavenly kingdoms AS
necessary to establish order. He said
there are innumerabIe heavenly socie-
ties dependent for their central ideas
upon the law Of moral affinity; that
distances in the spiritual world arise
from original differences IN the states
of men. When" he added, "you put
out of your mind the idea that Heaven
is great host of angelic loungers
playing upon golden harps can men Of
sense and reason conceive of any other
kind Of Heaven? Sw edenborg
teaches that heaven IS in the human
form, but does not teach that it is in
the human shape. Shape is a material
thing. Form has relation to quality
The mGrimus homo of Swedenborg
means only that the order of Heaven
is human.
$50 far we have only dealt with
Heaven as to its eternal aspects Turn
now to its state. Heaven is spiritual
state Oflite within you. 1t is a place
of purity and happiness developed out
of humanity and not place for tue
arbitrary assignment Of the soul.
Even this world of matter hard AS it
is, yields to us, and we shape many
objects of il. The same is true of the
spiritual life within US. Character is
destiny. Heaven Is no Mohammeda,
paradise. 1t is the society of the good
on earth. But by character | do not
mean self-culture. Unless "a man be-
born again he cannot see god. To find
Heaven after death we must carry
Heaved with US. Man lives in his
eternal heing after death. The ruling
love of mans life and the thoughts he
thinks when aloue are the essence of
his being. Every good man while in
this world is in constant association
with the angels of his heavenly society
and when he is done with this world
they meet him in the intermediate
state. Do you see that the interua!
constitutes the man, and ia the spirit
ual world his external-the human
frame and its passions will be torn
away"
Upon the question of recognition OF
friends after death Mr.. King said ,
The soul desceDds from God and steps
into the wardrobe of the human frame.
Natural death is the crystal gate oi
life. By passing through it "a man j.
still the same man, but rises into d
higher life aud may be reconized by
his friends. Happy the day when We
learn that the dead bodies Of ouc 40
parted friends are the cast. off garments
of the soul"
For the cure OF rheumatism in all its forms O.
Sclauch' the rheumatic affection of the hin iOint
IumOag0, the affection OF the lOinS tee and @
neuralgia IN all its varieties of tic-douloyreux
neuralgia IN the face, semcFanil, neuralgia il
tne neal etc, salvation Oil, the greatest cure OF
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