Charity and Good Works (pt. 26)

Selection from True Christian Religion ~ Emanuel Swedenborg
Charity and Good Works (pt. 26)
v Doctrinal Series v

VIII. CHARITY ITSELF IS
ACTING JUSTLY AND FAITHFULLY IN THE OFFICE, BUSINESS, AND EMPLOYMENT
IN WHICH A MAN IS ENGAGED,
AND WITH THOSE WITH WHOM HE HAS ANY DEALINGS.

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Charity itself is acting justly and faithfully in the office, business, and employment in which a man is engaged, because all that such a man does is of use to society, and use is good; and good in a sense abstracted from person is the neighbor. (That not a single man only, but also a lesser community, and even a man's country, is the neighbor, has been shown previously.)

Take, for example,
A king who sets his subjects an example of well-doing, who wishes them to live according to the laws of justice, rewards those who so live, regards everyone according to his merits, protects his subjects against injury and invasion, acts the part of a father to his kingdom, and consults the general prosperity of his people; in his heart there is charity, and his deeds are good works.

The priest who teaches truth from the Word, and thereby leads to good of life, and so to heaven, because he consults the good of the souls of those of his church, is eminently in the exercise of charity.

The judge who judges according to law and justice, and not for reward, friendship and relationship, consults the good of society and of each individual; of society because it is thereby kept in obedience to law and in the fear of transgressing it; and of the individual because justice thereby triumphs over injustice.

The merchant who acts from honesty and not from deceit, consults the good of his neighbor with whom he has business.

It is the same with a common or skilled workman, if he does his work rightly and honestly, and not fraudulently and deceitfully.

It is the same with all others, as with captains and sailors, with farmers and servants.

(True Christian Religion 422)

To be continued ...

Charity and Good Works (pt. 25)

Selection from True Christian Religion ~ Emanuel Swedenborg
Charity and Good Works (pt. 25)
v Doctrinal Series v

VII. CHARITY AND GOOD WORKS ARE TWO DISTINCT THINGS,
LIKE WILLING WELL AND DOING WELL

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[From what was said in the previous article] it can be seen how it is to be understood that charity and good works are distinct, like willing well and doing well; that is to say, formally they are distinct, as the mind--which thinks and wills--is distinct from the body through which the mind speaks and acts; while essentially they are distinct because of the distinction in the mind itself which has an inner region that is spiritual, and an outer that is natural ... so that when works proceed from the spiritual mind, they proceed from its good will, which is charity; but when they proceed from the natural mind, they proceed from a good will that is not charity. For even when it appears in the external form like charity, it is not charity in the internal form. In fact, charity in external form merely presents the show of charity, but does not possess its essence.

This may be illustrated by a comparison with seeds in the ground. Each seed produces a plant, whether useful or useless, according to the nature of the seed. So is it with spiritual seed, which is the truth of the church derived from the Word; from this seed doctrine is formed--useful if from genuine truths, useless if from truths falsified.

It is the same with charity that springs from good will, whether the good will is for the sake of self and the world or for the sake of the neighbor in a limited or in a broad sense

if for the sake of self and the world, it is spurious charity, but if for the sake of the neighbor, it is genuine charity

...

(True Christian Religion 421)

To be continued ...

Charity and Good Works (pt. 24)

Selection from True Christian Religion ~ Emanuel Swedenborg
Charity and Good Works (pt. 24)
v Doctrinal Series v

VII. CHARITY AND GOOD WORKS ARE TWO DISTINCT THINGS,
LIKE WILLING WELL AND DOING WELL

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In every man there is an internal and an external. His internal is what is called the internal man, and his external what is called the external man. But one who does not know what the internal man and the external man are, may suppose that it is the internal man that exercises thought and will, and the external that speaks and acts. These latter belong, indeed, to the external man, and the former to the internal; yet they are not what essentially constitute the external and internal man.

In common perception indeed man's mind is his internal man, but the mind is itself divided into two regions; the one region which is higher and more internal is spiritual; and the other which is lower and more external is natural.

The spiritual mind looks mainly to the spiritual world, and has for its objects the things that are there, either such as are in heaven or such as are in hell; for both are in the spiritual world. But the natural mind looks mainly to the natural world, and has for its objects the things that are there, whether good or evil.

All of man's action and speech proceeds from the lower region of the mind directly, and indirectly from its higher region, since the lower region of the mind is nearer to the bodily senses, and the higher region more remote from them. There is this division of the mind in man, because he was so created as to be both spiritual and natural, and thus a man and not a beast.

All this makes clear that the man who looks primarily to himself and the world is an external man, because he is natural, not only in body but also in mind; while the man who looks primarily to the things of heaven and the church is an internal man, because he is spiritual both in mind and body.

He is spiritual even in body, because his actions and words proceed from the higher mind, which is spiritual, through the lower, which is natural. For it is known that effects proceed from the body, and the causes that produce the effects proceed from the mind; also that the cause is everything in the effect.

That the human mind is so divided is clearly evident from the fact that a man can act the part of a dissembler, a flatterer, a hypocrite, or an actor; and that he can assent to what another says and yet laugh at it; doing one from the higher mind and the other from the lower.

(True Christian Religion 420)

To be continued ...