New Jerusalem Church (Swedenborgian or Swedenborgianism)
The New Jerusalem Church, also called Swedenborgian or Swedenborgianism, is based on the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. The New Jerusalem Church is a community of people, called Swedenborgians, who consider the teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg as being a gift from God and a source to a happy life here on earth and the hereafter in Heaven.
The New Jerusalem Church embraces the belief that the Lord God Jesus Christ is the one God of Heaven and earth. They believe that the Lord God Jesus Christ created everything and every person for a purpose.
The membership of the New Jerusalem Church is made up of those who have been baptized into a faith of the New Church and who promise to obey the principles and purposes of the Church. The membership is individual and is not limited by race, nationality or geography. The vision of the New Jerusalem Church is to explain the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg that symbolizes the new era in the relationship between God and humans.
There are three main bodies to the New Jerusalem Church. The oldest United States body is the General Convention of the New Jerusalem in the U.S.A. Next is the General church of the New Jerusalem, which broke from the General Convention of the New Jerusalem in the U.S.A in 1890. The third body is the General conference in England.
The mission of the New Jerusalem Church is to work as a team with the Lord in building the New Jerusalem Church to be in the lives, minds and hearts of all people through the encouraging of the belief of the Old and New Testaments and the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg which are considered to be the word of the Lord. Their mission is to have obedience to the word. They consider the Old and New Testaments and the Swedenborg writings are the sole authority for the Church.
There is no single headquarters for the Swedenborgianism or the New Jerusalem Church although the North American headquarters in Newtonville, Massachusetts and the Academy in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania. The New Jerusalem denominations in the United States believe in the ordination of women, and are members of the National Council of Churches.
The New Jerusalem Church is founded on the theologian teachings and writings of Emanuel Swedenborg stating the Lord worked through Swedenborg to share His teachings about creation, life and about his life that offers a new hope for life through a clearer understanding of the Lord.
History
Emanuel Swedenborg was born in Stockholm, Sweden in 1688. His father was the Bishop of Skara. Emanuel Swedenborg considered himself a Lutheran even though his ideas were very different than the doctrine of the church. Emanuel was a distinguished scientist and was in the House of Nobles of the parliament of Sweden.
In 1743, Swedenborg had a profound religious crisis which led to trances where he accounted talks with angels, Jesus, devils and human souls who had departed (including popes and kings), as well as other theologians such as Calvin and Luther. Emanuel Swedenborg had also experienced a revelation which enabled him able to view the spirit world and was unrestricted by physical perception in 1743. He studied Hebrew and wrote on subjects that were revealed to him.
Emanuel Swedenborg believed the Lord had chosen him to be the infallible interpreter of the Bible, and was told the date of the Second Coming would occur in 1757. The year 1757 was the year he had his vision of the Last Judgment, which marked the end of the Christian dispensation and marked the beginning of the New Jerusalem.
Emanuel Swedenborg wrote volumes of writings concerning Heaven, Hell, and the interpretations from God. He wrote about spiritual eras in human history, calling Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden a stage in human development calling it the Most Ancient Church and the first stage. The second stage in human development was with Noah and his family who survived the great flood and it was called the Ancient Church. Swedenborg wrote the Jewish and Christian religions were a part of this human development. He suggested these churches are not buildings nor are they organizations; they are phases in the development of human’s relationships and their relationship between God and humans.
Emanuel Swedenborg died in 1772. Fifteen years after his death, his first group of followers began applying his theology writings to their spiritual lives.
Thomas Hartley and John Clowes spread of the theology and teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg throughout England. The first public service of the Swedenborgians was held in London in 1788.
The teachings of Swedenborg were introduced by James Glen in the United States in 1784. He started the New Church society in Baltimore in 1792. The general convention of the New Jerusalem Church in the United States was organized in Baltimore 1817. The teachings of the church emphasized the individual self-realization through the study of the interpretation of the Scriptures by Emanuel Swedenborg.
A new general convention formed in 1897 to form the General Church of the New Jerusalem. They believed the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg were the very Word of the Lord which was revealed at his second coming.
There were hundreds of mediums and psychics that came out of the congregations belonging to Swedenborgians in the 19th centuries. Occultism and the theology of reincarnation and karma were combined with alchemy and divination in those who followed the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg in France and England. The majority of these followers were from the Swedenborg writings of his book “Heaven and Hell” in which he writes that he was led by spirits to experience both Heaven and hell. Swedenborg conversed with the spirit realm until his death in 1772.
Belief
The New Jerusalem Church believes the Bible is the Word of God. They believe the true meaning differs from its obvious meaning. Swedenborg believed he knew the true meaning with the help of angels and could shed light upon the true meaning and the message of the Scriptures. The New Jerusalem Church believes the Holy bible is their Scripture but it is not the absolute Word of God, but rather a vital recording of Humanity’s experience with the search for God.
The New Jerusalem Church believes in one God and Father of all, who is a Spirit. They believe mankind is created in the image of God as Spirit. They believe together they must actively seek a greater understanding of themselves and God, as Spirit, in their daily lives. They believe this becomes their gift to God.
The New Jerusalem Church does believe they communicate with God’s Kingdom of Spirit. They believe their guardians, loved ones, and their sources of inspiration dwell in the God’s Kingdom of Spirit. They believe these communications are sanctioned and edified in Scripture.
The New Jerusalem Church believes there is one God and that one God is the Lord Jesus Christ. They believe within Jesus Christ there is a Divine Trinity. They believe to live a life of charity and have a saving faith you must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. The New Jerusalem Church believes in the person of Jesus Christ in His ministry and His teachings. They believe and proclaim Jesus was crucified and died in the flesh and resurrected in the Spirit and He fulfilled the Promise of God that we are spirit and shall never die.
The New Jerusalem Church does believe Jesus Chris was the promised Messiah, in that His hope, faith, and love for God and Humanity set an example, in Heaven and on Earth, and paved the pathway to God’s divine Grace and Salvation.
The New Jerusalem Church believes in the power of the Holy Spirit. They believe the Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit alive in the world and in the affairs of men and women.
The New Jerusalem Church believes the ancient prophets and Jesus Christ came to earth to share the Divine Word and spirit of God into the hearts and spirits of humanity.
The New Jerusalem Church does reject the concept of Christian atonement and original sin. They believe in prayer and the healing power of God’s Spirit. They believe in the separation of church and State, religion, and politics.
The New Jerusalem Church believes in the reincarnation and Great Law of Karma; the cause and effect. They believe that practicing mediums and channels are viable means of bridging two separate worlds of Spirit together, into one kingdom which is the Universal Kingdom of God. They believe in upholding mediums with respect and dignity. They believe death is the passing of the spirit through a doorway, into another dimension of life. They believe there is no death except one; the turning away of the spirit from God. They believe grace, salvation, and rebirth are within this dimension.
The New Jerusalem Church does believe the teachings of Swedenborg, who states a person who looks to the Lord and repents is by the most holy act linked to the Lord and brought into Heaven. They believe the sum of faith is that one who lives well and believes rightly is saved by the Lord. They believe those who shun evil deeds and do that which is good and believe in the Lord with all their heart and all their soul will be loved by God and He will in turn give them a love for doing that which is good and the faith to believe. They believe this builds a mutual union between the person and the Lord that will last forever. They believe this union is the meaning of salvation and eternal life. They believe good actions are to be done because they are of God and are from God, and good actions are necessary for life.
The New Jerusalem Church believes all evil should be shunned and originates in mankind. They believe the devil is the personification of human evil. They believe Hell is a corrupted human society. They believe the writing of Swedenborg stating angels go through cycles of purity of character and sometimes can get closer to God. They do not believe all Scripture is inspired.
The New Jerusalem Church does believe the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg and denies the vicarious atonement, the Trinity, and the deity of the Holy Spirit. They believe Christ, only, is divine. They believe all religions lead to God, but are not equally enlightened.
The New Jerusalem Church does not believe in a physical resurrection. They believe after death, a person becomes an angel or an evil spirit. They do not believe angels are supernatural creations of God. According to the writings of Swedenborg, positions in the afterlife are based on the kind of life that is chosen while on earth. They believe at death the person’s mind falls asleep for three days in a place called the world of the spirits. When this dead person wakes, they then encounter spirits who died before and help him adjust to the afterlife. They believe there is marriage in heaven.
Cite Article Source
MLA Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne “New Jerusalem Church (Swedenborgian or Swedenborgianism):.” Becker Bible Studies Library Jan 2006.<https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=2779,>.
APA Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne (2006, January) “New Jerusalem Church (Swedenborgian or Swedenborgianism):.” Becker Bible Studies Library. Retrieved from https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=2779,.
Chicago Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne (2006) “New Jerusalem Church (Swedenborgian or Swedenborgianism):.” Becker Bible Studies Library (January), https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=2779, (accessed).
