Heaven Revealed/Chapter 3
III.
THE ORIGIN OF ANGELS.
THE subject of angelology, including the origin as well as the nature of angels, is one upon which Christians of every denomination have written from time to time; and on few subjects has there been a more general agreement than on this. And as artists sometimes endeavor to heighten the effect of a beautiful picture by contrasting it with something hideous, so we may be excused for placing the Old and the New doctrine concerning the origin of angels side by side, trusting that the truth and beauty of the latter may thereby be rendered the more striking by the contrast. Such presentation, too, will show the need there was of the revelation made through Swedenborg.
All who profess the Christian religion, believe in the existence of angels. They believe them to be spiritual beings—the wise and happy denizens of heaven. They could not deny their existence without denying the explicit teaching of the Bible. But the general belief hitherto has been, that angels are created intelligences of different orders intermediate between God and man; that they were created angels in the beginning, and have therefore never known any other place of abode than the heaven in which they are now living.[1] It has also been generally believed by Christians that a portion of these innocent and happy beings, once rose in rebellion against the government of heaven, and sought to overthrow the Ruler of the universe, and obtain for themselves the supremacy. To this foul revolt they are thought to have been instigated by one more wicked and powerful, but once more wise and glorious, than the rest;—by one who,
"in the happy realms of light,
Clothed with transcendent brightness, didst outshine
Myriads though bright;"
but who,
"with ambitious aim
Against the throne and monarchy of God,
Raised impious war in heaven and battle proud,
With vain attempt."
It has been further believed that the leader in that great rebellion, being defeated in his impious undertaking, was cast out of heaven with his rebellious crew, and became the Prince or chieftain of the bottomless pit—the Satan whereof the New Testament speaks. To quote again from Milton, who reflects the religious beliefs of his times:
"Him the Almighty power
Hurled headlong from the ethereal sky,
With hideous ruin and combustion, down
To bottomless perdition, there to dwell
In adamantine chains and penal fire,
Who durst defy the Omnipotent to arms."
And that prime instigator of the supposed rebellion in heaven, along with those who enlisted under his banner, are what Christians have generally understood to be meant by "the Devil and his angels," also by "the fallen angels." Nor is it in poetry alone that this doctrine respecting the angels, is to be met with. We find the same set forth in sober prose by both Catholic and Protestant writers. And we are not aware that any different doctrine on the subject, has ever gained currency among any considerable class of Christians outside of the small body known as the New Christian Church. (See the London Encyclopædia, Art. Angel.)
Now, look at this whole story about the angels, which has gained currency in the church and made a part of Christian theology-look at it in the light of reason and common sense. Does it not wear very much the appearance of ancient fable? Does it not look like the offspring of heathen superstition? For see what it requires us to believe. First, that God created an order (or several orders) of intelligent creatures—pure spirits destitute of any form or body, though capable of assuming both ad libitum—and far superior to man in knowledge and wisdom, constituting a class of beings intermediate between the Creator and the human race.[2] Second, that one of the wisest and most exalted of these beings, conceived the idea—an idea such as no one but the veriest dolt and monster were capable of conceiving—of wresting the government of heaven from the hand of Omnipotence, and actually waged war against the Almighty in the hope of gaining the supremacy; and that, failing in the attempt, he and his followers were cast down from heaven into the gulf of despair, where they still cherish their hostility towards the Ruler of the universe. Bear in mind, also, that this insurrection, war, and ejectment from heaven, are predicated of pure spirits—incorporeal beings—creatures utterly destitute of any kind of body or shape! We submit that such extravagances are the very height of folly and nonsense. One would think they had only to be looked at in a little rational light, to be instantly repudiated.
Let us now turn to the doctrine on this subject as revealed through Swedenborg. He claims to have enjoyed long and open intercourse with the spiritual world, and to have made a truthful revelation respecting both angels and devils—their origin as well as their character and condition. The following are some of the things he tells us about the human soul and the origin of angels:
"The soul which is said to live after death, is none other than the man himself who lives in the body; that is, it is the interior man who acts in the world by means of the body, and enables the body to live. This man when freed from the body, is called a spirit, and appears altogether in the human form; yet he cannot be seen with the eyes of the body but with those of the spirit, before which he appears as a man in the world, having the senses of touch, smell, hearing and seeing much more acute than in the world . . . together with all the members and organs that man possesses."—Ibid, n. 6054.
"From all my experience which is now of many years, I can declare that the form of the angels is in every respect human; that they have faces, eyes, ears, breasts, arms, hands and feet; that they see, hear and converse with each other; in a word, that they lack nothing which belongs to man, except the material body. I have seen them in a light which exceeds by many degrees the noon-day light of the world; and in that light I observed all parts of their faces more distinctly and clearly than ever I did the face of men on earth.
"I have often told the angels that men in the Christian world are in such blind ignorance concerning angels and spirits, as to believe them to be minds without form, and mere thoughts, concerning which they have no other idea than as of something ethereal in which there is somewhat vital. And because they thus ascribe to them nothing human except a thinking principle, they imagine that they cannot see, because they have no eyes; nor hear, because they have no ears; nor speak, because they have neither mouth nor tongue. The angels said in reply, that they knew such a belief exists with many in the world, and that it is the prevailing belief among the learned, and also to their astonishment among the clergy."—H. H, n. 74, '5.
The like may be said concerning a man in whom the church is, as concerning an angel in whom heaven is, that he is a church in the least form, as an angel is a heaven in the least form; and further, that a man in whom the church is, equally with an angel, is a heaven; for man was created that he might come into heaven and become an angel. Wherefore, he who has good [or is in good] from the Lord, is a man-angel."—Ibid. 57.
"It is altogether unknown in the Christian world that heaven and hell are from the human race. For it is believed that angels were created from the beginning, and that this was the origin of heaven; and that the devil or satan was an angel of light; but because he became rebellious, was cast down with his crew; and that this was the origin of hell. The angels wonder very much that such a belief should prevail in the Christian world; and still more that nothing whatever is known about heaven, when yet it is a primary point of doctrine in the church. And because such ignorance prevails, they rejoiced in heart that it has pleased the Lord at this time to reveal to mankind many things concerning both heaven and hell; and thereby to dispel, as far as possible, the darkness which is every day increasing, because the church has come to its end. Therefore they desire me to declare positively from their mouths, that there is not a single angel in the whole heaven who was originally created such, nor any devil in hell who was created an angel of light and cast down; but that all, both in heaven and hell, are from the human race; in heaven, those who lived in the world in heavenly love and faith; in hell, those who lived in infernal love and faith; and that hell in the whole complex is what is called the devil and satan."—H. H, n. 311.
"That heaven is from the human race may be further evident from this, that angelic minds and human minds are similar. Both enjoy the faculty of understanding, perceiving and willing. Both are formed to receive heaven; for the human mind is capable of wisdom as well as the angelic mind; but it does not become so wise in the world, because it is in an earthly body, and in that the spiritual mind thinks naturally.
"From these observations it may be seen that the internal of man, which is called his spirit is, in its essence, an angel; and when released from the earthly body it is in the human form the same as an angel. But when the internal of man is not open above but only beneath, then after its release from the body it is still in the human form, but hideous and diabolical; for it cannot look upward to heaven, but only downward to hell."—Ibid, n. 314.Such is Swedenborg's uniform teaching on this subject, reiterated many times in his writings. Throughout all his theological works, which occupied him nearly thirty years in writing, we find nothing at variance with this. Let us now examine his assertions in the light of reason and Scripture.
The sum of what is taught in the passages we have quoted, is: That man was created with the capacity of becoming an angel, and consequently of enjoying eternal happiness in heaven: That the soul or spirit which continues to live in the spiritual world after the body dies, is in the human form, and is the real man or woman: That all the angels who are also in this form, having a spiritual and substantial organism, are from the human race, and were once inhabitants of this or some other earth; and the same is true of the devils: Consequently no angel or devil was ever created such; but every individual in heaven and in hell, has once had his abode or commenced his existence in the natural realm. Angels, therefore, are more perfect or fully developed men; and men—good men—are angels in embryo. The spiritual or heavenly is evolved from the carnal or earthly man, by an orderly divine process known to Christian theology as regeneration.
Now, is there anything unreasonable in this, as we have seen there is in the old doctrine? Is there not, on the contrary, something in it which strikes us agreeably on its first announcement?—Something which avouches its alliance to the general tenor of all God's arrangements?—Something which tallies with that universal law under which the higher and more perfect are successively evolved from the lower and less perfect forms of being?
All Christians believe in the immortality of the soul; and the soul or spirit is the real man. They all believe that the soul does not die, but survives when its material vestment has crumbled to decay. And if man, after the death of the body, continues to live as man, endowed with human attributes—possessing human affections, dispositions, thoughts and feelings—then he must exist in the human form. For to suppose human character and attributes to exist apart from the human form, were contrary to all reason and all analogy.
Christians also believe that the world which every good man enters after death, is a higher and more perfect world than the one in which we are now living. If this be so, then the good man should be a better man—should be in a higher state as to affection and thought—in the other world than he is or has been in this. He should be more perfectly human in disposition and character, more wise, kind and loving; therefore he should be more truly human in form. In short, he should be in all respects a more perfect man than he was while on earth. In other words, he should be an angel. Otherwise there would not be that perfect agreement between himself and the increased perfections of the other world, which might reasonably be expected.
The new doctrine that angels are from the human race, and that good men are embryo angels, has the undeniable testimony of reason and analogy in its support. For no law is more clearly revealed in the volume of nature, than that of progress from the imperfect and rudimental to the perfect and mature;—from the lower and simpler to the higher and more complex forms of being. Where among all the works of God, do we find any living thing created full-formed and perfect in the beginning? There is no such thing. Every creature that swims, walks or flies, and every tree and plant that springs from the bosom of the earth, commences its existence in a comparatively simple and imperfect form, and goes on increasing in complexity and perfection as it advances towards the end for which it was created. It is known to science that all animals commence their existence from eggs which are quite uniform in their shape and structure. There is, therefore, a stage in man's existence, when, to human eyes, he does not differ essentially from the rudimental form of a fish, a frog, or a viper. But as life unfolds from this primary form, the animal undergoes various changes, gradually ascending from lower and simpler to higher and more complex forms, or passing from a less to a more perfect state. A familiar illustration of this universal law, is seen in the changes which insects undergo before reaching the perfected form of butterflies. First, the egg; then succeeds the larva or worm, which is a higher form of life than the egg; next, the caterpillar; then the pupa or chrysalis; lastly, the creature dies—on the outside, at least—and out of that dead covering springs a beautiful butterfly, the perfected form of this insect life. And similar is the case with every other form of life whether belonging to the animal or the vegetable kingdom. From a simple, rudimental and comparatively imperfect form, it goes on steadily unfolding, and gradually assuming one that is higher and more perfect, until it reaches the end of its creation.
And the case is similar with man regarded merely as an inhabitant of the natural world, and as standing at the head of the animal kingdom. Scientists tell us that, previous to birth, he undergoes a variety of changes, and at different stages in his development simulates the forms of various lower orders of animals. However this may be, we know that at the time of birth he is but feebly and imperfectly developed. In his rudimental or infantile form, some of the organs which belong to him in his mature state are wanting, and others are very imperfect or but partially formed. Yet his form in general is human. There is the rudimentary man. But as to the higher capacities of his nature—as to those intellectual and moral powers which give to him the supremacy over all other creatures, and are the essential human characteristics—they do not manifest themselves at all at birth. No living creature is more destitute of the properly human faculties, than a newborn babe. But as this rudimental form unfolds beneath the salutary influences of heaven and earth, the man gradually comes forth, and increases in wisdom and in stature.
This law, then—the law of progress from the lower to the higher, or from the less to the more perfect, in everything endowed with life, until it reaches the fulness and perfection of its being—stands revealed on every page of the volume of nature. Nor do we meet with a solitary exception to this law. The Divine creative energy obeys it everywhere. "The principle of progressive advance," says Prof. Bush, "from the imperfect to the finished, from the rude to the refined, from the infantile to the mature, from primordial elements to elaborate formations, from tender germs to ripened fruits, from initial workings to ultimate consummations, is everywhere apparent." Yet what a palpable contradiction of this great law, is the doctrine that angels were created such, full-formed and perfect in the beginning!
Reasoning analogically, therefore, we are brought to the conclusion that angels, like all other created beings, must have had their initial or rudimental state. Where and what was that state? Where and what was the rudimental or embryo angel? Can the Old Theology answer this question? And if this world is not our final home, if we were created to live forever in another and a higher realm, what shall we be in that higher realm?—provided that we here obey the laws of our higher life, and thus give to our spirits a right direction in this their rudimental state. Shall we not be more fully developed and more perfect men? Shall we not be in a higher state of love and wisdom—nearer the moral likeness of the Creator? In a word, shall we not be angels?
Reason and analogy, then, are clearly in favor of Swedenborg's teaching respecting the origin of angels, and as clearly opposed to the commonly received doctrine. Let us now turn to the Scripture and see what is its testimony on the subject.
And we remark first, that the Bible nowhere speaks of the creation of angels. It tells (in the literal sense) of the creation of everything else, of the sun and moon, the earth and the seas, the vegetable and the animal kingdoms, and lastly of man the crowning work of the Creator's hands; but never of angels. As to the creation of an order of beings intermediate between God and men, the Scripture says not a word.
In the next place, the Bible teaches that "God created man in his own image" (Gen, i. 27). How, then, is it possible that there could be an order of beings above man? A different order of beings must needs have a different form from the human; and if so, they would not be in the image of God. Stretch your imagination to the utmost, and you cannot conceive of an order of beings superior to man, yet differing from him in outward form. For in so far as their form should differ from the human, they would not be in the image of their Creator; and therefore they would be inferior to man, unless we admit that an order of beings created in the Divine likeness, may be inferior to another order created in the likeness of something else—an admission which would be most absurd. For God is the only perfect One. Among finite beings, therefore, those must be most exalted and perfect who most nearly resemble Him.
Is it said that a moral likeness to his Maker is what is referred to in Gen. i. 27? Be it so. But who needs to be told that, among created objects, the form is ever in correspondence with the essence?—That this is a sovereign and universal law in creation? Even children know that the properly human characteristics cannot exist under the form of a fish or a crocodile—under any form, indeed, other than the human.
No. We can conceive of a race of wiser and better men than any now existing, but they will not be a different order of beings. They will be simply an improved variety of the same order, more truly human, more perfect men both in their internal character and their outward form. They will still be men, and all the more so for being truer likenesses of their Maker. The text in Genesis, therefore, warrants the assertion that there is not and cannot be any such order of beings between God and man as Christians have supposed angels to be; for the human form is the perfection of all forms, and true human life, therefore, the perfection of all life; and a good man such as an angel is declared to be, is the perfection of created beings.
That this conclusion is legitimate, may be further argued from the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ in whom dwelt "all the fulness of the Godhead bodily," was in the form of a man, not only while He tabernacled in the flesh, but when He subsequently appeared in the spiritual realm to the opened eyes of his disciples. A fact which proves that the human form is capable of receiving the divine love and wisdom in all fulness. Hence it must be the perfection of all forms; and among created beings, therefore, there cannot be any higher order—any nearer to the Divine image and likeness—than man.
But we have further and more conclusive evidence from Scripture. For many instances of the appearance of angels to men in the flesh, are therein recorded; and in every such instance they appeared in the human form—as men. Not only so, but they are often called men by the inspired writers. Thus when the Lord appeared to Abraham in the plains of Mamre through the medium of angels, it is said: And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and lo, three men stood by him" (Gen. xviii. 2). So of the two angels that appeared to Lot as he sat in the gate of Sodom. These are afterwards called men. The Sodomites inquiring after them, said: Where are the men who came in to thee this night" (Gen. xix. 5)? And Lot said: "Unto these men do nothing " (v. 8. See also vs. 10, 12, 16). Again, when the angel of the Lord appeared to the wife of Manoah, it is said: "The woman came and told her husband, saying: A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God" (Judges xiii. 6. Also vs. 9, 10). So, too, the angel Gabriel whom the prophet Daniel saw in vision, is called "the man Gabriel" (Dan. ix. 21). And the man whom the prophet Zechariah beheld in vision "among the myrtle trees," is immediately after called "the angel of the Lord" (Zech. i. 8, 11). Again, when the women came early in the morning to the Lord's sepulchre, and had entered into it. Luke says: Behold two men stood by them in shining garments" (xxiv. 4). And John says that they saw "two angels in white, sitting, the one at the head and the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had lain" (xx. 12)—proving conclusively the human form of angels and their generic identity with the human race. Again, when the seer of Patmos fell down to worship before the feet of an angel, the angel said: "See thou do it not; for I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book"—thus plainly affirming his human nature, and his consequent kinship to our race. And that an angel is none other than a thoroughly regenerate man—one who has attained to the full stature of spiritual manhood and laid aside his material body, is evident from his measure as given in the Apocalypse. For the inspired apostle tells us, that, having measured the wall of the Holy City when he was in the spirit, he found it to be "the measure of a man [meaning a true or regenerate man], that is, of the angel" (Rev. xxi. 17). It is as true in morals as in physics that two objects which are equal to, or having the same measure as, a third, must be equal to each other. So if the measure of the celestial city be that of a man and likewise of the angel, then the moral dimensions of a true man must be the same as those of an angel, and the two must belong to one and the same order of created intelligences.
Then consider the myriads of angels whom John saw, and whose hymns of thanksgiving and praise he heard, when "in the spirit"; all of whom appear to have been in the human form. And not only so, but we are told that "a great multitude" of that angelic host, were "of all nations and kingdoms and people and tongues," and "stood before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands." And when it was asked, "What are these who are arrayed in white robes, and whence came they?" the answer was, "These are they who came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb"—showing that they all belonged to the human race, and had once constituted a portion of the tempted and struggling ones of this mundane sphere.
What need of further evidence on the subject, from either the volume of nature or revelation?
But some may ask. What then are we to do with those passages in the Bible which speak of "the angels which kept not their first estate," but "sinned," and were therefore "cast down to hell"? (Jude vi. 2. Peter ii. 4). If the inquirer regards the Epistles as equally inspired, and therefore of equal authority, with the Gospels, we would simply refer him, for an answer, to the criticisms of these passages by Prof. Moses Stuart, whose orthodoxy was never called in question, and whose learning and research were such as to place him in the very foremost rank of biblical scholars. In his work on the Apocalypse. Prof. Stuart, after a very careful and thorough examination of these passages, does not hesitate to pronounce them quotations (doubtless from memory) from the apocryphal book of Enoch, and therefore wholly destitute of divine authority (see Stuart on the Apoc., vol, i., pp. 50–73). The conclusions reached by the learned Professor, may be summarily stated thus:
1st. That this apocryphal book of Enoch was generally known to the early Christian writers—so generally as to render it highly probable that all were familiar with its contents. 2d. That it was held by them in high esteem, some of them regarding it as canonical and of divine authority. 3d. That the contents of this book are of such a nature as to leave no reasonable ground for doubt that the statements in regard to the apostate angels made by Jude and Peter, were derived from this source; for this book makes frequent mention of them, of their being bound in chains, kept in darkness and in prison, reserved for judgment, and the like; each of which circumstances is mentioned by these apostles.
Such, then, is the acknowledged foundation on which this absurd and heathenish doctrine concerning the preexistence, apostasy and punishment of the angels rests. From the apocryphal book of Enoch as its source, through the epistles of Jude and Peter as channels, the doctrine has flowed into the minds of Christians and been generally accepted for divinely revealed truth. And as this book of Enoch is now regarded by all Protestant Christendom as utterly destitute of divine authority, therefore it must be conceded that the passages in Peter and Jude's epistles, obviously taken from this book, furnish no support to the absurd doctrine they have been so often cited to prove.
And now apply to each of these doctrines—the Old and the New—that highest and surest test of truth, its obvious practical tendency. Which is most benign and wholesome in its influence on the believer's life and character? According to the Old view, the angels are not men, and never were. They are quite outside the pale of our common humanity, created another and different order of beings from ourselves. What matters it to us, then, how wise and good and glorious they may be? For with all our strivings after the heavenly life, with all our acts of self-denial and self-crucifixion, with all our patient and persevering endeavors to follow the Lord in the regeneration, we can never become angels. Our human nature renders it impossible. We are a different order of beings.
Nor does the Old doctrine respecting the nature and origin of devils address itself to human fears, any more than that respecting the nature and origin of angels addresses itself to human hopes. For it teaches that the devils, too, are a different order of beings from us—different in their original nature and constitution; that they are fallen angels, and consequently were never men like ourselves. Of what concern, therefore, is it to us to know the character or manner of life of the devils, since we can never become one of them. We belong to a different genus. No man, therefore, however wicked and unrepentant, is to be regarded as a rudimental devil.
But the New doctrine teaches that both angels and devils are from the human race; that they are all partakers of our common humanity, and were once men like ourselves. It teaches that we were all created with the capacity of ultimately becoming angels, and that the laws of our higher or spiritual nature are the very laws of the angelic life. And not only so, but that we shall actually become either angels or devils, according as we freely obey or disobey these divinely revealed laws. It teaches that this present world is the seminary of both the upper and the nether realms; that men in the flesh are rudimental angels or rudimental devils.
Thus the New doctrine brings us into close and vital relationship with the angels of heaven. It affirms our near affinity—nay, our absolute identity—with them, as to our nature or spiritual constitution. It reveals them to us as sympathizing and loving brothers, possessing a common nature with ourselves, having once like us experienced the bondage of selfishness and sin, and through a course of varied discipline suited to each one's state—through disappointments and sorrows, through struggles and sore temptations, through faith and prayer and repentance and self-denial—have become cleansed of their natural defilements, and elevated to their present state of heavenly wisdom and serene peace. Thus the New doctrine appeals strongly to human hopes. It discloses the grand capabilities of our nature, opens up to our mental vision sublime and glorious possibilities, and prompts us, by the hope of one day becoming wise and happy angels, to a resolute and persevering struggle against the evils that infest our bosoms.
And by teaching us that the devils, also, are from the human race and were once men like ourselves, the New doctrine appeals no less to human fears than to human hopes. It discloses to us those marred and distorted forms of humanity—the denizens of the nether realms, yet created with the capacity of becoming angels—and proclaims the solemn truth that we, too, may become, yes, shall become just such inverted images of the Divine, if we turn our backs upon the Lord and disregard the precepts of his holy Word. In the revealed character and condition of the devils, we see disclosed our own final destiny if we live in the indulgence of our natural inclinations, and do not deny self, take up our cross and follow the Lord. Thus the New doctrine constrains the believer, through fear of all that is loathsome in the character and mournful in the condition of devils, to shun the paths which they have trod, to curb the propensities which they indulged, to seek "the way, the truth, and the life" which they ignored and forsook.
Yes. Angels and devils once were men. And angels or devils we, too, shall become. So teaches the New doctrine. And it is for each individual to choose which it shall be. A question of deep solemnity and supreme moment! How carefully should it be weighed! How watchful should such consideration make us over our hearts and lives-our dispositions, motives and cherished purposes!
Considered, therefore, as to its influence on the believer's life and character—viewed as to its obvious practical tendency—which of these doctrines appears most worthy of acceptation, the Old or the New? Which has the nature of infinite Wisdom and Love most legibly impressed upon it? Which appears most in harmony with the Divine character and attributes as revealed in nature and the written Word? Which looks most like heaven-descended truth, and which most like the vain imaginings of men? Which is calculated to exert the most salutary influence on the soul of the believer? The reader needs not our answer to these questions. He can answer them for himself.
- ↑ As to the precise time of their creation, whether prior or posterior to, or simultaneously with the creation of the material world. Christians have not been agreed. Nor has there been entire agreement as to their nature. The prevalent opinion, however, has been, that they are incorporeal—pure spirits destitute of any kind of body, yet capable of assuming a body at pleasure. Some have supposed that they have bodies of the purest kind of air or ether; and one of the Christian Fathers even went so far as to give form to their aerial bodies, declaring his belief that they are spherical.
- ↑ This was the general belief of the old heathen philosophers, as it is of the Mahometans at the present day. The ancient Greeks believed that the demons (which word was used by them in a good sense) were created such, and held a middle rank between the gods and men. Thus Plutarch says: "Those seem to me to have solved very many and great difficulties or doubts, who place the demons εν μεσῳ θεων πον ανθροπων—intermediate between gods and men.,