Page:The Swedenborg Library Vol 2.djvu/53

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one society as in another. Not that the dissimilitude is in the Lord, but in those who see Him from their own good, thus according to that good.

The angels are also affected at the sight of the Lord according to the quality of their love. They who love Him deeply, are deeply affected; they who love Him less, are less affected; and the evil who are out of heaven, are tormented at his presence. When the Lord appears in any society, He appears there as an angel; but He is distinguished from others by the Divine which shines through Him.


HEAVEN PERFECTED BY VARIETY.

Heaven also exists wherever the Lord is acknowledged, believed in and loved. Variety in the worship of Him arising from the variety of good in different societies, is not injurious but advantageous; for the perfection of heaven results from such variety. It is difficult to explain intelligibly how the perfection of heaven is the result of such variety, unless we employ some terms familiar to the learned world, and by means of these show how a perfect unit is formed of various parts.

Every whole is composed of a variety of parts; for a whole which is not composed of various parts is nothing; therefore it has no form and no quality. But when a whole is composed of various parts, and these are arranged in a perfect form wherein each part joins