The Doctrines of the New Church Briefly Explained/Chapter32
XXXII.—Concerning Hell.
What the generally accepted doctrine concerning hell was, at the time Swedenborg wrote and for many years thereafter, is well known. True, it was the doctrine of the Bible—but of the Bible as understood by those who "perceive not the things of the spirit of God"—of the Bible as interpreted by the carnal mind, and in accordance with the gross conceptions of the natural man, and the sensuous philosophy of the old Age. It was a literal fire-and-brimstone hell which the church of that day believed in. And no doubt this was the doctrine best suited to the external and low state of the people of that period.
But that Age is consummated; and doctrines well enough adapted to its condition and needs, being in complete correspondence with its sensuous character, are by no means suited to this new and more enlightened Age. The old doctrine of a literal fire-and-brimstone hell, into which sinners were supposed to be cast by an angry God, there to writhe in endless agony, would not now be listened to by any intelligent congregation in Christendom. Consequently the old doctrine is rarely heard from the pulpit of to-day, or encountered in our current religious literature. Thoughtful people must have a different doctrine on this subject, to satisfy the demands of their reason, or— no doctrine of hell at all; and not a few are coming to accept the latter alternative. And as ministers of the Gospel generally have no distinct idea as to what hell really is, nor feel able to interpret with accuracy the texts of Scripture which speak of it, therefore they prudently refrain from saying anything about it; or if they touch the subject at all, it is very lightly, and in a general way, as if it were something they know but little about, and therefore do not care to meddle with. Very different this, from the custom of the clergy a century ago, when hell formed the chief staple of so many pulpit discourses.
The New Doctrine.
In view, then, of the doctrine held and taught a hundred years ago, it is clear that a further revelation on this subject was needed, and was therefore to have been expected; since God in his merciful providence, is always sure to give the things which his children really need, as soon as they are in a state to receive and profit by them. And what is the doctrine on this subject as revealed for the New Church? It should be rational and spiritual as well as Scriptural, else it would not meet the demands of this New Age. According to Swedenborg, hell (like heaven) is essentially a state of life. As the kingdom of heaven is spiritual—within the soul (Luke xvii. 21)—so likewise is the kingdom of hell. It is a state in all respects the opposite of heaven—as opposite as night is to day, darkness to light, hatred to love, sin to holiness. Even the literal sense of the words heaven and hell, in the original languages of the Bible, is proof of this,—the former meaning a high and light, and the latter a low and dark, place. And as place corresponds to state, these terms, interpreted by the revealed law of correspondence, denote opposite states of life,—the one elevated, luminous and pure, the other low, dark and degraded. As love of the Lord and the neighbor is the essential constituent of heaven, so the love of self and the world is the essential constituent of hell. This latter love is what is meant by the fire of hell spoken of in Scripture, for such love is what this fire corresponds to. As the Lord (or his unselfish love) reigns and rules in heaven, so the love of self, which is the fountain and father of all other evil loves, is the ruling principle in hell. As the angels love and worship the Lord alone, so the devils love and worship none but themselves. As heaven is the abode of light, love, joy, and the serenest peace, so hell is the abode of falsity, hatred, gloom, and perpetual strife.
Thus the character of the devils is altogether opposite to that of the angels. The former are inverted, while the latter are true, images of the Lord. The faces of the devils, too, are hideous as those of the angels are beautiful—each being in perfect correspondence with their ruling loves. Yet such is the abounding mercy of the Lord, that the devils as seen in their own light, do not appear hideous to themselves or to each other, but only when viewed in the light of heaven. So is it with thieves, robbers, pirates, pimps—all demons in the flesh: they do not appear to themselves or to each other as the morally deformed creatures that they are.
And precisely the same law that governs the phenomenal world in heaven, governs that in hell also—the great and eternal law of correspondence. Under the operation of this law, the surroundings of the devils are necessarily barren and dismal—and most offensive to the eyes of angels. They dwell in the midst of desert places, rocky and dreary wastes, stagnant marshes, in the meanest hovels and with the filthiest surroundings, and inhale the vilest stenches. But these things are not offensive to the devils any more than carrion is to crows, or mire to certain animals that love to wallow in it; for they agree with their nature, being in perfect correspondence with their vile and filthy loves.
The same law, too, that determines the angels into innumerable societies, is alike operative in hell; that is, the law of spiritual affinity. For there are endless kinds and degrees of evil as there are of good, and numberless societies therefore in hell; and the devils go (as do the angels) in perfect freedom into the society of those most nearly like themselves; for there they are most at home, and there they prefer to be. If they were conveyed to heaven, having in themselves none of the loves or life of heaven, their torment would be excruciating; they could not breathe that pure atmosphere, and they would writhe there like serpents on coals of fire.
There is government also in hell; but it is a government of force and fear, for no other is adapted to beings who are supremely selfish. It is only through fear of punishment that their evil passions can be restrained. And by means of punishment the external order of the hells, if not their internal quality, is being continually improved. Swedenborg says:
"The Lord never sends any one into hell, but desires to bring all out of hell: still less does He inflict torment. But as the evil spirit himself rushes into it, the Lord turns all punishment and torment to some good account. There would be no such thing as punishment if use were not the end aimed at by the Lord; for his kingdom is a kingdom of ends and uses." (A. C. 696.)
"Every one's life follows him after death, and he remains in the state which he had procured to himself by the whole course of his life in the world. Then he who is in evil, is no longer capable of . . being amended interiorly, but only as to his exteriors, and this through fear of punishment, which, being often repeated, compels the spirit at last to abstain from evil, which he does, not from freedom but by compulsion—the lust of doing evil still remaining. This lust is held in check by fears, which are the external and compulsive means of amendment. Such is the state of the wicked in another life." (A. C. 6917.)[1]
- ↑ For a more extended treatment of this subject, the reader is referred to the author's "New View of Hell: Its Nature, Whereabouts, Duration," etc.