Swedenborg's Maximus Homo

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SWEDENBORG'S Maximus Homo

Swedenborg’s

Its Meaning Explained,

Swedenborg's Maximus Homo - Chapter 1

In the early part of his work on "Heaven and Hell"—a volume which contains more true spiritual philosophy than all other works ever written—Swedenborg says that heaven is in the human form. Not only every angel and every society of angels, but the entire angelic heaven, he assures us, is in this form; so that the angels viewed collectively, appear before the Lord as one man. And in his other works he often speaks of the whole heaven of angels as Maximus Homo—the Grand Man, as commonly translated.

This, we are aware, has an odd sound to the ears of most people when they hear it for the first time. Perhaps there are few things in the writings of the Swedish seer which appear more arbitrary or fanciful—or, to some minds, more ridicu —than this. It is usually one of the first things which an opponent of his teachings seizes upon and flouts. It is often referred to by Christian ministers as sufficient evidence in itself of the wild and fantastic character of his teachings. Thus the Rev. Dr. Pond, in his "Swedenborgianism Reviewed," after devoting two or three pages to a statement of the doctrine, adds—

"To my own apprehension, the whole account is supremely ridiculous; being destitute alike of sense and decency, and worthy only of contempt." (p. 196.)

Let us see, then, if this doctrine be either ridiculous or unreasonable. But first let us endeavor to learn what the doctrine is—what the author means, and what he intended his readers should understand, by the term Maximus Homo.

When Swedenborg says that heaven is in the human form, he uses the word form in the sense in which we use it when speaking of civil, social, or ecclesiastical affairs. We speak of a form of government; but when such expression is used, no one thinks of any external or visible shape, but of the nature and adjustment of the various parts composing the government, and by means of which it is administered. A person who reads and understands the constitution or organic law of the State, sees therein its form of government. We speak, also, of the form of society in a particular age or nation; and by this is meant the nature and relation of the several parts composing such society—the nature and arrangement of its social, industrial, commercial, educational, artistic, moral, and religious elements. Again, we speak of the form of a church, or of church polity; and by this we mean the character, connection, order, subordination, etc., of its various functionaries, the mode of their appointment, and their respective duties.

When it is said, therefore, that heaven is in the human form, the meaning is that it is in human order; that all its parts, or all the innumerable societies of which it consists, are so arranged and adjusted as to express most perfectly the truly human principles which constitute the essential spirit and life of heaven. In other words, the relation, mutual dependence, and intercommunication of the societies composing the whole angelic heaven, and the uses they respectively perform, correspond to those existing among the various organs of the human body and their respective uses. One is a perfect type or representative image of the other.

Accordingly, Swedenborg often speaks of the angelic societies as located in different parts or organs of the Grand Man; of some as in the head, some in the heart, some in the spleen, some in the liver; and of others, again, as in the eye, ear, knee, or foot. And his meaning is, that such societies correspond to these bodily organs; that is to say, their relation to the other societies of heaven and the special functions which they perform in the Grand Man, correspond to the relation existing among such bodily organs; and to their respective uses in the human body. To cite here & single passage;—

"It has also been given me to know what particular angelic societies belong to each particular province of the body, also what are their qualities; as, for instance, what and of what quality belong to the province of the heart; what and of what quality to the province of the lungs; what and of what quality to that of the liver; also what and of what quality to the different sensories, as the eye, the ear, the tongue, and so on." (A. C., n. 2998.)

It thus becomes plain what Swedenborg means when he says that heaven is in the human form It is a spiritual and not a natural idea which he is endeavoring to express. And when we shall have fairly grasped his meaning, and duly considered the subject, we shall see that he could have employed no other terms which would express so fully and with such brevity the beautiful and orderly arrangement of the whole angelic heaven, and the harmonious relation of its innumerable and diverse societies.

But let us push our inquiry on the subject a little further, that we may see more distinctly the ground and origin as well as the truth of this heavenly doctrine of the Grand Man.

Everything that exists must exist in some form. And the forms of all things will be found to correspond to their essential nature, or to the kind of life that determines and moulds their forms. The form always corresponds to the essence. The ox, the eagle, the lion, the dove, each has a form suited to its needs, or correspondent to its own peculiar life. It hence follows, that the higher and nobler the life, the more beautiful and perfect will be the form; otherwise there would be no correspondence or agreement one with the other. If we look at the lowest creatures in the animal kingdom, we find them closely allied to vegetables, consisting of few parts, and these comparatively simple in their structure. Their forms are inferior, and their wants and capacities correspondingly limited. As we ascend the scale of animated nature we find a gradual increase of wants; powers more varied; faculties enlarged and multiplied. And corresponding to this increase of desires, and enlargement and multiplication of faculties, we find the forms of life also becoming more complex and perfect. We find them rising above the earth, provided with the means of locomotion, and simulating, in degrees more or less remote, the human form; until at length we arrive at man, the last link in the great chain connecting all below with all above him. Created to stand erect with his feet upon the earth and his face toward heaven, he alone is capable of looking above himself, and of intelligently reciprocating or giving back the love and wisdom which flow from God. In man, therefore, the circle of life is complete. In a state of order he is the image and likeness of his Maker. He is the complex, therefore, of all the powers and gifts of other creatures, with the two human faculties—liberty and rationality—superadded.

Now it is because human life is the highest and noblest kind of life—because human wants are more numerous, and the human faculties more enlarged, exalted, and varied than those of any other creature, that the human form through whose instrumentality alone these faculties can manifest themselves, is the very perfection of all forms. God himself, who is the perfection of all that is human, is in this form. He is a perfect Divine Man. In him everything truly human exists in infinite fullness, variety, and perfection. Therefore when He manifested himself on earth to the eye of sense, he appeared in the human form. And when in more ancient times he filled the body of an angel with his own Divine life, and thus became manifest to the spiritual senses of his chosen seers as "the angel of Jehovah," his form was always the human.

And it is a Divinely-revealed truth that man was created in the image and likeness of God. His form, therefore, is one capable of receiving and expressing in a finite degree something of that truly human life which flows from the Divine Human. This life when received, becomes in man the life of love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbor. And this is the essential life of heaven. Other creatures below man receive and enjoy lower degrees of life; but he alone can receive and enjoy this higher or heavenly life, because he alone is in the human form. And the more we receive of this life, the more truly human do we become in our thoughts, feelings, dispositions, and purposes; and the more faithfully do we express through our human form—by our looks, words, and actions—the love and wisdom which are the essential constituents of true humanity. For the most beautiful and perfect form is that which best expresses the purest and most exalted human love.

And as it is with a single individual, so with a society or community—with men in the aggregate. The more of true human life each member of a community receives, or the more each one suffers himself to be governed by the highest good and truth, the more orderly, industrious, united, healthy, and happy is that community. The more truly human does it become in its form, organization, and activities. It appoints its wiseet and best men to preside over its interests, because every one is aiming to subject himself to the government of the highest good and truth. And so the form or order of that community becomes more and more human. All its corporate acts express more and more faithfully the human thoughts and feelings with which the minds of its individual members are imbued. Such community is in the human form, therefore, just so far as the individual minds composing it are human. It is the tendency of true human life wherever it exists, to mould the collective as well as the individual man into a corresponding human form.

But a consideration of the wonderful mechanism of the human body, and of the mutual relation and dependence of its various parts, will furnish the best idea of the human form, and reveal most clearly the form or order of heaven. For as the body in its entireness corresponds to the soul, so its different parts correspond to the various faculties and functions of the soul, or to the goods and truths of heaven in their various orders and degrees. Therefore the bodily organs correspond to the various societies of which the whole angelic heaven is composed, and which are the living embodiment of these goods and truths.

On a careful survey of the human system, we find it composed of numerous parts which are all different from each other. Its structure is the most complex of any object in the universe. There is no other created thing which consists of so many parts; yet no two of these parts are found to be precisely alike. Some of them differ widely both in form and function. But notwithstanding the endless number and diversity of parts, they are all mutually dependent, mutually adapted to each other's wants, and work together in admirable harmony. Every organ, however minute, has its post assigned it, and its appropriate work given it to do. The brain, heart, liver, pleura, lungs, pancreas, and abdominal viscera—how different are these from each other in their form and structure! How different also in their functions, or in the work given them to do! Yet how admirably they do harmonize! What entire unanimity among these numerous and diverse parts! What perfect concert of action! All the more perfect because of their diversity. With what beautiful brotherly love do they all work together, and what tender regard has each for the welfare of all the rest! If one is out of order, all the others are more or less uncomfortable and restless. If one suffers, all the rest sympathize and suffer with it. It is a law—and herein we have a beautiful illustration of the universal law of brotherhood—that each shall discharge its appropriate function, not apart from the others and for the sake of itself alone, but in harmony with, and for the welfare of all the rest. And the more faithfully it labors to do this, the more does it promote its own health and strength as well as the health and strength of the other members. The welfare of each is linked indissolubly with that of all the others. One life pervades them all, and each receives and enjoys that life in proportion as it respects and faithfully works for the good of the whole. The moment one ceases to do its work, or appropriates more than its share of the juices elaborated, or more than it needs to fit it for the performance of its appointed use, that moment comes disease—disease to itself and disease to all the rest. And if it persevere in this abnormal course, sooner or later death inevitably ensues.

Such is the law, fixed and unalterable. There is no escape from it. And what a striking exemplification does it furnish of the great law of spiritual life, the law of neighborly love!—yes, and the sure consequence of a persistent violation of this law!

Although one life pervades all the bodily organs, they do not all receive it in like measure. Their receptivity is as various as their forms. Some receive it in a higher degree than others, and per form more important and varied functions, and may therefore be said to be of a higher grade. And so there are gradations of rank among the members of the body. No one is entirely independent of the rest. No one is so high that it can dispense with the services of the most humble, and no one so low that it cannot do something to promote the health and strength of the highest. The head needs the foot, and the heart the hand, no less than the foot needs the head or the hand the heart. And even the hair and nails and the coarse cuticle on the soles of the feet have their use, and add to the completeness and perfection of the whole.

Behold here, then, in the human body, a representative image of heaven! the most perfect image of order, harmony, unity, freedom, mutual dependence and brotherly love! The relation of the bodily organs to each other, and the uses they respectively perform, are as the relation existing among the angelic societies, and their respective uses; because heaven as a whole and in each of its parts, is in the human form. And notwithstanding there are in heaven as in the human body gradations of rank and office, notwithstanding some there have more important functions to perform than others, there is no pride or disdain on the one hand, nor envy or humiliation on the other, any more than among the different members of the body. Notwithstanding there exist authority and obedience, there is nothing like tyranny on the one hand or slavishness on the other. There is the most perfect freedom coupled with unspeakable bliss; for every one acts as his ruling love prompts, but he loves nothing which is not good and true. Be his office high or low, he does precisely that which he is qualified to do best, and in the doing of which he finds a pure delight. Conscious that he could not be so useful or happy in any other sphere, he has no desire to be anywhere or anything else than he is. Whatever there is, therefore, of exaltation or subordination, of authority or obedience there, neither is felt or thought of as such, any more than in the human body.

From what has now been said, we trust that Swedenborg's meaning, when he says that heaven is in the human form, will be sufficiently plain. And although the heavenly societies are innumerable, and all different from each other, yet there exists the most perfect union among them—a union corresponding to, and beautifully symbolized by, that among the different organs of the human body. And herein is revealed the true nature of that union among Christians on earth, to which the Lord refers when he speaks of his disciples being made "perfect in one" or perfected into one. It is a union of parts that are as different as are the different members of the human body; parts animated, nevertheless, by one and the same life, as in the case of the bodily organs; for the essential life of all in heaven, is the life of love to the Lord and the neighbor.

Now it will not be denied that the human form is the most perfect of all forms. And if the Lord's disciples (and all those composing the heavenly societies are to be reckoned as his disciples) are "made perfect in one," then must the whole heaven of angels be in the human form; and the doctrine of the Grand Man as revealed through Swedenborg, must be true. For under any other form than the human, or arranged in any other order than that of the different parts of the human body, the heavenly societies could not be said to be "perfected into one;" since their arrangement would be less beautiful and orderly, and their union less perfect than it might be.

Then the testimony of the great Apostle to the Gentiles may be cited in support and corroboration of the truth of this doctrine. Writing to the Church at Rome, he says: "For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office, so we, being many, are one body in Christ." (Rom. xii, 4,5.) Again to the Corinthian Church: "For the body is not one member, but many; and ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular." He further says there is no schism among the bodily members, and that there ought not, therefore, to be any in the body of Christ; that the various parts or members of this body (the church), "should haνe the same care one for another."

Now, the Church on earth ought to be, and so far as it is a true and living Church it will be, an image of heaven. And Paul, in the passages referred to, plainly teaches that the Church of Christ is in the human form; that its various parts or members, in their mutual relation and dependence, correspond to the different parts of on the human body. And if many persons on earth—all of them disciples of the Lord—are "one body in Christ, and every one members one of another," should not the same be true in heaven? Should not the diversity be even greater there than in the church on earth, and the harmony and union at the same time more complete? and the form or order of heaven, therefore, more perfectly human than that of the church?

This doctrine of the Grand Man may be thought by some to have no practical value, even if its truth be admitted; and the discussion of it may therefore seem to them like unprofitable speculation. But it is not so—far from it. Like every other disclosure con the Hereafter which we find in the writings of Swedenborg, it has important practical bearings. It teaches a great and valuable lesson, and one from the study of which we may all derive profit.

Swedenborg's Maximus Homo - Chapter 2

II.

PRACTICAL TENDENCY OF ITS TEACHING.

In the foregoing chapter we attempted little more than an explanation of the meaning of Maximus Homo, as the term is used by Swedenborg. And we concluded with the remark, that it is not, what the reader might at first imagine, a purely speculative doctrine, but that, like all of the great seer's disclosures concerning the world beyond the grave, it has important practical bearings. It is desirable that the church on earth become as nearly as possible like the church in heaven. This is involved in the petition which all Christians offer devoutly, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is done in heaven."

The great truth revealed in the doctrine of the Grand Man, as already explained, is, that the order, connection, mutual dependence, unity, harmony, and diversity existing among the heavenly societies, are similar to what we find among the

various members and organs of the human body; these bodily organs being, in their connection, nature, and functions, symbols or representative images of the societies of heaven with which they are in complete correspondence.

What, now, is the practical bearing of this teaching? What is its obvious and legitimate tendency? Plainly to enlarge and liberalize the mind that accepts it, and to impart to the affections something of that beautiful expansiveness which characterizes the Lord's all-encircling love. It shows us that there are innumerable kinds and degrees of good and truth in heaven, all derived from the infinity of the Divine Goodness; endless diversity of character and state even among the angels, and consequently a place somewhere in the abodes of the blessed for every one who has within him anything of the life of heaven, however humble in quality or limited in degree. It is opposed, therefore, to everything like narrowness, bigotry, sectarianism, or exclusiveness. It encourages us to look chiefly at the essential things of religion,—the spirit and life of heaven,—and to regard as of comparatively small consequence whatever does not lead to or in some way promote these. It rebukes the natural disposition, so common even among professing Christians, to make ourselves the standards of all excellence, and to judge the character of others by our own peculiar views and feelings; and does not allow us to depreciate another's good because it happens to differ from our own in kind or in degree. It teaches us that good people are not all alike; that, although so different sometimes as to be quite uncongenial to each other, they may, nevertheless, belong to the great body of Christ,—may dwell, as to their spirits, in the same Heavenly Father's house, although in different apartments.

The doctrine further teaches that the most perfect union, harmony, peace, and good-fellowship are compatible with great diversity of character, rank, occupation, and office; that this diversity, indeed, renders the union and harmony all the more perfect when the different parts in the social body are duly adjusted, and one life pervades them all. It shows us that gradations of rank and character may exist without pride, disdain, or tyranny on the one hand, or envy, jealousy, or humiliation on the other; and that these very gradations furnish wider scope for the infinitely diversified powers of man, and multiply and strengthen the ties that bind the human race together. Its tendency is to make us regard as honorable every position and occupation in life which is useful; to lead every one to desire and seek just that sphere of usefulness which his gifts of body and mind best qualify him to fill; and whether that sphere be high or low—in the head or foot, the eye or hand of the social body—to work there contentedly and faithfully, devoutly thankful that he is a man.

It is plain to be seen, therefore, that this doctrine is alike opposed to that insane lust of dominion which seeks to enslave and impoverish the masses, and to that equally mad spirit of agrarianism which would level all distinctions and make the world a swamp or a desert for the sake of having it flat; alike opposed to that proud aristocracy which seeks to erect insuperable barriers, and to that wild democracy which would tear down all the fences and remove all the landmarks. It shows us how it is possible for people of every variety of culture, rank, profession, occupation, tastes, and habits that are not disorderly, to dwell together like brethren in unity.

Let this doctrine be generally accepted and devoutly believed, and what a change would speedily be wrought by it in nearly all existing churches! How quickly would bigotry, intolerance, and belittling sectarianism—all doleful creatures of the night—take their departure, as owls and bats retire at the approach of dawn! For all agree that the Church on earth ought to be, in a state of true order will be, somewhat like the Church in heaven. All Christians, indeed, pray for this. Accepting, therefore, the new doctrine of the human form of heaven—the doctrine of endless diversity coupled with complete harmony and unity—they would no longer aim at perfect uniformity in things pertaining to the Church, for they would see that no such uniformity exists in heaven. They would see that perfect agreement in doctrine or ritual (save in two or three fundamentals) is neither to be expected nor desired; that variety everywhere—in the spiritual no less than in the natural realm—is the truly Divine order. And seeing this, they would allow and encourage the utmost freedom of thought and inquiry on religious or doctrinal questions, not deprecating but cordially welcoming whatever diversity might result from such freedom. Prejudice against new ideas, or against writings said to contain them, would everywhere be condemned and frowned upon as a hindrance to religious progress. Thus would bigotry and intolerance be banished from the churches, and in their place would come a grand catholicity, broad and beautiful as that in heaven. Instead of antagonistic sects, warring against, fretting, and weakening each other, we should have, out of many and diverse communions, one harmonious and united Church; not one in doctrine, discipline, and form of external worship, but one in spirit,—one in the real and practical acknowledgment of the Lord and his Word,—a Church all the more beautiful and perfect because of the endless diversity among its component parts.

It cannot be denied, therefore, that this doctrine of the human form of heaven is good and wholesome in its practical tendency. And what stronger evidence of its truth could any one have or desire than this? No such beneficent results could flow legitimately from a doctrine which is itself false. "Of a bramble-bush men do not gather grapes" "neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit."

And if this doctrine be, indeed, true and from heaven, as we believe and claim, and if the New Church foreshadowed and signified by the Apocalyptic New Jerusalem is, or is to be, "the crown of all the churches that have hitherto been in the world"—the glorious and consummate flower toward the expansion of which all the previous churches have looked, and each in a measure contributed,—then we should expect this Church would furnish an illustration of the heavenly doctrine we have been considering. We should expect to find in it great freedom of thought, and consequently great diversity in doctrinal beliefs as well as in states of life; and should look for perfect agreement only in two or three fundamentals (see A. C., n. 1834), and this in substance rather than in form or phraseology. We should expect in the authorized teachings of this Church a distinct recognition of this wide diversity, and of the large toleration and complete union and harmony thence resulting.

And turning to the revelations made for the use of the New Church (where only may be found the authorized teachings of this Church), we find such expectation completely justified. First, we are told that the Church on earth is or should be like the Church in heaven in respect to variety, or the diversity of its several parts.

"Heaven is a whole, composed of various parts arranged in the most perfect form; for the heavenly form is the most perfect of all forms, All perfection results from the harmonious arrangement of parts that are different. . . .

"The same may be said of the Church as of heaven, for the Church is the Lord's heaven upon earth. There are also many Churches [or ecclesiastical organizations]; and yet each one is called a Church, and likewise is a Church so far as the good of love and faith rules therein. There also the Lord makes a whole from parts that are different; that is, from several Churches He makes one Church." (H. H., nos. 56, 57.)

It is plain that the Church here spoken of, and which is perfected by variety, is the Lord's true Church, such as the New Jerusalem is declared to be; for it is said to be the same as the heaven of angels in respect to the diversity of its component parts; and this could be affirmed of none other than a true Church. But the endless variety in the New Christian Church, signiied by the New Jerusalem, is distinctly declared in other parts of the Writings. Thus in his explanation of the meaning of "the seven candlesticks" mentioned in the first chapter of the "Apocalypse". Swedenborg first says that they "signify the New Church upon earth, which is the New Jerusalem descending from the Lord out of the new heaven." Then, after referring to previous numbers wherein he had explained the meaning of "candlesticks" and the number "seven," he procceds:—

"By the seven candlesticks are not meant seven churches, but the whole Church in the aggregate, which in itself is one, but various according to reception. These varieties may be compared to the various jewels in a king's crown; also to the various members and organs in a perfect body, which yet make a one. The perfection of every form consists in diverse things being suitably disposed in their order. Hence it is that the entire New Church is described, as to its various particulars, in what follows." (A. R., n. 66.)

We learn from this that there will be great variety in the Church signified by the New Jerusalem, and that this variety will not detract from, but rather add to, its perfection. It will be a truer, grander, and more excellent Church because more like the angelic heaven from which it descends, on account of such variety. We further learn that the New Church in its entireness—"in the aggregate"—is described as to its various particulars in what is said of "the seven churches in Asia."