Church of the Holy City

What We Don’t Know about Heaven

What We Don’t Know about Heaven
Rev. Dr. David J. Fekete
July 5, 2009

2 Kings 2:1-12 John 14:1-4

One of Swedenborg’s extraordinary claims is that he had visions of the afterlife. And what is extraordinary to me, is that he was able to describe these visions with the precision of the scientist that he was. This claim is not all that extraordinary, though. There is a visionary tradition in the history of Christianity, in fact it is even Biblical. The New Testament records accounts where people heard voices from heaven and saw heaven opened. Paul had a vision of Christ which left him blind for three days and his companions heard the voice of Jesus. Peter, as well, had a vision of heaven. The Apostle John recorded his visions in the book of Revelation. There is a visionary tradition among the Natives of North America, in Hinduism, Buddhism, and in Islam. Then there are those near death experiences that some have which come with visions of the next life.
From Swedenborg’s writings, we think we have a fair idea of what the afterlife is like. Swedenborg talks about the spiritual bodies angels have—and all angels come from the human race, he talks about communities in the next life, and about functions and occupations we have in the next life. But then there are all those times when Swedenborg says that what he experiences is ineffable. That is, his experiences are beyond anything words can express.
The very language of angels—that is, good people who have crossed over—is beyond human speech. We all come into this angelic language, according to Swedenborg, and it is so natural that we don’t know that it transcends all language from this world. To convince newly arrived spirits just how superior their language is, Swedenborg conducts an experiment. He asks the spirits to go to their society, think of an idea and try to tell it to Swedenborg, who is still in the natural world. Swedenborg tells us then what happened:
They entered, thought of a subject, retained it, and came out; and when they tried to give expression to it they could not; for they could find no idea of natural thought adequate to any idea of purely spiritual thought, and thus words to express it (TCR 280 [5].
The spirits are convinced then about how superior spiritual thought and language is to natural thought and language. As Swedenborg says,
Spiritual ideas are supernatural, inexpressible, ineffable, and incomprehensible to a natural man; and they said that being so supereminent, spiritual ideas or thoughts in comparison with natural are ideas of ideas and thoughts of thoughts, and therefore by them the qualities of qualities and the affections of affections are expressed; . . . and from this it is evident that spiritual wisdom is the wisdom of wisdom, and is therefore inexpressible to any wise man in the natural world (TCR 280 [5]).
So we don’t have the first idea of what angels think and talk about. It is so filled with wisdom that the best of our natural thought isn’t able to understand a single angelic idea.
That passage implies that one reason for the transcendence of spiritual lang is because the experiences in the next life are beyond what we can experience here. I was intrigued by the statement that in angelic speech the “affections of affections” are expressed. All our delights come from our loves. When we are enjoying what we love, we are in our delights. And the heavenly delights of loving God and the neighbor far exceed any other joy we can know. We feel joy here when we do good to others. And we feel a peace and joy when we think about God. But the happiest we can ever be in this world is nothing compared to heavenly joy and happiness. We feel only faintly the joy that awaits us in heaven. This is one of those heavenly promises that is pleasant to contemplate. Swedenborg writes,
. . . a man who is in love to God and in love toward the neighbor, as long as he lives in the body does not feel the manifest enjoyment from these loves and from the good affections which are from them, but only a blessedness that is hardly perceptible, because it is stored up in his interiors, and veiled by the exteriors which are of the body, and defiled by the cares of the world. After death, however, the states are entirely changed; . . . the obscure enjoyment and almost imperceptible blessedness which had been with those who are in love to God and in love to the neighbor, is then turned into the love of heaven, which is in every way perceptible and sensible; for that blessedness, which was stored up and lay hid in their interiors when they lived in the world, is then revealed and brought forth into manifest sensation, because they are then in the spirit and that was the enjoyment of their spirit (HH 401).
What strikes me about this passage is how good it feels to live in mutual love with one another here in this world. There are times when we seem to be lifted up into heaven here on earth. And yet even these feelings are but a “blessedness that is hardly perceptible” compared to heavenly joy. Even though human language is inadequate to express what spiritual reality is like, Swedenborg tries to give us some idea of just how great heavenly joy is. And the source of heavenly joy comes from God Himself, who wants to save everyone and make everyone as happy as He can.
Heaven in itself is such that it is full of enjoyments, so that viewed in itself it is nothing but what is blessed and delightful, since the Divine good proceeding from the Divine love of the Lord makes heaven in general and in particular with everyone there, and the Divine love is to will the salvation of all and the happiness of all from inmosts and in fullness. Hence whether you say heaven or heavenly joy, it is the same thing (HH 397).
And everyone in heaven wants to share their happiness with everyone else. Heaven is immense and so heavenly joy is equally immense. Once again, Swedenborg tells us that sharing joy comes first from God, who wishes to give everyone all that He has.
How great the enjoyment of heaven is, may be evident only from this, that it is an enjoyment to all in heaven to communicate their enjoyments and blessings to others; and because all are such in the heavens, it is manifest how immense is the enjoyment of heaven; for, as was shown above, in the heavens there is a communication of all with each, and of each with all. Such communication flows forth from the two loves of heaven, which, as was said, are love to the Lord and love toward the neighbor. These loves are communicative of their enjoyments. That love to the Lord is such, is because His love is the love of communication of all that He has with all, for He wills the happiness of all. Similar love is in every one of those who love the Lord, because He is in them (HH 399).
We think of heaven as being a place of deep peace. There are moments in this world when we feel tranquil and at peace. Perhaps at sunrise, or in a quiet natural setting. I remember skiing up in Jasper with Carol. We stopped and looked down at the beautiful valley and Carol said to me, “Listen—it’s totally quiet.” There was no road noise, no clamor from traffic, no sirens. There was just the forest, the valley and each other. That was one of those moments of peace that we feel here on earth. But even moments such as these fall short of the kind of peace that awaits us in heaven. I spoke with a man who had actually died for several minutes before being resuscitated. He had an experience of the afterlife. He told me that there is a peace and tranquility beyond anything we feel in this world. Swedenborg says the same.
Man also, as long as he lives in the body, cannot receive the peace of heaven, thus cannot perceive it, because his perception is in what is natural. In order to perceive it, he ought to be able as to thought to be elevated and withdrawn from the body and kept in the spirit, and then be with angels. Because I have in this way perceived the peace of heaven, I am able to describe it, yet not by words as it is in itself, because human words are inadequate, but only as it is in comparison with that rest of mind which those enjoy who are content in God (HH 248).
And once again, this peace flows from God Himself. God is the source of all heavenly peace and joy. And what amazes me, is that God Himself feels joy in being united with us all in heaven. God feels joy that we are happy, and He feels joy in being conjoined with everybody in heaven. This Divine joy is shared with everyone in heaven and our joy in God and God’s joy in us becomes a loving circle.
The Divine of peace in heaven is from the Lord, existing from His conjunction with the angels of heaven, . . . From this it may be manifest, that peace in the heavens is the Divine inmostly affecting with blessedness every good they have, and giving all the joy of heaven; and that in its essence the Divine joy of the Lord’s Divine love, from His conjunction with heaven and with every one there. This joy perceived by the Lord in angels, and by angels from the Lord, is peace. From this by derivation angels have all that is blessed, enjoyable, and happy, or that which is called heavenly joy (HH 286).
These passages are a reminder about just how little we can really know about heaven here on earth. Visionaries from all traditions can point to heavenly realities. But they can only point. The actual experience is beyond what we can know here on earth. We cannot know the wisdom in heaven, we cannot know the joy in heaven, and we cannot know the peace of heaven. I think that spiritually inclined people find a more joyful life in this world than those who are consumed with worldly things. I think that spiritually inclined people find deeper experiences of peace. But our best days here are but “a blessedness that is hardly perceptible” compared to what awaits us in heaven. Meanwhile, let us try to do a good turn to our neighbors, and to try to make this one day happier for the lives we touch. And let us be mindful and give thanks to God, who gives us every good thing we know. And we can live in the peace and joy of this life, and hope for good things to come.