Arcana Coelestia
Encyclopedia
The Arcana Cœlestia, quae in Scriptura Sacra seu Verbo Domini sunt, detecta, usually abbreviated as Arcana Coelestia ("Heavenly Mysteries") or under its Latin variant, Arcana Caelestia, is the first and largest work published by Emanuel Swedenborg
in his theological period. It was written and published in Neolatin, in eight volumes, one volume per year, from 1749 to 1756.
It consists of an exposition of the spiritual sense of the books of Genesis and Exodus, according to the doctrine of correspondence (theology)
, and demonstrated by many supporting quotations from the Hebrew Bible
and the New Testament
. While not denying the historicity of the stories of the Patriarchs (Bible)
and The Exodus
from Egypt, it explains them as describing symbolically the process of spiritual growth and struggles in each individual person.
Emanuel Swedenborg
was a Swedish scientist, philosopher, and theologian. He has been termed a Christian mystic by some sources, including the Encyclopædia Britannica online version, and the Encyclopedia of Religion , which starts its article with the description that he was a "Swedish scientist and mystic." Others...
in his theological period. It was written and published in Neolatin, in eight volumes, one volume per year, from 1749 to 1756.
Correspondence (theology)
In theology, correspondence is the relationship between spiritual and natural realities, or between mental and physical realities.- Correspondence and esotericism :Pierre A...
, and demonstrated by many supporting quotations from the Hebrew Bible
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible is a term used by biblical scholars outside of Judaism to refer to the Tanakh , a canonical collection of Jewish texts, and the common textual antecedent of the several canonical editions of the Christian Old Testament...
and the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
. While not denying the historicity of the stories of the Patriarchs (Bible)
Patriarchs (Bible)
The Patriarchs of the Bible, when narrowly defined, are Abraham, the ancestor of all the Abrahamic nations; his son Isaac, the ancestor of the nations surrounding Israel/Judah; and Isaac's son Jacob, also named Israel, the ancestor of the Israelites...
and The Exodus
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
from Egypt, it explains them as describing symbolically the process of spiritual growth and struggles in each individual person.
External links
- Arcana Coelestia
- First Translation of Swedenborg's theological writings - 16th Chapter of Genesis as explained in the Arcana Cœlestia - This translation from Latin into English was commissioned by Swedenborg himself and is a photocopy of a first edition copy (PDF - 12MB).