Suzanne Howard * email: howardsu
@hawaii.edu *
Testimony to the Invisible by Czeslaw Milosz
topic: Swedenborg’s influence on Dostoevsky
I. Two ways Dostoevsky was related to Swedenborg (pages 20-21)
A. They both were religious thinkers who resisted the impact of scientific innovations of the time.
B. Dostoevsky borrowed from Swedenborg.
1. Books in Dostoevsky’s library
a.
The Gospel according to
Swedenborg: Five Chapters of the Gospel of John with an Exposition and a
Discussion of Their Spiritual Meaning according to the Teaching on
Correspondences
b. On Heaven, the World of Spirits and on Hell,
as They Were Seen and Heard by Swedenborg
c. The Rationalization of Swedenborg: A Critical
Analysis of His Teaching on the Holy Writ
· I believe that there is no doubt as to whether or not Dostoevsky knew of and read Swedenborg.
· I do not think that Milosz is biased in saying that it is highly probable that Dostoevsky was influenced by Swedenborg.
· If Milosz can show that Dostoevsky’s work was influenced by Swedenborg, I believe if would benefit theistic psychology.
II. Swedenborg in the first half of the 20th century (pages 21-23)
A. Much attention was paid to symbolism in poetry, yet Swedenborg was relatively ignored.
B. General thought: “The risk of taking Swedenborg too seriously was too great; besides nobody seemed to know what to think of him” (Milosz, 22).
C. Swedenborg was not completely dismissed by his peers as insane because of both his important position in society and because of his personality.
D. The Romanticism movement was attracted to Swedenborg.
E. There were also those who were critical of his mental health.
1. Karl Jaspers claimed he was schizophrenic.
2. Paul Valery claimed his visions were daydreams.
· Swedenborg was not accepted in his day nor is he widely accepted today.
· Milosz gives valid explanations of the various interpretations of Swedenborg.
· Milosz helps explain why Swedenborg’s theistic psychology did not catch on very quickly because of all of his critics.
III. William Blake (pages 24-26)
A. William Blake is a major figure in English literature who was also influenced by Swedenborg.
B. Blake read Swedenborg not to gain insight or understanding into the spiritual world. Rather, he read Swedenborg like he read the poet Dante.
C. Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell is modeled upon Swedenborg.
D. Swedenborg was different than Dante because Dante was a poet and Swedenborg wrote plainly.
E. Swedenborg did not write fiction.
F. “They both [Swedenborg and Blake] were primarily concerned with the energy that reveals itself in a constant interaction of Imagination with the things perceived by our five senses” (Milosz, 26).
· Milosz shows how Swedenborg has influenced another great author.
· Milosz’s arguments were valid in explaining Swedenborg’s influence on Blake as well as explaining why he did not write fiction.
· This information is important to theistic psychology because it gives one more example of Swedenborg’s influence as well as help to explain why Swedenborg did not write fiction.
IV. Swedenborg in Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment
(pages 26-33)
A.
Dostoevsky’s descriptions of cities such as
B. Swedenborg says, “The whole natural world corresponds to the spiritual world, and not merely the natural world in general, but also every particular of it; and, as a consequence, everything in the natural world that springs from the spiritual is called correspondent” (Heaven and Hell, 89).
C. One character in Crime and Punishment, Svidrigailov,
displays too much in common with the spirits of Swedenborg to have not come
directly from Swedenborg’s Heaven and
Hell.
D. The important theme of self love appears in Crime and Punishment in two forms.
1. The character Raskolinikov shows self love as he gradually becomes aware of his power.
2. The character Svidrigailov knows his evil nature and has a feeling of damnation.
E. Swedenborg’s influence is seen in Raskolinkov’s conversation with Svidrigailov.
· Milosz now shows specific examples of how Swedenborg influenced Dostoevsky.
· This literature is not biased because the notes are taken directly from Dostoevsky and compared with the notes of Swedenborg.
· This has an important impact on theistic psychology because now a connection is shown between Swedenborg and Dostoevsky.
V. The onslaught of philosophy – and gnosticism (pages 40-44)
A. Philosophy of the time attacked the concept of trinity of Christianity.
B. Swedenborg disagreed with all three branches of Christianity (Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant) about the Trinity.
1. “He accused them all of teaching the faithful to imagine three gods and thus disguising polytheism under a formula incomprehensible to the human mind” (Milosz, 41)
C. Swedenborg also disagreed with other schools of thought that believed that Christ was not the same nature as God the Father and those who thought Christ was just a man.
D. Swedenborg was not Anti-Trinitarian, but wanted to propose a new concept of the Trinity.
E.
The Gospel of
F. Swedenborg proposed the concept of the Greatest Man.
G. He believed everything in the Universe was created to give humans different experiences while are physical bodies are alive.
· Swedenborg was not anti-Christianity, but he wanted to revise the Church.
· I believe Milosz accurately presents Swedenborg’s views on Christianity.
· It is important to theistic psychology to understand Swedenborg’s stance on the Trinity and his concept of the Greatest Man.
“In the history of the rebellion of man against God and against the order of nature, Swedenborg stands out as a healer who wanted to break the seals on the sacred books and thus make the rebellion unnecessary. By revealing that God is man, he was convinced that he had fulfilled Christ’s promise to one day send a comforter, the spirit of truth; that spirit spoke through him” (Milosz, 46).