By Michelle Le

Instructions for this report:

1. Preface

2. Introduction

3a. Class Discussions

3b. Lecture Notes of Dr. Leon James

4. Conclusion

5. Future Generations

Individuals of Phase 1 thinking (Ritual Faith) generally have unreasonable views of spirituality. They are materialistic, ignorant, narrow-minded, and engage in practices without a true and rational conception of spirituality. Phase 2 thinking (Mystic Faith) revolves around religion, mainly the Christian Protestant religion. People of this level of spiritual rationality are universalistic, dedicated to leading their lives according to the principles of their faith, and hold a personal relationship with God. Phase 3 thinking (Rational Faith) involves a rational or scientific understanding of God and regeneration, as revealed by God in the Writings of Swedenborg. Individuals who associate with this level of thinking embrace the ideas of scientific dualism and character reformation. They apply rational spirituality to everyday reality.

In my Conclusion section of Report 2, I mentioned how I had a better understanding of what my views were on God and science after reviewing the three phases of thinking. I truly appreciated the exposure to this particular perspective of spirituality, but remained skeptical due to the questionable basis of Theistic Psychology. I believe that there is definitely a relationship that exists between science and spirituality, however, I am unable to accept all the concepts of this theory. Since completing Report 2, I have realized that I am more doubtful now compared to when I was first introduced to this topic, but I continue to be open-minded to allow myself to fully recognize the value of this class.

The idea of this report (Report 3) is to understand the difference between the rational approach and mystical approach to spirituality. I will be discussing two books: Testimony to the Invisible and Spirituality That Makes Sense. In addition to that, I will also be including my personal outlook on certain passages of these readings, and evaluating some oral presentations of my classmates as well as a few noteworthy ideas in the Lecture Notes of Dr. Leon James. This assignment will allow me to identify my views on spirituality, especially on the topic of the mystical approach versus rational approach to spirituality.

The two main textbooks used in this class were Testimony to the Invisible and Spirituality That Makes Sense. I thought they were both interesting and helpful in understanding Swedenborg, Theistic Psychology, God, and spiritual matters. These two books definitely corresponded with the class content. Since some of the readings were difficult to grasp, class discussions and the use of the Lecture Notes became very crucial for full and accurate comprehension.

In the following part of this section, I will discuss one book at a time. After each book review, I will go over a couple of brief passages/quotes that were significant to me. At the end of this section, I will compare the approach I saw in each of the two books.

Edited by James F. Lawrence

Testimony to the Invisible: Essays on Swedenborg, edited by James F. Lawrence, included a collection of essays by a number of well-known individuals, like: Jorge Luis Borges, Czeslaw Milosz, Kathleen Raine, Daisetz T. Suzuki, Eugene Taylor, Wilson Van Dusen, and Colin Wilson. The subjective interpretations of Swedenborg either reflected admiration or criticism. For example, Swedenborg’s spiritual journeys were either accepted or seen as the product of his assumed delusional state.

In the beginning of the semester, when I was first introduced to this foreign topic and started reading this book, I was really confused and extremely overwhelmed, but I was also determined to make sense of all that was being covered. I remember one of the things in the chapter of Jorge Luis Borges that caught my attention.

“Heaven is forbidden to no one; hell, imposed on no one. The doors, so to speak, are open.”

(Testimony to the Invisible, Jorge Luis Borges, p. 10)

I grew up in a Buddhist household and, throughout my life, I have held a strong belief in reincarnation and past lives. Heaven and hell were two places that I believed existed for those who included them in the continuation of their journeys after death (for example, Christians). One is a pleasant place where good souls would end up (heaven) and the other, an awful place where all the evil souls would reside (hell).

I felt relieved that I finally understood something, but I soon found out that it was not exactly what I thought. I believed that each individual could determine his/her destiny beyond physical death. Basically, his/her personality was the key to either heaven or hell. This idea agrees with Swedenborg’s character reformation (or regeneration), and the development and maintenance of a well-formed and healthy personality. We are each born with certain tendencies, but once we rise above them and acquire a conscience, we are aware of what is good and bad--we then have choice/freedom.

According to Theistic Psychology, heaven and hell exist in our minds. This was where my views differed from the ideas behind this quote. I later adopted this concept into my belief system because I felt that it was rational. Ultimately, this quote triggered some thought and allowed me to alter my perception of heaven and hell. The doors are open because each individual has the “choice” to preserve either a positive or a negative character which will determine the location of his/her existence for eternity.

(Testimony to the Invisible, Colin Wilson, p. 89)

This passage totally jumped out at me when I read it. I usually like to have proof before committing to something or feeling secure with a decision. However, there are times when I am unable to explain a sensation beyond the physical realm. I believe that every human experience involves a meaning that has no taste or smell and cannot be felt, seen, or heard. It is definitely of the spiritual world.

This is how I look at it: There is that saying, “It’s the inside that counts.” What we see of a person on the outside is often nothing more than a façade that conceals his/her true self. The soul of this person cannot be seen, but it is there. And, it is this soul that embodies who this person really is. The soul is spiritual, not physical. What I am trying to say with this example is that something that is real can’t always be seen, heard, felt, smelled, or tasted. Just because it cannot be physically sensed does not mean it is not there. I believe that we seek for more than just physical satisfaction when engaging in certain enjoyable activities. There is something more than that that brings us pleasure. So, there is indeed a paradox involved in the basic quality of human experiences.

(Testimony to the Invisible, Daisetz T. Suzuki, p. 181-182)

I was confused by this passage because I thought that Theistic Psychology emphasizes rationality and a scientific approach. I would think that this theory would be moving away from the religious aspect. This is a problem I have with this perspective. There are people who view this concept of spirituality in a purely religious mindset. I believe that religion is restrictive and causes separation among the different (religious) groups around the world. Honestly, if Theistic Psychology is just another religion, I am not interested.

I like a lot of the things that I am learning in this class, but I refuse to bound myself to a bunch of beliefs that will make things more difficult than they need to be. I like things to be simple. Ultimately, I believe that one should live his/her life as a good person with good intentions and a kind heart. He/she should strive to maintain a positive character, help those in need, be respectful to his/herself and to others, and appreciate and enjoy the surrounding people and things in his/her life. That is the main goal, whether achieved through a religious, scientific/rational, or neutral approach.

By Douglas Taylor

In this book, Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor discusses many different spiritual topics ranging from “The Spiritual World” to “Escaping from Evil Feelings.” He uses a more rational approach to spirituality compared to the authors of Testimony to the Invisible because he looks at Swedenborg’s concepts in a literal sense instead of using a subjective interpretation. I will continue to contrast between the two books after going over some interesting quotes/brief passages from this book.

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 21)

I thought this quote was very true. There are many religions that exist out there and most of them involve the concept of a spiritual world. I say “most” because we have belief systems that either deny God or the spiritual aspect altogether. I had mentioned earlier in this report as well as in Report 1 that I consider myself to be Buddhist, but I also believe in God. After I came across this passage, I was curious as to how it related to my own beliefs.

Buddhism possesses spiritual concepts, however, it does not include a belief in God and a spiritual world in which we are to live after the death of our bodies. I figured that I had conflicting beliefs. From a Buddhism perspective, it is safe to say that the concept of the spiritual world is distinct from the world of nature, but the belief in Buddha, reincarnation, and past lives (the ideas I grew up with) does not fully agree with the view of Theistic Psychology. So, in reference to this quote, is Buddhism a religion? At this point, I continue to question where I stand in terms of my beliefs surrounding spirituality.

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 109)

In class, I had learned about and accepted the idea of a distinct spiritual existence. In doing so, I was able to draw a difference between the physical brain and the mind. This quote really made sense to me when I read it. Throughout our lives, it is important to work towards developing our natural mind in order to open the higher levels of our mind, even if we have no consciousness of our inner mind. The formation of the heavenly mind is necessary in the process of preparation for life in the spiritual world after physical death.

Although I am still unsure of my destiny after my death (in this life), I find this concept to be very interesting and rational. I suppose I can apply it to reincarnation to a certain extent. If Enlightenment is the main objective, a purpose of development exists. In this case, with every rebirth on this earth, the soul grows and continues to prepare itself. In spite of the many logical explanations I have been exposed to about what happens after one (physically) dies, I have yet to make up my mind about what I believe in. I felt that the concept of this quote was reasonable, but I also find logic in the idea of reincarnation (of Buddhism).

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 151)

There is a great deal of bad people in this world who do a good job of concealing their evil motives. When I read this quote, it reminded me of how I often get suspicious of others’ reasons for doing things. It is true, someone may “appear” to be kind through his/her actions, but in actuality, his/her underlying reason is nothing of that sort. As the text that followed this excerpt pointed out, one’s good actions of an evil motive could bring about a good effect, nonetheless, he/she really does not benefit from it. Consequently, no one can get away with such wrong-doings. Although bad intentions can’t always be detected by others, the mark is left on the wrong-doer’s soul and there’s no escaping that.

The two books discussed above are of two different approaches. Testimony to the Invisible represents the mystical approach to spirituality and God. Instead of focusing on the facts and concepts presented by Swedenborg, the authors of this book put an emphasis on his experience with God. That would be the only commonality among the individually subjective chapters. Furthermore, they did not seem to fully accept the idea that Swedenborg had dual-consciousness and was able to travel to and from the spiritual world. This is the reason why he was continuously referred to as a “mystic” or “visionary” throughout the book. Of the many different interpretations of Swedenborg, I felt that the chapter of Wilson Van Dusen (A Mystic Looks at Swedenborg) clearly revealed the mystical approach. Here are some quotes to illustrate my point:

(Testimony to the Invisible, Wilson Van Dusen, p. 109)

(Testimony to the Invisible, Wilson Van Dusen, p. 121)

(Testimony to the Invisible, Wilson Van Dusen, p. 123)

Like the title suggests, Spirituality That Makes Sense is a book of the rational approach to spirituality and God. Unlike the authors of Testimony to the Invisible, Taylor introduces the concepts of Swedenborg without any personal interpretation. He presents this information objectively, allowing his readers to develop a complete and accurate understanding of God and other spiritual topics in Swedenborgian terms. All in all, this book definitely had a more rational delivery than the other book. The following quotes are good examples that support my declaration of this book’s rational approach to spirituality:

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 5)

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 20)

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 32)

(Spirituality That Makes Sense, Douglas Taylor, p. 166)

I really enjoyed this presentation because I have a strong interest in the topic of marriage. The whole idea of soul mates has always lingered in my mind. I wondered how someone would be able to determine who his/her soul mate was. Did everyone actually have a soul mate? If so, will each individual meet his/her soul mate in this life? Is a marriage of the souls limited to this lifetime or does it last for eternity? I was full of questions.

I definitely embraced the ideas of this presentation because I felt that they were rational and agreed with my current beliefs. For example, a true marriage has nothing to do with a marriage license and the details of a wedding ceremony. “The love that binds husband and wife together is the real marriage.” It is internal and eternal. Piper also pointed out that there is nothing that can prevent the union of two souls that are destined for each other. Supposedly, even if one does not unite with his/her soul mate while on this earth, he/she will in the spiritual world.

There was only one thing I couldn’t fully accept. Although it makes sense, it’s just not to my liking. Peter (a made-up person I’m using to illustrate my point) could spend his entire life with someone he thinks is his soul mate, who actually isn‘t. When his physical life comes to an end, he will then be united with his real soul mate in the spiritual world. Nothing wrong with that, right? Well, I can see him excited about this union in the spiritual world if the relationship he had on earth was really bad (since it could only get better), but if he shared a true love and genuine happiness with the person that he really thought, with all his heart, was his soul mate (and the feelings were reciprocated), I would think that Peter would be pretty disappointed to die and find out that the love of his life wasn’t his soul mate after all. Knowing me, if I was in that situation, I would be really sad, unless if there was some type of process of realization that would instantly erase my existing feelings and fill me up with an urge to be delighted about being united with my true-without-a-doubt soul mate.

This presentation was very interesting and informative. I like the idea that we are all born with the ability to be free and rational. Each individual can choose which path to take in life: “One can love what is good and understand what is truth, or one can love what is evil and understand what is false.” There really isn’t any in-between area, for every behavior we engage in stems from either goodness or evil. So, it is important that we are constantly aware of the decisions we make because they play a significant role in the development of our personality.

We also learned about the character of the natural person at three different spiritual levels of openness, which I found to be logical and properly organized in relation to each other. On the other hand, I thought that the character of the natural person who’s spiritual degree is open and who’s spiritual degree is completely closed were a bit extreme. It’s hard to believe that many of us are at the lower end of the spiritual levels of openness. The description of such individuals (with the spiritual degree that is completely closed) is just awful: “This person only has darkness, and light simply reflects off him/her; therefore, when he/she goes to heaven, he/she cannot bear the light and cannot be in any of the heavens.” As human beings, we definitely have our flaws, but how possible is it for us to overcome them all and completely open our spiritual degree? I could only imagine what process of character reformation is needed to achieve a success of that level.

Whenever I think about death, my initial emotion is sadness. I realize that this feeling may be caused by selfishness, but it could also be due to the sympathy that one feels for another. When it comes to the death of a child, many people hold the idea that he/she was denied the chance to really embrace life (on this earth). It may seem sad at first, but in actuality, the child has been saved from all the evils of this world. With all the wonderful things that exist are the unpleasant things. “They teach us that all who leave this life in infancy and childhood are saved.” I find this to be comforting, but I honestly don’t think it would do much in the grieving process of the parents who have lost their children. It would probably be appreciated more afterwards.

I like the idea that when a child goes to heaven, he/she gets to live in a house that is nothing less than what is wanted. Furthermore, it’s great that children in heaven can express their ideas through their clothing. The materialistic aspect doesn’t exist and there is no pressure to live up to social expectations. “But although their clothing is beautiful beyond the power of language to express, and is a source of constant delight, it does not minister to any evil passion. It does not beget pride or foster vanity.” How nice it is to know that the children in heaven don’t have to go through the hardships of growing up in a corrupted, money-oriented world. Overall, I did not have any disagreements with this presentation.

What I want to know is what Theistic Psychology says about psychics. These individuals are supposedly blessed with the gift of intuition and some, like psychic detectives, use it to help others. What if an individual can’t help but to know when something is going to happen? He/she may have no desire for this information and may even be trying desperately to reject it, but the information just comes. Furthermore, I learned in class that wanting to know the events of the future comes from the love of evil. Would it make a difference if a person wanted to know what the future held, but didn’t act on this desire? The want is there, but there’s also a resistance of the “evil.” Dr. James had mentioned that psychics and mediums don’t exist, but they seem to be around. How would one explain this?

I think that it is important for people to understand the difference between love of the sex and love of one of the sex, especially when pursuing a relationship. If conjugial love was my goal, I would want my partner to be just as respectful and committed as I was. I believe that love towards one of the sex is so much more meaningful and pure. The devotion that is involved takes away from selfishness, allowing individuals to alter their character for the better.

It should also be known that once the death of the physical body takes place and one’s evil habits are brought into the spiritual world, God does not and cannot remove them. It is for this reason why Dr. James suggested that people should not rely on the subjective idea of God’s Compassion and Mercy. We each have the choice to preserve either a good or bad character. At the end, it doesn’t matter which traits were inherited and which ones weren’t.

In the process of completing this assignment, I was constantly thinking about what I truly believed in and which Swedenborgian concepts I had accepted and applied to my life. I had the opportunity to examine two books of different approaches to spirituality, my classmates’ oral presentations, and some sections of Dr. James’ Lecture Notes. I have come to the conclusion that I am beyond confused about what my views are on spirituality. I have grown up with certain beliefs that I found to be logical, but I’ve also been exposed to other rational explanations of spirituality, including that of Theistic Psychology.

In the beginning of this semester, I was more accepting of the things I was learning in class. A positive bias served me well. However, as time went by, I began to be more skeptical and, in a sense, started to challenge the content of the course. On the subject of the mystical vs. the rational approach to spirituality, I have to say that I have a better understanding of what the two are. Before taking this class, I considered a mystical approach to be one that dealt with magic, something of the unknown, and/or the supernatural. As for the rational approach, I associated it with science and common sense. I never considered comparing the two concepts. Well, I wasn’t completely accurate with my assumptions, but I’m sure glad to be able to distinguish the difference between the two approaches now. So, I learned that the mystical approach involves the ideas of experiencing God and achieving oneness with Him. On the other hand, the rational approach is more reasonable because it identifies God and humans as two separate entities, and it accepts that Swedenborg had dual-consciousness and traveled to and from the spiritual world.

This distinction holds much importance because using the wrong (or mystical) approach leads to corruption and delusion. With the rational approach, one is on the path to achieving happiness and rationality. This would mean life in heaven for eternity. I might not know exactly what I believe in yet, but I do know that anything that goes into my belief system will be straightforward and rational. In the next few years, I know I will be continuing with my spiritual development. It’s a process that I would like to take my time with because it is a very crucial part of my life. It defines who I am and governs the way in which I do things. I am constantly striving to maintain a good character.

As I had mentioned earlier, I became more doubtful of Swedenborg and Theistic Psychology as the class progressed. I believe that I’m just carefully examining the spiritual concepts that I have encountered in order to choose the ones that I feel the most comfortable with at this time. I know for sure that a transformation is taking place within me. This class has opened my eyes to a whole new perspective and I have definitely seen signs of spiritual growth. I am very grateful to have had the chance to learn all the things that I’ve learned. I don’t totally reject the ideas of Theistic Psychology. In fact, I agree with a great deal of it. I just feel overwhelmed right now. I hope to have a better understanding of this topic as time goes by. “Today I practice the gift of setting intentions. Freed of any belief in facts or appearances that may appear to limit my choices, I listen to my Divine guidance for those seeds of ideas that want to grow through my consciousness. And I plant them” (Science of Mind, April 2004, p. 44).

Theistic Psychology can be very challenging and overwhelming, but I encourage you to be patient with it and keep an open mind. You may feel discouraged, especially in the beginning, but don’t give up. There is so much you can gain from this class. Don’t be ashamed of what you believe in. You will find many different opinions within the class. Ask questions and share your thoughts. You might not realize it, but while you’re helping yourself, you could be helping someone else understand something better. A big piece of advice is to not procrastinate with the assignments! They’re pretty intense and time-consuming. You want to be able to put your best efforts into them. You could also learn more from an assignment if you’re not rushing to get it done.

I really enjoyed this class and honestly believe that you can benefit from it as much as I did. The things I learned made me want to be a better person. If you apply yourself, you will definitely grow from this experience. Take pleasure in your journey of exploration.

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