Arcana Coelestia 7317. And they shall be turned into blood. That this signifies that they shall falsify truths, is evident from the signification of “blood,” as being truth falsified (see n. 4735, 6978); for “blood” in the genuine sense denotes the truth proceeding from the Lord, thus the holy of faith; this is signified by “blood” in the Holy Supper; but in the opposite sense “blood” denotes violence done to Divine truth, and as this violence is done by means of falsifications, “blood” denotes the falsification of truth. From what is here said, and from what follows, it can be seen who are specifically represented by Pharaoh, that is, who are specifically meant by those who infest, namely, those within the church who have made a profession of faith, and have also persuaded themselves that faith saves, and yet have lived contrary to the precepts of faith; in a word, those who have been in persuasive faith and in a life of evil.

[2] When these come into the other life they bring with them the principles that they are to be introduced into heaven because they have been born within the church, have been baptized, have had the Word and doctrine therefrom which they have professed, and especially because they have professed the Lord, and because He suffered for their sins, and thus saved those within the church who have from doctrine professed Him. When these persons come fresh from the world into the other life they do not desire to know anything about the life of faith and of charity, but make it of no account, saying that because they have had faith, all evils of life have been wiped off and washed away by the blood of the Lamb. When they are told that these things are contrary to the Lord’s words in Matthew, where He says, “Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied through Thy name, and through Thy name have cast out devils, and in Thy name have done many mighty deeds? But then will I confess, I know you not; depart from Me ye workers of iniquity; everyone that heareth My words and doeth them, I will liken to a prudent man, and everyone that heareth My words, and doeth them not, I will liken unto a foolish man” (Matthew 7:22-26); and in Luke, “Then shall ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us; but He answering shall say to them, I know you not whence ye are; then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in Thy presence, and Thou hast taught in our streets; but He shall say, I say unto you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from Me all ye workers of iniquity” (Luke 13:25-27), they reply that by these are meant no others than such as have been in miraculous faith, but not in the faith of the church.

[3] Yet the same after some time begin to know that no others are let into heaven than they who have lived the life of faith, thus who have had charity toward the neighbor; and when they begin to know this, then they begin to despise the teachings of their faith, and also their faith itself; for their faith was not faith, but only the knowledge of such things as are of faith; and was not for the sake of life, but for the sake of gain and honors. Consequently what they have had of the knowledge of faith they then despise, and also reject; and presently they cast themselves into falsities that are contrary to the truths of faith. Into this state the life of those is turned who have confessed faith, and have lived a life contrary to faith. These are they who in the other life infest the upright by means of falsities, thus who are specifically meant by “Pharaoh.”

And from the ‘Awakening to Spiritual Life’ paper -State of Exteriors: From the section on ‘Spiritual Friends‘

When a spirit comes to see what’s actually involved in a heavenly life, they then have what’s needed to be able to draw a comparison between this and what they thought in the world.  For those who thought that entry to heaven was based on outer behaviour and so hadn’t paid a lot of attention to their intentions and thoughts…

. . . they feel indignant at their total ignorance of such things, and at the ignorance of the church also (HH 495).

The feelings of “indignation” and the concern about making “it into heaven” also often reflects states that are experienced in Logopraxis work. Through the practice of the Word, we start to understand the disparity that exists between what we project as our self-image to the world and what goes unexpressed at the level of our intentions (affections) and thoughts. As we come to examine our inner mental life we begin to see, sometimes for the first time, the true quality of the hellish proprium.  In the struggle to acknowledge this, any confidence held in what formed our historical faith starts to be called into question as new insights based on the actual practice of truths from the Word become established. This is often accompanied with a sense of lost years or even, a wasted life. There is the perplexing question of why, given its essential importance, there wasn’t this emphasis on the inner application of the Word to the life of the mind. What is clear is that the insights that arise from a more interior life focus can present a challenge. This challenge occurs when we look to reconcile the understanding we have inherited from others, which is typically called a historical faith, with the new insights gained through the direct experience that arises from the practice of truths from the Word.

We see that the spirit’s friends also provide instruction regarding what heaven and hell are. That what is experienced as a heaven or hell reflects the quality of a spirit’s inner state of life, that is, the affections and thoughts that make up the life of the mind. Essentially the inner state of life is projected out to form a spirit’s experience of an outer world. The instruction provided emphasises the importance and therefore the impact, the interior life has on the state or quality of life a spirit comes into upon awakening in the spiritual world. The instruction provides the basis for new ways of thinking about heaven and hell. It is given to assist the movement of thoughts away from the natural idea that heaven and hell are places people go to after they die, towards the idea that the experience of heaven or hell is directly tied to the quality of the thoughts and affections a spirit habitually lives from and finds delight in. This leads to the dawning realisation that it is actually the quality of our interior life that matters. Depending on what a spirit focused on and so cultivated as their life in the world, there is the potential for states of significant disruption as they grapple with whether they will make it into heaven or not. 

Similar states of disruption arise for those involved in Logopraxis work.  They arise from the fact that once the inner life begins to be emphasised, any reliance we have on outer conduct as the basis for getting into heaven begins to be challenged. This could include things like religiously orientated activities, or a sense of security found in belonging to a particular religious group, or subscribing to a specific form of doctrinal understanding.  The process of awakening brings us to see that a historical faith where the emphasis for “spiritual” life is focussed on engaging in rituals, or “good/moral behaviour” or in belonging to a church organisation, doesn’t constitute a saving faith. As this realisation dawns, so we also come to see that it is the state of the church within, the inner life of our thoughts and affections, that really matters. The following quote is telling in this regard…

Most of them [new comers] believe that they will [get into heaven], because of their having lived in the world a moral and civil life, never considering that the bad and the good live a like life outwardly, alike doing good to others, attending public worship, hearing sermons, and praying;…And [so they are] wholly ignorant that external deeds and external acts of worship are of no avail, but only the internals from which the externals proceed…There is hardly one out of thousands who knows what internals are, and that it is in them that man must find heaven and the church.  (HH 495)

Just as the spirits are instructed upon arriving in the spiritual world, so we also through the practice of truths from the Word, come to experience heaven and hell as states or exterior projections that mirror the interior quality of the state of the mind that rules in our life. Understood in this way, we see that what we live in mentally, so far as its heavenly or hellish quality is concerned, isn’t something limited to some “other world” off in the future somewhere. Instead, through reflection, we see that it is an ever-present reality to be accessed in the present moment. Once it is understood that heaven and hell are the product of internal states of mind and are not places, the importance of needing to work on the inner life whilst living in this world, becomes all the more apparent.

Third Round posts are short audio clips taken from Round 3 comments offered in the online Logopraxis Life Group meetings. The aim is to keep the focus on understanding the Text in terms of its application to the inner life along with reinforcing any key LP principles that have been highlighted in the exchanges.