Does the Bible Teach that there is Life After Death?

Does the Bible teach that there is life after death?  While the answer may seem obvious to some that it is YES, others believe that one ceases to exist until their bodies are physically raised from the grave.  In the New Church, it is unequivocally stated that we all do indeed live after death in a higher (or lower) spiritual reality that is beyond this physical material plane.  However there are some churches and sects who do not believe this to be the case.  Specifically, it is part of the doctrines of the Seventh Day Adventists and Jehovah's Witnesses  that we do not have consciousness after death, we just simply cease to exist until some literal future resurrection date.  So which view is correct?

For doctrinal issues, one should always use scripture first.  In New Church doctrine, it is stated that all doctrine should be drawn from scripture as a foundational basis.  So I will here mention passages from the New Testament in which a clear answer is given concerning life after death.  In fact, these are the passages I used in a discussion on a Seventh Day Adventist forum, and I thought I would share them here for anyone seeking answers.  For anyone who grew up in a particular religion, I always give the same advice: examine the truth for yourself, and do not depend on what other people tell you.  For if you know the truth, the truth shall set you free.

SCRIPTURE EVIDENCE #1 - JESUS' ANSWER TO THE SADDUCEES

As the Old Testament had been written in such a symbolic manner, by the time of Jesus a Jewish sect arose, the Sadducees, who believed in no future resurrection.  After the Sadducees tested Jesus with a question on the resurrection, Jesus gave them this answer:

And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God: ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living. (Matt. 22:31-32)

The parallel passage of Luke has slightly different wording:

But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him. (Luke 20:37-38)

What this shows is that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob already rose from the dead, and were alive in heaven.  This answer alone shows that there is life after death.

SCRIPTURE EVIDENCE #2: THE STORY OF LAZARUS AND THE RICH MAN

Here is another passage, in which not only does it clearly state there is life after death, but that heaven and hell are real.  This is the story of Lazarus and the rich man, which some say "is just a parable," but the point here is parables are meant to teach the truth, not to mislead.  Moreover, this may be an actual account, as Lazarus is the name of the person that Jesus rose from the dead (see John 11).  Here is the passage from Luke:

“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house—for I have five brothers —so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’” (Luke 16:19-31)

It should be noted, just as in Jesus' answer to the Sadducees, this story from Luke also shows that Abraham is alive in heaven.  From the passage above, we can conclude several things:

1. There is life after death.  The death of the physical body is but a transition.
2. There is heaven and there is hell.
3. There is a chasm between heaven and hell.

SCRIPTURE EVIDENCE #3 - JESUS' ANSWER TO THE THIEF ON THE CROSS

In support of the story of Luke, Jesus' answer to the thief on the cross shows that one lives immediately after death:

And [the thief] said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:42-43)

Nothing can be more clear than that.  Some, who wish to distort what was said, put the comma after "today" where Jesus is merely saying "Today I am saying this to you."  But that is not the case: Jesus is assuring the thief that that very day they will meet each other in Paradise.  Paradise is also mentioned in the book of Revelation:

To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. (Rev, 2:7)

This shows that the Garden of Eden in Gen. 2 is actually a representation of heaven, not a physical garden.  It symbolically represents that in ancient times, an ancient race of men had direct contact with heaven.

SCRIPTURE EVIDENCE #4 - THE DESCENT OF JESUS INTO HELL

One thing that most of Christianity has forgotten is that between the time of the crucifixion and the resurrection, Jesus not only ascended into heaven but descended into hell.  This is known in the Orthodox Church as the "harrowing of hell," where Jesus put all of hell under dominion and released captive souls and brought them up into heaven.  This is described in more detail in Jesus the Shaman - Descent into the Underworld.  It is mentioned briefly in the epistle of Peter:

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. (1 Pet. 3:18-20)

This is an obvious reference to souls living in the afterlife, caught in some sort of prison, who had lived before the flood of Noah.  This shows one lives a full life after death.  Also, in addition to heaven or hell, there is a state similar to limbo or purgatory, where one can remain in prison or a limited state for a time between heaven and hell.

WHAT OF THE LAST JUDGMENT?

The New Testament clearly states that there is life after death, that there are many who are judged and go to heaven or hell.  However there are other passages which speak of a "final judgment" or "last judgment" at the "end of the age" (e.g., Matt. 13:37-43, 25:31-46).  Does not those passages confirm that the resurrection is yet future?  Yes and no.  The last judgment at the end of the age refers to the souls caught in prison or "limbo" between heaven and hell, who had not been judged yet as they were not ready.  For these there are periodic last judgments in which souls are judged in mass, and go to either heaven or hell.  One of these judgments took place during the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.  But these last judgments occur in the spiritual world, not the physical world.  For in judgment, all the memories of our thoughts, and all our actions, are examined in the clearest detail as to our true intentions.  This can only occur in the spiritual world.

In the 18th century, many revelations were given to Emanuel Swedenborg concerning Christianity, and one of the main revelations was to show that there is life after death, that there is a heaven or hell, and that how we live our life determines our eternal destiny.  The reason for the revelation was that many intellectuals of the modern age had ceased to believe in life after death, and thus Christianity had entered into a period of decline, and one can still see this continue today in western society.  The revelations of the afterlife are summarized in his work Heaven and Hell, and further details are given concerning the last judgments in the spiritual world in his works The Final Judgment and The Final Judgment Continued.  The main last judgment, which mainly concerns the fall of Christianity and the establishment of the New Church, is described in detail in the work Apocalypse Revealed and Apocalypse Explained.

These are large subjects, but when introducing someone new to these spiritual matters it is always preferable to use scripture first, and I would always recommend the passages that I mentioned above in this blog as a starting point.  It is impossible for me to summarize here, but the main point is that the love of our will, not our belief system, determines our eternal destiny.  Truth is only useful inasmuch as it leads one away from evil towards good.  Those who love others, who live a useful life, are on the path to heaven.  Those who are in service of their own self, or love of the world, are on a path in a separate direction. So choose wisely, and your happiness will only grow not only in this life but to all eternity.

What is the Way to Heaven?

What is the way to heaven?  It happens to be quite simple.

I told this person who has a tendency to have clairvoyant and precognitive dreams (e.g., A Prophetic Dream of Flight MH17, among many others), to focus their thoughts on more spiritual topics, such as heaven, and less on material things, and to tune out people who tend to have petty and jealous thoughts. The next day this person had a dream vision and saw these men with white beards, wearing different light colored robes. They were taking care of these younger boys.  This person then asked:

"Where is this place?"

One of the men with the white beards then responded,

"This is heaven."

He then said this:

"Tell Doug this: all go to heaven who who treat other people well, and with love."

And that was it. I was a bit surprised at the immediate response. The men with white beards were probably Middle Eastern. And the young boys? Probably all the young children who have died recently in the Middle East (Swedenborg saw that all children who have died at a young age will go to heaven). And these men with white beards were taking care of them, and with such care. I understood that the boys were probably from the Middle East, as so many children have died recently in Iraq, Syria and Palestine. And the reason for such death? From false religions. False religions, or false doctrines of religion, have a tendency to state that only people of a particular religion go to heaven. But that is not true - it is not the BELIEF which is important, it is LOVE which is important.

Religion or one's belief system is only useful to the extent it leads a person to love God and love others. Religions that focus on belief alone tend to not be so useful or practical in one's spiritual life.

Others, who would perhaps expect some great overwhelming revelation from heaven, will probably be disappointed and say, "That's it?" That was Howard Storm's reaction when he had a Near Death Experience, and asked Jesus what he should do. Jesus simply responded, "Love the one you are with" (see Swedenborg on the Near Death Experience of Howard Storm). And his reaction was "That's it?" Yes, that is really it. For God is love itself, and inasmuch as we allow that love inside our heart, so we will live forever in heaven. In Near Death Experiences, people are consistently encountering a Being of Light and come into a life review, and in that life review one principle is important: how we have loved others.

ALL HUMANS WERE CREATED TO DWELL ETERNALLY IN HEAVEN

Swedenborg was very clear in his visions of the afterlife - he saw all people of different religions in heaven, dwelling in different areas according to the level of understanding and love they had reached in their life. In his work Heaven and Hell, he wrote:

"It is a common opinion that those born out of the Church, who are called heathen or gentiles, cannot be saved, because they have not the Word and thus do not know the Lord, and without the Lord there is no salvation. But still it may be known that they also are saved, from this alone, that the mercy of the Lord is universal, that is, toward every one; that they are born men as well as those within the Church, who are respectively few; and that it is not their fault that they do not know the Lord. Every one who thinks from any enlightened reason, may see that no man is born for hell, for the Lord is love itself, and His love is to will to save all. Therefore He has provided that all may have religion, and by it acknowledgment of the Divine, and interior life; for to live according to one's religious belief is to live interiorly, as he then looks to the Divine; and as far as he looks to This, so far he does not look to the world, but removes himself from the world, thus from the life of the world, which is exterior life." (Heaven and Hell, n. 318)

And what is the advantage for those who know? External morality appears similar to other people, but there is a morality which is external and natural, and a morality which is more spiritual. The difference in one's morality is based on one's intent:

"Moral life is lived either for the sake of the Divine, or for the sake of men in the world; the moral life which is lived for the sake of the Divine is spiritual life. Moral life and spiritual life appear alike in outward form, but in inward form they are altogether different; the one saves man, the other does not save him. For he who lives a moral life for the sake of the Divine, is led by the Divine, but he who lives a moral life for the sake of men in the world, is led by himself. This may be illustrated by an example. He who will not do evil to his neighbor because it is contrary to religion, thus contrary to the Divine, abstains from doing evil from a spiritual motive; but he who does no evil to another merely from fear of the law, of the loss of reputation, honor, or gain, thus for the sake of himself and the world, abstains from doing evil from a natural motive, and is led by himself: the life of the latter is natural, but that of the former is spiritual." (Heaven and Hell, n. 319)

And this is the reason why the 10 commandments were revealed on Mount Sinai: for hidden within the morality of societies laws, which everyone has a tendency to know from their own conscience, there is a hidden spiritual way of living. You cannot divorce morality from spirituality. Some religious thoughts which focus on belief alone, consider the study of morality a "side issue" rather than have it be central to their teaching.

As I often see many who are at a lower level of understanding when it comes to their religion, what did Jesus have to say on the issue? Did Jesus speak of other religions? Yes he did.

ETERNAL LIFE IS THROUGH LOVE

What shall one do to inherit eternal life? Love others. And that is it:

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”
And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”
And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” (Luke 10:25-28)

WHAT ABOUT DIFFERENT RELIGIONS?

Right after Jesus said the above, the topic of other religions comes up.  In Jesus' day, the Jewish Pharisees utterly despised another group known as the Samaritans, who only followed the first five books of Moses and rejected much of what was taught in Judaism.

But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 
Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.
So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.
He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.
And the next day he took out two denarii3  and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’
Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”
He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” (Luke 10:29-37)

Note in the parable Jesus specifically chose a Samaritan, someone who followed a different religion, who it was who did God's will.

A RELIGION OF BROTHERHOOD

Again, Jesus spoke in another instance concerning someone who did not follow his disciples:

John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name,  and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.”
But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me.
For the one who is not against us is for us. (Mark 9:38-40)

This is something a particular religion will not talk about. Indeed, the gospel of Mark is the earliest of the gospels, and this story does not appear again in any of the other gospels. A "religion of brotherhood" recognizes other religions that does good as a brotherhood, even though they may follow different teachings.

ALL RELIGIONS ARE CREATED FOR MAN, AND NOT MAN FOR RELIGION

All religions, without exception, are adapted to the culture of the people receiving the revelation. For if it were not adapted to what people can receive, there would be no conjunction between humans and God.  And indeed, Jesus confirms that religion was made for man, and not man for religion:

The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. (Mark 2:27)

The "Sabbath" in a generic sense means religion, for it was on the Sabbath day that religious instruction was given.  The Jews at the time had made so many unnecessary rules to honor the Sabbath day that they forgot what the law was all about: loving others.

ALL ARE JUDGED ACCORDING TO THEIR LIFE, NOT THEIR RELIGION

Finally, everyone will be judged according to how they lived their life. There are many religious people that just follow ritual or do lip service, but do not live their life according to what is taught:

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.
Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’
Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?
And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?
And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’
Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’
Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (Matt. 25:31-46)

WHO CRUCIFIED JESUS? RELIGIOUS PEOPLE

One often forgets that the four Gospels concentrate on how religion towards its end become corrupt, and based on falsity justifies the killing of other people:

They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. (John 16:2) 

So beware of belonging to a religion of false teachings. Always examine what you think to be true. If a religion is based on fear and hatred, or making one group "superior" to others, it is a false religion.

BRAIN GAMES ON LOVE AND COMPASSION

Here is an interesting episode from Brain Games on National Geographic, which demonstrates the psychological impact of love and compassion on other people, based on scientific studies. I especially like the hot chili blind test, which shows just how a simple act of kindness can have a ripple effect on other people.  It also shows what questions you can ask in a party situation to determine which personality is most likely to be "psychopathic." Love is not just for heaven: love is the key to happiness, and a healthy social life.

The Near Death Experience of an Atheist: Ian McCormack

God did not put us on earth to suffer. He put us here to make a difference, and to have eternal happiness in heaven. Here is an interview with Ian McCormack, who had an NDE after he was stung by a Box Jellyfish five times during a night dive in the Maldive islands. The tentacles of a Box Jellyfish has one of the most deadliest poisons known on this planet - this poison can kill a human being within 4 minutes, after first inducing paralysis and a coma. This Near Death Experience is somewhat similar to that of another atheist, which I covered earlier in Swedenborg on the Near Death Experience of Howard Storm. For those of you who think NDEs is a product of a hallucination I would recommend reading Proof of the Afterlife...from a brain dead neurosurgeon. Ian was given just one small glimpse - he has a web site called A Glimpse of Eternity, and currently gives talks at a church in London. Here is a portion of an interview on CBN, and one can see that even now he is quite affected by the experience.



Below it is a more detailed account I extracted from another interview:

After he is stung his right side starts to become paralyzed, and he is helped to the nearest roadway from the shore, but the person who was carrying him runs back to the shore to see if his brothers are fine. He is on the side of the road, and he feels like falling asleep. He decides that he needs to rest from the ordeal, and is about to close his eyes and rest on the side of the road. Suddenly he hears a voice:

"Son, if you close your eyes, you will never awake again."

He is shocked, looks around, there is no one near him. He next encounters some Indian taxi drivers and asks them to drive him to the hospital. However they haggle over money, and he has no money with him. All three taxi  drivers start to walk away. Again he hears a voice:

"Son, are you willing to beg for your life?"

He is utterly upset with these Indian taxi drivers, and he encountered many Indian beggars in his travels.  He never once begged.  As they walk away, he falls to his knees, grabs his right hand (his right arm was paralyzed), and holds out his arms and starts begging. They all have a good laugh, and two walk away. However one stops, looks at him, and changes his mind. He gives him a ride, but once he realizes he is not staying at a hotel where he can get his wallet, he stops the taxi and pushes him out of the taxi. However his right leg is paralyzed and his foot is stuck in the door, and he pushes his foot out and leaves, leaving him there to die.

He is outside a hotel, finds a bar, and argues with a Chinese man to take him to the hospital. This Chinese man happens to have the only available car in the parking lot. They don't understand, they think he is on drugs or is a cocaine addict, and begin laughing at him. The poison now creeps up into his jaw and he starts chattering, and he can't talk. At this point, out of utter frustration, as the Chinese man is arguing about how stupid he is, he thinks about raising his hand and popping him on the head, or doing a head butt. As he is about to do that, he hears that odd voice again coming from nowhere:

"Son, if you do that, the adrenal rush will kill you, the toxin is too close to your heart."

Finally, a security guard at the hotel recognizes Ian, and calls for an ambulance. The ambulance almost misses them entirely. They put him in the ambulance, which has to climb a hill to reach the hospital. Unfortunately they put him in the ambulance in the wrong way, and the poison that was in his feet now starts to ascend from his lower legs and reach his upper body and head. At this points he starts seeing visions of a young blonde boy flash in front of his eyes, and he realizes that little boy is him. He is starting to have flashbacks, reviewing his entire life in an instant. He starts to wonder - is this death? Am I dying? Is there life after death? Is it really worth the gamble, to assume that their is no life after death? He realizes that to assume that if there is no life after death is sort of like playing Russian Roulette.

At this point Ian starts to see something else weird: he sees his mother in front of him, who begins to pray. He now thinks, "What is my  mother doing here in the ambulance?" Little did Ian know, half way around the world, his mother had a premonition. She had a habit of praying for her children, and she was the only Christian in the family. A voice spoke to her and said:

"You elder son Ian is nearly dead, pray for him now."

Ian at this time sees his mother praying, and hears her say:

"Ian, no matter what you have done in your life son, no matter how far from God you may be, if you call out to God from your heart, God will hear you, and God will forgive son."

Ian then thinks, forgive me, is there a God? If there is a God, who can he possibly be? He then says to himself, "I have no idea what to pray, please help me to pray." He then sees these words flash in front of his eyes:

FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES AND SINS.

Ian then thinks, "How could God forgive me? Its too late. No, God could not forgive me, I have done too many things wrong. I would feel like a hypocrite to even ask that." He then sees his mother, who says, "Son, pray from your heart." Ian then says to himself, "God, I don't know if you can forgive me. I dont know if there is any soft tissue in my heart. But if you can, I sincerely ask you to forgive me of all my sins. Please forgive me." The moment he says this, he sees new words flash up in front of him:

FORGIVE THOSE WHO HAVE TRESPASSED AND SINNED AGAINST YOU.

Ian then says to himself. "I am not a vindictive person, I can forgive those who have sinned against me." Then right in front of him flashes the face of the Indian taxi driver who shoved him out of the taxi. He then hears a voice:

"Will you forgive this man, for pushing you out of his taxi tonight, and leaving you for dead on the side of the road?"

Ian then thought, "NO - you must be joking, I am not forgiving him."  Then the image in front of him changes, and he now sees the image of the Chinese man who had laughed at him:

"Will you forgive this man, for not taking you to his car tonight, and leaving you to die in the hotel?"

Ian again thought to himself, absolutely not. Then he began to think, "Who on earth is this voice? Who am I speaking to? Who is talking to me?" Part of him still wanted to take vengeance on these two men. Ian then decides to say this prayer:

"God I don't want to forgive these two men. But if you can forgive me of all the stuff I have done in my life, and I don't know how you do it, but if you forgive me, I will forgive these men. I will never touch them or lay my hands upon them."

When Ian finishes that prayer, the faces of the two men disappear. Now new words flash in front of his eyes:

THY WILL BE DONE, ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.

Ian read this, and realizes that is God's will. He has done his own will for twenty-four years. He then prays:

"God, I don't know your will. But it appears only a miracle will spare my life at this point."

He then adds:

"God if you are real, and you can hear me, I give my will to you. I surrender my life to you. I will try to follow you all the days of my life."

At that moment, he sees the entire Lord's prayer appear in front of his eyes. He then repeats the Lord's prayer. An amazing peace falls upon him. At that point the ambulance arrives at the hospital, and is rushed to the emergency room, after a few delays from the nurse. They can't get a pulse, and now realize how serious it is. They try to find a vein in his right arm, in the other arm they start to pump in anti-toxins. He is trying to keep his eyes open, but the poison then starts to come into his eyelids, and sweat is pouring off his forehead into his eyes.

And then, at that moment, Ian closes his eyes. He then hears the machine flatlines, and he is pronounced dead. And then something strange happens.

He opens his eyes, and finds himself in a standing upright position, fully awake. But it is pitch black. He can't see anything around him. He then thinks, "Why on earth did those doctors turn off the lights in here?" He tries to grope around for the wall, can't find it.  He then comes back to his bed, and realizes he can't find that either. He then thinks great, he has lost his bed, now what?

As it is pitch black, Ian decides to get a look at his hand. He brings his hand up to his face. His hand passes through his face to the backside of his head.  He then touches other parts of his body, but his hand passes through where his body should be. There was nothing physically present where his body should be. He is confused.

Now, as he looks into the darkness, he sees that the darkness has an evil presence. Cold, encroaching evil, pervaded the atmosphere. He then feels invisible eyes checking him out. Ian then senses something move towards him, and he starts to move back.

A man to the right then screams out, "SHUT UP!"

Ian responds, "Shut up? I have said nothing. What are you talking about?" Ian holds up his arm bracing himself for a hit.

Then another voice off to his left then yells out, "YOU DESERVE TO BE HERE."

Ian then thinks, "Deserve to be where? Where am I?"

Another man in front of him then shouts, "YOU ARE IN HELL. NOW SHUT UP!"

Ian was an atheist, and did not believe in hell. He thought it was a lie to scare people in religion. He realizes that these men could read his thoughts, as he said nothing, and his thoughts were really annoying them. As he wonders about it, he thinks of the prayer he uttered in the ambulance before he came into the hospital.

At that point a radiant beam of light comes through the darkness and touches him. His body lifts up off the ground and ascends upward. He feels like a speck of dust drawn toward the light. He looks around and sees he is travelling through a tunnel.

A wave of light comes toward him and passes through him: COMFORT. His fear disappears.

Another wave of radiant light comes toward him: PEACE.

He can see his arm: it is transparent, but full of light.

Another wave of radiant light comes toward him: JOY.

He pops out of the tunnel, and he is now surrounded by light. In front of him is a brilliant light, with phenomenal radiance and power. Ian then asks himself, "Is there someone in there, or that just an energy source for the cosmos?" A voice then comes from the light:

"Ian, do you wish to return?"

Ian then realizes this was the same voice that spoke to him before. He then begins to wonder if this is real, or is he just comatose from the poison, and this is just a dream? He looks back, and sees the tunnel closing behind him. Ian then says, "I don't even know where I am. If I am out of my physical body, I wish to return. I have no idea where I am." The voice from the light then says:

"Ian, if you wish to return, you must see in a new light."

Ian then thinks what does that mean? He looks around and sees he is surrounded by light. Ian then asks, "Are you the true light?" He then sees these words:

GOD IS LIGHT, AND IN HIM THERE IS NO DARKNESS AT ALL. 1 John 1:5

Ian then remembers he read that somewhere, but does not know what "1 John 1:5" means, thinking they are Roman hieroglyphics. This was foreign to him, for every other philosophy he heard was that God was Yin and Yang, encompassing both opposites: light and dark, good and evil. As Ian stands there, he wonders, "Could that be God?" Whoever it is, he knows his name, and seems to be able to read his thoughts. He reasons only God could do that, God must be able to see every sin he ever committed in his life. He knew that the light could pierce through everything and could see everything.

He then feels he does not belong there, and wanted to hide under a rock. He starts to move back to the darkness. As he moves back, he then sees another wave of radiance come from the light towards him. He fully expected it to catapult him back into the darkness. To his surprise, all he got was one thing: LOVE. He then said "God can't love me, I have cursed him." Another wave came, more love, this time stronger. He then asks, "Why are you loving me God? Don't you know what I have done?" He remembers his sins: he has slept around, did drugs... more love came towards him, tingling his whole being. All he felt was love, forgiveness and acceptance. He began to weep, as he felt the love move through him. He then looks around, he is surrounded by radiance, and his body is now full of light.

The waves of light cease, and Ian then wonders if he could step through that core of light, and see God. He is so close. He then asks him, "God, may I come in?" He thought if he can love and accept me for who I am, surely He won't mind. He steps through the radiance, the light was very dense. He sees shimmering veils of radiance, sparkling. He then feels healing touching his broken heart. As he moves in he wonders if he could see God. The light begins to open up, he first sees a man's feet, and then a white garment or robe of light. His eyes move up and sees his chest, and his arm are outstretched. As he comes to his face, he had to turn - the radiance was so pure, so bright - many times brighter than all the light he had just seen. He then comes closer, he thinks if he gets closer he could see God's face and know who he is. He is now a few feet away, and puts his face into the light. As he gets close, he suddenly moves to the side. He wonders, "Why did he do that, I was so close."

He looks ahead, and sees an opening into a realm - a green meadow, fields opened up before him, it looked like a new planet. There was a crystal clear stream working its way through the field. He felt this is home, he belonged here. He wondered why wasn't he born here? The thought came that one must be born again to enter here - he then realized that God had heard his prayer in the ambulance, and he was born again, and had been spiritually washed of his sins. Everything he saw there was giving off life. As he starts to move in, God's presence came back, and blocked the way. He then asked,

"Ian, now that you have seen, do you wish to go in, or do you wish to return?"

He thought, return? What for? He wanted to go in, but God was in front of him. He had nothing to return back to - he was a single man, and had no family. He then thinks no one in his life ever loved him, he has nothing to go back to. The love he was experiencing was greater than he had ever felt. He asks, "Can I stay here, I have no desire to go back." He was about to look back and say "Goodbye, cruel world." As he looks back, he sees a clear vision of one person who loved him: his mother, who had prayed for him every day of his life. If he were to go now, his mother would have no idea that God had heard her prayer. He then says to God, "God I wish to return for my mum. I have lived such a selfish life, I want to return and tell her that what she believes is real." God then says,

"Son, if you wish to return, you must see things in a new light."

From this he thought he must begin to see things from God's eternal perspective, not his own selfish perspective. He needs to love people in a different larger way. He wonders how he could go back. He looks, but now he not only sees his mother, but his father, his siblings, and behind them, thousands upon thousands of other people. There was a sea of humanity. Ian asks, "God, who are all these people?" God answers:

"Ian, if you do not return, most of these people will not step inside a church any longer to hear My name."

Ian says, "Church? Well neither would I. I don't even know these people. I know my mum, I wish to return for her, I love her." God responds,

"Ian, I love all of these people. I desire for all of them to come to know Me."

He thinks, "What?" This was not something he expected. He feels the heart of God reaching out to all of these people Ian does not even know. Ian responds, "God I don't know about them, but how do I return, back through the tunnel, back through the darkness, and back to my physical body?" God responds,

"Son, tilt your head." Ian tilts his head. "Now feel the liquid drain from your eye. Now open your eye, and see."

He opens his right eye, he is looking down the length of his body, which is on a slab in a morgue. His leg is held up by a doctor with a scalpal, prodding his foot like a dead piece of meat. The doctor gets spooked turns around and sees Ian's eye looking at him, and his face goes white as a sheet and yells in surprise. Ian then hears God's voice:

"Ian, I have just given your life back."

Ian thinks, "If that is true, could you help me tilt my head to the left and look out my other eye. I am getting sick of looking at this doctor." His head tilts, now his left eye opens, and through the doorway he sees nurses and orderlies staring at him. They jump up and collide with each other. He looks, no one was giving him CPR or electric shock - the doctor is holding the scalpel, shaking. Eventually he is told that he has been dead for 15 minutes. Ian realizes, if he has just seen God, he now has to change his life.

He then thinks, "God, if you have given my life back, can you please heal me, and allow me to walk out of this hospital and live a normal life? If not, I would rather be dead, please take me back into your presence." He then feels this warmth and power course through his body in successive waves, healing his body. Within 3-4 hours, he got total movement and feeling back. He walked out of the hospital the next day on his own, completely healed. When the fishermen of the island saw them, they thought they were seeing a ghost and ran and yelled. He could look at people, and see what was going on their life - what was oppressing them, what was making them sad. He asked God, "Why is that?" He heard God's voice say,

"Ian, you are now seeing people in a new light. Don't judge people, I want to heal them. Set them free from the oppression of the darkness that is tormenting them. I want to see them set free, out of the darkness, and into My light."

Ian sees that his life has changed - he does not want to party, does not want to do drugs, or chase after women - he wants to live a pure life. He asks God, "What has happened to me?" God then responded,

"Ian, you are a reborn Christian. That prayer in the ambulance saved your soul, son." 

He then asked God, "What must I do then?" God responded:

"Read a Bible."

Ian did not know what a reborn Christian was, and had never read a Bible. For the first time in his life, he asked his father to give him his Bible. He read it in six weeks. As he read, he began to see the stuff he had seen in the other life mentioned in the scriptures. He wept, thinking to himself, "You arrogant pig. You have mocked this from a distance, and foully cursed God. You never took the time to read this book. You fool." He then realized why he had to forgive others before God could forgive him - without forgiveness, the hate we hold in our heart will grow like a cancer, and keep us in darkness. When we forgive, we release ourselves from darkness, and God can then enter in, and cleanse our heart from sin. God then becomes our Lord, and we are given a new will in life.

Here is a trailer of the movie, The Perfect Wave:



Here is the full interview, from which I extracted a summary for this blog post:

A Journey to Heaven by Richard Sigmund and Emanuel Swedenborg

This is one of the most detailed Near Death Experience journey of heaven I have seen - Richard Sigmund was dead for eight hours, and suddenly sat up as they were wheeling him down to the morgue. He yelled out, "I AINT DEAD YET!" One attendant screamed, and the other lost bladder control. He has a book on this called My Time in Heaven. In most Near Death Experiences, one has an out of the body experience, goes through a tunnel towards the light, has a life review, and that's it, comes back. Richard Sigmund gets beyond those stages, and gets to see what awaits all of us in the life beyond. I found an audio recording of the book, I listened to the whole thing and decided to summarize some findings below. It is long, I could have made multiple blog entries but thought it would be better to present this in one article.

For those of you who are familiar with Emanuel Swedenborg, in the 18th century he was allowed to fully explore heaven, hell, the world in between, and was given knowledge concerning many secrets of heaven. He did this in a waking state for about 27 years, and wrote a massive work entitled Heavenly Arcana (aka Arcana Coelestia), and summarized the afterlife and some dialogues with angels in a smaller work Heaven and Hell. Is what he is saying true? Did he just imagine it? We know he did not imagine everything, time and time again he privately demonstrated his clairvoyant abilities - see The Confirmed Clairvoyance of Emanuel Swedenborg. Even so, one should judge the truth of the message Swedenborg came back with apart from these incidents.

However detailed Swedenborg's waking visions were, he also came back with a hard message for the Protestant and Catholic churches. And no one likes to admit they are wrong. So in his day they just censored his writings, and nowadays they question the source of the visions. One can find similar ignorance concerning Richard Sigmund from Biblical literalists. Scripture states Prove all things; hold fast that which is good (1 Thes. 5:21). Also In the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established (Matt. 18:16). In the 18th century, Swedenborg was a lone witness to the spiritual world. That is no longer true. We now have at least two independent witnesses, or a cloud of witnesses as Paul would say it when it comes to those who have had a Near Death Experience.

I was amazed by Richard Sigmund's account, for in many points he matches what Swedenborg described. Sometimes not, and I will point out where Swedenborg may have been in error. Both Richard Sigmund and Emanuel Swedenborg brought with them some preconceived notions and biases. On the other hand, Richard Sigmund had questions and he was not allowed to know, which he called "the mysteries of heaven." For Swedenborg there seemed to be no limit - he would ask, and the information was freely provided.

In his account Richard points out that everyone will have a different experience of heaven - we are all individuals, and God can deal with each of us in an individual way - he saw every one will follow their own path to the center of heaven. Emanuel Swedenborg saw that there were different heavens for different groups of people of different religions, for it is all based on how one lived one's life, how one loved others. Richard was not allowed to explore these other areas. While Swedenborg had a more universal Christian message, Richard Sigmund's experience had a more specific message for the Christian church, which is probably why he was not given all the answers to his questions as many are probably not prepared for it. We should learn not to be so judgmental with other people's views, for it is love that is primary, not the belief. We are all at different stages of spiritual progression. Jesus told Richard, "Don't ever forget how much I love you, and how much I have done for you. Never forget that I love those that you are going back to,  and the place that I have prepared for them, and how much I love them."

WE ALL HAVE A SPIRITUAL BODY WHEN WE DIE

Richard said, "When you die, you still have a spiritual body that has all the senses that your physical body had." This includes all the senses - sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste. Throughout his account Richard describes things in such tiny detail - the colors of stones, buildings, the architecture - he experiences different aromas, and even touches different objects and puts his hand in a kind of liquid water. He would touch something in heaven and it would be humming, singing songs in praise towards the Lord. At one point he picks a fruit off a strange tree and eats it, describing the unique taste. All the senses were heightened, and he was struck with utter amazement. He sees many angels and talks directly to them. So how does this compare with Swedenborg? Compare with this passage:

"That angels are human forms, or men, has been seen by me a thousand times. I have spoken with them as man with man, sometimes with one, sometimes with many in company, and I have seen in them nothing different in form from that of man. I have sometimes wondered at their being so; and lest it should be said that it was a fallacy, or a vision of fancy, I have been permitted to see them when I was fully awake, in all my bodily senses, and in a state of clear perception. Very often, too, I have told them that men in the Christian world are in such blind ignorance as to angels and spirits, that they believe them to be minds without form, and pure thoughts, of which they have no other idea than as of something ethereal in which there is something of life; and because they thus ascribe to them nothing of man except a thinking faculty, they believe that they do not see, because they have no eyes, that they do not hear, because they have no ears, and that they do not speak, because they have no mouth nor tongue. To this the angels said that they know there is such a belief with many in the world, and that it prevails among the learned and also, to their wonder, among the priests. They told also the reason, namely, that the learned, who were the leaders and first broached such an idea of angels and spirits, thought of them from the sensual ideas of the external man. And they who think from these ideas, and not from interior light and the common idea implanted in every one, cannot do otherwise than invent such notions; and this for the reason that the sensual ideas of the external man reach nothing else than what is within nature, nothing that is above, thus nothing whatever of the spiritual world. From these leaders as guides this falsity of thought about angels has extended to others, who have thought not from themselves but from their guides; and they who think first from others, making this thought their belief, and afterwards look at it with their own understanding, cannot easily recede from it, and so for the most part acquiesce in confirming it. They said further that the simple in faith and heart are not in such an idea about angels, but in an idea of them as of men of heaven, because they have not by erudition extinguished what is implanted in them from heaven, and have no notion of anything without form. For this reason angels in churches, whether sculptured or painted, are represented in no other way than as men. As to what is implanted from heaven, they said that it is the Divine flowing in with those who are in the good of faith and life.
"From all my experience, which is now of many years, I can say and affirm that angels are in form entirely men, that they have faces, eyes, ears, body, arms, hands, and feet; that they see one another, hear one another, and talk together; in a word that there is nothing whatever wanting to them that belongs to men, except that they are not clothed over all with a material body. I have seen them in their light, which exceeds the noonday light of the world by many degrees, and in that light all their features were seen more distinctly and clearly than the faces of men are seen on earth." (Heaven and Hell, n. 74-75)

So where do Sigmund and Swedenborg disagree? Swedenborg was told that spirits do not have a sense of taste, but something analogous to it where taste and smell become one sense (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1516, 1880, 1973). But in this matter, I think Sigmund is correct. Why so? Swedenborg was warned that it was very dangerous for spirits of the spiritual world to flow in to the sense of man's taste while alive (Heavenly Arcana, n. 4793.3, 4794). Swedenborg had his experience while alive in a full waking state; Sigmund while he was dead. Sigmund states that eating of the fruit of the tree somehow helped prepare him to come before the throne of God later in his experience. This comparison reminds me how Adam and Eve were forbidden to taste of the tree of knowledge while in the garden - which passage describes the heavenly state people were in before the connection between heaven and mankind became broken. This was a very odd and unexpected find.

SOUL MATES OF HEAVEN

Since we are on the subject of a spiritual body, what about marital relationships?  Some conclude from a certain passage of Jesus that there is no marriage in heaven (see Matt. 22:30); Swedenborg states that Jesus was speaking of the spiritual marriage between a person and heaven, or the marriage supper of the lamb (see Matt. 22:2, Rev. 19). Moreover, in the literal sense of scripture the passage of Jesus does not disagree, as angelic forms are no longer in the physical realm and the Jews he was talking to were speaking of a resurrection in our physical material realm.

As in the afterlife we have a full spiritual body, a male is male and female is female. Many have seen angels who have appeared in this manner. Moreover, Swedenborg describes the spiritual origin of sex: males are physical forms of truth, females are physical forms of love. The love and desire for sex comes from the constant union that is occurring between the union of love with its truth, and truth with its love. No thought is complete with action; and action cannot be focused properly without thought. There are marriages in heaven, so it is true that there are soul mates. The marital relationship does not result in any children, but rather it is a spiritual union of love with is truth and vice versa - to the point where a male and female can become one angel. It grows as each angel grows in love and truth. There are different degrees of love of sex. At the basest level there is love of sex, which humans share with animals; but a higher spiritual level is love of one of the sex. Hidden within the love of sex is the love of one of the other sex. Spiritual love grows from there, and becomes more internal and less external. Swedenborg devoted a whole book to this - Angelic Wisdom concerning Marriage Love.

So what does Sigmund say on this matter? Nothing, but he does confirm it indirectly. He does see his two grandparents living together in a house, who had returned to their youth. But in his tour of hell, he does see base forms of sex and rape among those in hell as forms of torment. And he said hell contains everything in opposite form to what is in heaven. So indirectly, he confirms what Swedenborg said on this matter.

MEETING LOST RELATIVES AND FRIENDS

Often in the Near Death Experience, one meets lost relatives and friends. The experience of Richard Sigmund was no different in this manner, except that it was much more clear. Instead of passing through a dark tunnel, he passes through a white cloud of light. On the other side he could hear people singing, with laughter and great joy. He came into a "receiving area", and encounters two women who were beautiful, and of great age. And yet they looked young, like they were in their twenties. They hugged him when he arrived, with great joy, worshiping and praising God. Beyond them another group of about fifty people were praising God. They were awaiting the coming of their pastor - he sees this old man who was their pastor emerging "through the veil" - and then he recognizes the different members of his congregation. Immediately the old lines disappear and he becomes a young man. All along the veil there were people coming who have died and angels were waiting to greet them. In scripture, the Old Testament occasionally briefly states that one was "gathered to his fathers" upon death.

Swedenborg said something similar:

"All are consociated in heaven according to spiritual affinities, which are those of good and truth in their order. It is so in the whole heaven, so in each society, and so in each house. For this reason angels who are in similar good and truth, recognize one another as do relatives and those akin on earth, just as if they had been acquainted from infancy. In like manner are consociated the goods and truths, which make wisdom and intelligence, with each angel; they recognize one another in like manner, and as they recognize one another, so likewise they join themselves together." (Heaven and Hell, n. 205)

What about relatives of opposite spiritual dispositions? They can meet, albeit briefly, in an intermediate area between heaven and hell called the "world of spirits," which may or may not be the same as Sigmund's "receiving area":

"Men after death as soon as they come into the world of spirits, are clearly distinguished by the Lord; the evil are at once attached to the infernal society in which they were in the world as to their ruling love; and the good are at once attached to the heavenly society in which they were in the world as to love, charity, and faith. But though they are thus divided, still they who have been friends and acquaintances in the life of the body, all meet and converse together, when they desire it, especially wives and husbands and brothers and sisters. I have seen a father speak with six sons and recognize them and I have seen many others with their relatives and friends, who, however, because they were of diverse dispositions, from their life in the world, were soon separated. But when they have come from the world of spirits into heaven, or into hell, they then see each other no more, nor know each other, unless they are of a similar disposition, from similar love. The reason that they see each other in the world of spirits, and not in heaven and hell, is that those who are in the world of spirits are brought into states similar to those which they had in the life of the body, one after another; but afterward all are brought into a constant state like that of their ruling love, in which one knows another only from similarity of love" (Heaven and Hell, n. 427).

RETURNING TO A YOUNGER AGE

Sigmund first encounters two angelic women who were ageless, yet appeared in their twenties. And this happens several times - even his grandparents looked like in the prime of their youth. Swedenborg says the same thing, except that it is a continual process of getting younger and more beautiful:

"Those who are in heaven are continually advancing to the spring of life, and the more thousands of years they live, to a spring so much the more joyful and happy, and this to eternity, with increase according to the progressions and degrees of their love, charity, and faith. Women who have died old and worn out with age, if they have lived in faith in the Lord, in charity to the neighbor, and in happy marriage love with a husband, with the succession of years come more and more into the flower of youth and early womanhood, and into beauty which exceeds all idea of beauty ever perceivable by our sight and amazes those who behold it. Goodness and charity is what forms and presents in them its own likeness, causing the joy and beauty of charity to shine forth from every, even the least line of the face, so that they are forms of charity itself." (Heaven and Hell, n. 414)

THE PATHWAYS TO HEAVEN

Richard Sigmund said that everyone who came through the veil had a path to follow towards heaven that was unique for them. He then heard a voice: "You have an appointment with God." He then walked along this golden pathway. The path wound through a garden on either side. He saw these huge flowers, which would turn to face him as he walked, and he could pick up the flower, smell it, and would just put it back where it would continue growing again. He looked up in the sky, which had varied colors, as well as clouds - and each of these clouds were thousands upon thousands of other people. In the garden there were huge trees - some he knew, others were of species that he did not know. One tree was crystal clear, and he was told it was a "diadem tree." He took a fruit off another tree and the second he picked it, another appeared in its place, and the fruit immediately dissolved into a honey like liquid that went down his throat.

Swedenborg also saw these different pathways to heaven:

"When, by instruction in the places above described, spirits have been prepared for heaven — which is effected in a short time, on account of their being in spiritual ideas, that comprehend many things at once—they are then clothed with angelic garments, mostly white, as of fine linen; and thus they are brought to the way which tends upward to heaven, and are delivered to angel guards there, and are then received by other angels and introduced into societies, and into many blessed things. Afterward every one is led by the Lord into his own society, which also is effected by various ways, sometimes by winding paths. The ways by which they are led are not known to any angel, but to the Lord alone. When they come to their own society, their interiors are opened, and since these are conformable to the interiors of the angels who are in that society, they are therefore immediately acknowledged and received with joy." (Heaven and Hell, n. 519)

One's ruling love determines the path one will take:

"From the quarters to which they turn and the paths in which they go, it is ascertained what the love is which leads them." (Heaven and Hell, n. 496)

THE GARDENS AND PLANTS OF HEAVEN

What about the plants and gardens that Richard Sigmund saw? Or the flower he picks up and puts back again? Swedenborg constantly saw this, and relates an interesting story concerning a botanist who recently entered heaven:

"A certain one who was renowned and celebrated in the learned world for his skill in the science of botany, heard in the other life after his decease, that flowers and trees are there also presented to view, at which he was astonished; and as that had been the enjoyment of his life, he was kindled with the desire of seeing whether it was so. Being taken up therefore into the paradisal regions, he saw most beautiful plantations of trees and most charming flower gardens of immense extent. And as he then came into the ardor of his enjoyment from affection, it was permitted him to wander over the field, and not only see them in detail, but also to gather them and bring them to close inspection, and to see thoroughly whether they were really so.
"Speaking with me from thence, he said that he had never believed this, and that if such things had been heard of in the world, they would have been classed as paradoxes. And he related further that flowers were seen growing there in immense abundance which were never seen in the world, and which would be scarce comprehensible there by any perception; and that they all glowed from an incomprehensible brightness, because they were from the light of heaven. That the glow was from a spiritual origin, he was not yet able to perceive, that is, that they glowed because there was in each one of them something of intelligence and wisdom, which were of truth and good. He said further that men on earth would by no means believe this, for the reason that few believe there is any heaven and hell, and they who believe only know that in heaven there is joy, and few among them believe that there are such things there as eye has never seen, and ear has never heard, and mind has never conceived; and this though they know from the Word that stupendous things were seen by the prophets, and more by John, as recorded in the Apocalypse. Yet these were nothing else than the representatives which are continually being presented in heaven, and which were seen by John when his internal sight was opened." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 4529.1-2)

THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN

What about the clouds Richard saw, and the people who dwelled in them?  Swedenborg said that at a distance an angelic society could appear as a cloud, but for those who see more spiritually can see that each society tends toward the human form:

"That a whole angelic society, when the Lord manifests His presence, appears as one body in the human form, has also been given me to see. There appeared on high toward the east as it were a cloud descending, of shining whiteness with a rosy tinge, and with little stars round about. As it gradually descended it became brighter, and at last was seen in perfect human form. The little stars round about the cloud were angels, who were seen as stars from light given from the Lord." (Heaven and Hell, n. 69)

THE GATE OF HEAVEN

Off in the distance Richard saw a wall, and the angel walking with him said, "Behold, the wall." And then they were at the wall, which was filled with precious jewels. Travel seemed to be at the speed of thought. He was then told to proceed to the gate. There were three tongues of fire on the gate, and he was told that they represented the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The gate was made out of gold, which he was told represented the great mercy of God. He then sees multi-level houses and mansions, and a crystal clear lake. From the throne, there were four rivers, and the lake was fed by one of the rivers.

Gates were often seen by Swedenborg to both heaven and hell:

"The world of spirits, as it is the middle state between heaven and hell with man, is also the middle place; beneath are the hells, and above are the heavens. All the hells are closed to that world; they are open only through holes and clefts, as of rocks, and through wide openings which are guarded, to prevent any one from coming out except by permission. This permission is granted when there is any urgent necessity — of which hereafter. Heaven also is enclosed on all sides, nor is there a passage open to any heavenly society, except by a narrow way, the entrance of which is also guarded. Those outlets and these entrances are what are called in the Word the gates and doors of hell and of heaven.
"The world of spirits appears as a valley between mountains and rocks, with here and there windings and elevations. The gates and doors to the heavenly societies are not seen, except by those who are prepared for heaven, nor are they found by others; to every society there is one entrance from the world of spirits, and then one way, branching in the ascent into several. Neither are the gates and doors to the hells seen, except by those who are about to enter, to whom they are then opened; and when they are opened, there appear caverns dusky and as if sooty, tending obliquely downward to the deep, where again there are many doors." (Heaven and Hell, n. 428-9) 

In other passages where scripture mentions a gate, a gate is a symbolic representation of introductory truths. In the case of Richard Sigmund, his entry into heaven is made through his knowledge of God which is the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Although Richard did not realize it, he is in the end shown the true nature of the Trinity, but more on that later. It is significant that all three are shown not as three persons, but as different flames of the same fire.

THE BOOKS AND SECRETS OF HEAVEN

On several occasions Richard Sigmund encountered books in heaven. The first was before he passed through the gate. The angel which was with him said, "Behold the books." On the left there was a huge book supported on golden pillars. On the right there was another book, it was the Lamb's book of life. He was lifted up, and saw his name written in gold outlined in crimson red. It would seem that instead of going through a typical life review of a Near Death Experience, Richard was better spiritually prepared and so just saw a brief representation of this as a book.

Later he is taking into one building, and inside there are rows and rows of shelves of books. It was a sort of library, known as "the archives of heaven." These books contained the works of our lives of what we did while here on earth. All sins are recorded. However, it was given to him to know, that when we repent of our sin, the sin is erased. Every thought and action is recorded in heaven. When a book was opened, each page was like a video screen, except that the images were three-dimensional or holographic.

Swedenborg also saw that people's lives were recorded in books, which represented a person's memory:

"That man takes with him from the world all his memory, has been shown in many ways, and I have seen and heard many things in regard to it worthy to be mentioned, some of which I will relate in order. There were those who denied their crimes and villainies which they had perpetrated in the world; lest therefore they should be believed innocent, all their deeds were disclosed and recounted from their memory in order, from their earliest to their latest years: they were chiefly adulteries and whoredoms. There were some who had deceived others by wicked arts and had stolen, and whose deceits and thefts were also enumerated in series, many of which were known to scarcely any one in the world, except to themselves alone. They also acknowledged them, because they were made manifest as in the light, with every thought, intention, pleasure, and fear which at the time occupied their minds. There were some who had accepted bribes and had made gain of judgment, who were similarly explored from their memory, and from it were recounted all things, from the first period of their office to the last. All the particulars as to what and how much they had received, together with the time and their state of mind and intention, were at the same time brought to their recollection and shown to their sight, to the number of many hundreds. Sometimes, strange to say, even their memorandum-books, in which they had written such things, were opened and read before them, page by page. ...From these things also it may be evident what is meant by the book of man's life, spoken of in the Word, namely this, that all things, both what he has thought and what he has done, are inscribed on the whole man, and appear as if read in a book when they are called forth from the memory, and as if presented to sight when the spirit is viewed in the light of heaven." (Heaven and Hell, n. 462-463)

In addition to this, on many occasions Swedenborg was taken into buildings that had books, and at times was allowed to read them. Another building Richard Sigmund was taken to contained the records of God's knowledge. In these books were different symbols, with the interpretation of each symbol next to it explaining it. The mind is automatically stimulated when reading it. He saw a man there, and he said "Brother Richard, I have been here for a couple of millenia, and I have only gotten to page 2." Many angels come and go to this library, and are sent to those on earth who are seeking Divine knowledge and wisdom. There are great universities in heaven, taught by angels, and there is no end to learning - all subjects are taught. One can do anything in heaven that one desires to do, for the desire given will be for the things that are right for you. He was told that people were learning about the "secrets of heaven."

This account is extremely interesting. None of these secrets of heaven or symbols were revealed to Richard Sigmund, but they were revealed in detail to Emanuel Swedenborg. He went word by word through the Bible, and wrote a massive multi-volume work entitled Heavenly Arcana (or Arcana Coelestia). And the meaning of the title? "Heavenly Secrets."  It is full of the symbolism of scripture, and similar to the account of Sigmund when one reads it, its very hard to absorb it all. One can not absorb the information within a lifetime. One must wonder, the similarity of the account is remarkable, was Richard Sigmund seeing the spiritual version of the books that Swedenborg wrote? Swedenborg saw that there were many writings in heaven, but was not allowed to read them:

"As angels have speech and their speech is a speech of words, they have also writings, and by writings they express their sentiments as well as by speech. Several times papers have been sent to me, traced with writings, quite like manuscripts, and some like printed papers in the world. I was able also to read them in like manner, but it was not allowed to get from them more than a thought or two. The reason was, that it is not according to Divine order to be instructed by writings from heaven, but by the Word, since by this alone there is communication and conjunction of heaven with the world, thus of the Lord with man." (Heaven and Hell, n. 258)

THE CHILDREN OF HEAVEN

Richard Sigmund encountered a little girl of about eight years old, and he knew her. She had died of cancer as a child. She had beautiful golden hair, which she had lost before she died. She would go from group to group, singing for them. She was known as an ambassador for heaven, and sang one of the most beautiful songs for him in a soprano voice, and other angels joined in. It was a song that exceeded anything he heard on earth. Next another child played a song on a piano and harp, with great skill, again exceeding anything that he heard on earth. Other children he saw looked like they had died during childbirth, and yet could speak, and were completely sentient. Angels would carry them, and he saw nurseries where many, many children would be cared for in this manner. Children would grow rapidly, and they would play games with each other. Some would ride on horses which had the power of speech and thought. Later he saw horses with wings, and some would pull chariots. He saw the Lord often among the children, who would come to give them a hug.

This account is very similar to that of Emanuel Swedenborg, here is a small portion:

"Children who die are equally children in the other life, they have a like infantile mind, a like innocence in ignorance, and a like tenderness in all things; they are only in the rudiments of the capacity of becoming angels, for children are not angels, but become angels. Every one on leaving this world enters the other in a similar state of life, a little child in the state of a little child, a boy in the state of a boy, a youth, a man, an old man, in the state of a youth, a man, or an old man; but afterward the state of each one is changed. ...because they are spirits, they act at once according to their interiors. They walk without practice, and also speak, but at first from general affections, not yet so well distinguished into ideas of thoughts; in a short time, however, they are initiated also into these ideas, and this because their exteriors are homogeneous with their interiors. ...Little children as soon as they are raised up, which takes place immediately after death, are taken into heaven and delivered to angel women who in the life of the body tenderly loved children and at the same time loved God. ...Little children are instructed principally by representatives suited to their capacity. How beautiful these are and how full of wisdom from within, no one can believe. In this way intelligence is imparted to them, by degrees, which derives its soul from good."  (Heaven and Hell, n. 330, 331, 332, 335)

MINISTERS AND WORSHIP IN HEAVEN

Richard Sigmund saw different ministers, one of them William Branham (1909-65) talking with the Lord, others teaching and explaining the wonders of heaven to others. Some had been there a long time, but they were still learning.

Swedenborg saw that one would be given a task in heaven that closely matched what one did on earth - one would do what one loved most. The same is true for ministers. Moreover, there is variety of worship in heaven:

"Heaven is also where the Lord is acknowledged, believed, and loved. Variety in His worship, from variety of good in one society and another, does not bring harm, but benefit; for from this is the perfection of heaven. That it is so, cannot easily be explained to the apprehension without using the terms of philosophers, and setting forth by them how a perfect one is formed from various parts. Every one exists from various parts, since a one which is not from various parts, is not anything, has no form, and therefore has no quality. But when a one exists from various parts, and the various parts are in perfect form, in which everything joins itself to another in series, in friendly agreement, then it has a completeness. ...There are also many churches, each of which is called the church, and indeed is the church so far as the good of love and faith reigns in it. Here again the Lord makes a one out of various parts, thus one church out of many churches." (Heaven and Hell, n. 56, 57)

Richard Sigmund saw something similar: when he was at a lower level, he noticed each angel was singing an individual song. But when we went up to a higher level, he saw that each individual angelic song was part of one large chorus, and each individual song complemented each other. So likewise, each person will worship God in his or her own way. There are continual teachings, so that one may be more perfected:

"Divine worship in the heavens is not unlike Divine worship on earth as to externals, but as to internals it differs. In the heavens, as on earth, there are doctrines, there are preachings, and there are temples. The doctrines agree as to essentials, but are of more interior wisdom in the higher heavens than in the lower. The preachings are according to the doctrines; and as they have houses and palaces (n. 183-190), so likewise they have temples, in which there is preaching. That there are such things also in heaven, is because angels are continually being perfected in wisdom and love; for they have understanding and will equally as men, and the understanding is such that it may be continually perfected, and in like manner the will; the understanding by the truths of intelligence, and the will by the goods of love." (Heaven and Hell, n. 221)

One other point Swedenborg saw: preachers were in a lower heaven than priests, the offices were separate. The reason is the heaven where truths are taught as primary, where one lives by the truth, is lower than the heaven where love is primary, and one immediately perceives what is true from an internal perception from love (Heaven and Hell, n. 225-6)

CONTINUAL PERFECTION TO ETERNITY

Richard saw the universe as a great spiral - at the center was a light, which grew dimmer on each arm of the spiral. People were behind or ahead on different arms of the spiral, progressing towards God. Every one was at a different stage of development in their journey towards God. One should be happy with one's stage of spiritual development, and not be envious of the ones who are ahead, nor judgmental of the ones who are behind.

Swedenborg saw that eternal life was one of continual perfection and spiritual progression - it will never end, and is affected in many ways, including changes of state. Moreover, heaven is continually being perfected by the addition of new members:

"It is noteworthy that the more there are in a society of heaven making a one, the more perfect is its human form, since variety disposed in heavenly form makes perfection, as has been shown above (n. 56); and where there are many there is variety. Moreover every society of heaven is increasing in number from day to day, and as it increases, is becoming more perfect. So not only the society is being perfected, but also heaven as a whole; because it is composed of the societies." (Heaven and Hell, n. 71)

TIME IN HEAVEN

Richard said all of time is recorded, for time was created by God. God prepares the future for each individual, and our prayers can effect what God plans for each one of us. He was told, paradoxically, that all our tomorrows are God's yesterdays. Heaven was made before God created time. Later, he noticed there seemed to be no tomorrow, nor yesterday, only the present now. He asked one of the angels, "How do you measure time in heaven?" The angel had a puzzled look on his face and said, "You mean time as you know it?" He answered, "Time is not measured here in years, but in ages, where the glory of God goes on forever."

Swedenborg goes further on this subject, and explains why the angel got puzzled by the question: heaven is the higher dimension where space and time do not exist. Spaces are appearances according to one's love: the more you love someone, the closer you will come to that person. Time is merely a change of state:

"Although there is a succession and progression of all things in heaven as in the world, yet angels have no notion and idea of time and space, not even knowing what time and space are. We will speak now of time in heaven, and of space in its own chapter.
"That angels know nothing about time, though all things move onward with them as in the world, without any difference at all, is because in heaven there are not years and days, but changes of state; and where there are years and days there are times, but where there are changes of state there are states." (Heaven and Hell, n. 162-163)

HEAVEN IS IN A STATE OF CONSTANT ACTIVITY

Richard said that heaven was a place of constant activity. In heaven, one is a servant of all to the best of one's ability. One's ability will correspond to what one did on earth. The way to God is through serving others, where one forgets the self, and there is nothing of self interest left. God also highly prizes those that are truthful, and pray and think before making a decision. He highly prizes those who pray to seek Him, and who are obedient to His will. He was shown many things, some he could not remember, and at other times it was due to not having the proper words to verbalize what he heard - much of it was beyond what language could convey. Another lesson he learned is for whatever we do in service or in giving to others, is rewarded in heaven. There was an area that was a "rewards department," which recorded not only the rewards given, but also the rewards withheld due to lack of love or kindness in helping those in need.

Swedenborg was also shown that heaven was also a life of activity and usefulness:

"Some spirits, from an opinion conceived in the world, believed heavenly happiness to consist in an idle life, in which they would be served by others; but they were told that no happiness ever consists in abstaining from work and depending on this for happiness; in this way every one would wish to have the happiness of others for himself, and when every one would wish for it, no one would have it. Such a life would not be active but idle, in which the faculties would become torpid; when yet it may be known to all that without active life there can be no happiness of life, and that rest from this activity is only for the sake of recreation, that one may return more eager to the activity of his life. Afterward it was shown by many things that angelic life consists in performing the good works of charity, which are uses, and that all the happiness of angels is in use, from use, and according to use. Those who had the idea that heavenly joy consists in living a life of indolence, and of breathing eternal joy in idleness, were suffered to perceive, in order to make them ashamed, what such a life is; and it was perceived that it was very sad, and that all joy thus perishing, after a short time they would loathe and nauseate it." (Heaven and Hell, n. 403)

THE TWO GUARDIAN ANGELS

At one point Richard said that he always had two angels with him, one on his right, the other on his left. The one on the right would explain things. The one on the left would stay mostly silent, except to remind him that he had an "appointment with God."

So why two angels, and why is one angel always talking and the other mainly silent? Swedenborg explains:

"There are at least two evil spirits and two angels with every man. Through the evil spirits a man has communication with hell; and through the angels, with heaven." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 697)

It is possible that upon entering heaven the two evil spirits withdraw, and one's desire to do evil becomes latent. The purposes of the two angels are different:

"That there are two angels with every man, is because there are also two kinds of angels, of which one kind act into what is of man's will and the other into what is of his understanding. They who act into what is of man's will, act into his loves and ends of life, consequently into what is good in him. But they who act into what is of man's understanding act into his faith and principles, consequently into what is true in him. These two also are most distinct from each other." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 5978)

RICHARD'S FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS

After a bit of a journey, Richard sees Jesus approach. The two angels bow down, and step back from him to stand at attention. He was so overcome that he fell on his face to the ground. He did not feel worthy to stand or look at his face. He reached out and lifted his chin and said, "Son, look at me. I love you. Even though you have been disobedient, and have not done what I told you to do, I still love you. And I desire for you to tell my people about this place called heaven. I desire you to tell my people of the glorious things that my Father has made for them, that they might desire to come here. I have chosen you, and ordained you, for this one work above all others, that I might speak to you on this day of these things." 

He took his hand, and began to walk with him as a father would with a little child. They walked further and Jesus said, "I have many things to tell you. I will come to you again in just a short time. I have something else to tell you, but right now there is more for you to see. More for you to witness and experience. Tell my people I am coming soon. I love them. " Then he gave him a big hug and kissed him on the cheek and said, "I love you too." He held his hands out in front of him, and he saw nail scars in his wrists and hands. The wounds were open, shining with a beautiful light. He saw his name written in his hand, which reminded him of a passage: See, I have engraven you in the palms of my hands (Isa. 49:16). Then he looked at him and said, "I have more to tell you later. Go with the angels, they are going to take you to see more people, and see more things. I have an appointment and I have to go, my Father wants me. I must go, I am always obedient to my Father." Suddenly he was gone.

There is no comparable detailed encounter with Jesus in the visions of Swedenborg - his encounters were brief, but in a similar manner Jesus addressed Emanuel Swedenborg concerning his sinful nature. Swedenborg makes clear that everything in heaven is representative, and Richard Sigmund mentions this when he says certain objects he saw were "significant and prophetic." So when Jesus addresses Richard concerning his disobedience, He is talking to all disobedient Christians. In other encounters with Jesus, when one is in a sinful state one will see the wounds of Jesus, and if the sin is worse, the wounds of Jesus will bleed. The primary objective in Christianity is to accept Jesus in one's heart, and He will help you cleanse your life from sin, which takes place through the process of repentance.

What is interesting is that during most of the journey he is looking forward to seeing Jesus, and yet when he encounters him he has an inexplicable fear and falls on his face. This is due to our sinful nature coming in close contact with the Divine. He falls down on his face. A similar reaction happened to the apostle John, and Swedenborg explains its significance:

"And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead, signifies the failing of his own life from such presence of the Lord. A man's own life does not endure the Lord's presence, as the Lord is in Himself, yea, as He is in the inmosts of His Word: for His Divine love is altogether like the sun's heat, which, as it is in itself, no one can endure, for he would be consumed. This is meant by no one's being able to see God, and live (Exod. xxxiii. 20; Judg. xiii. 22). Since it is so, the Lord therefore appears to the angels in heaven as a sun, distant from them as the sun of the world is from men. The reason is, because the Lord in Himself is in that sun. But the Lord still so moderates and tempers His Divine, that man can endure His presence. This is done by veilings: it was thus done when He revealed Himself to many in the Word. Indeed, by veilings He is present with every one who worships Him, as He says in John: He who doeth My precepts, I will make My abode with him (xiv. 21, 23); that He will be in them, and they in Him (xv. 4, 5). It is manifest from these things why John, when he saw the Lord in such glory, fell at His feet as dead; as also, when the three disciples saw the Lord in glory, why they were weighed down with sleep, and a cloud covered them over (Luke ix. 32, 34)." (Apocalypse Revealed, n. 54)

This manner of veiling becomes more apparent later when Richard comes in the throne room of God.

THE LEVELS OF HEAVEN

The angels next took Richard up high, to get a higher view of heaven, the city of God, and the throne off in the distance. As he ascends, one of the things he noticed is that there were atmospheres, and that heaven is layered in multiple levels. Wherever he went, there were angels in each layer of heaven. In each of these layers, they also had their own ground level, but he could not see this from a lower level, which confused him.

On this matter, Swedenborg talks in much detail concerning the different levels of heaven. There are three main levels, which he calls the celestial, the spiritual, and the natural. The celestial are those who are primarily in love towards the Lord, and thence in love towards others. The spiritual are those who are in love towards others, and thence are in the truths of faith. The highest level pertains to the will or heart, the second level to that of the thought and living by the truth. Below this is the natural, those who were not so spiritual and yet lived a good life. Those on a lower level of heaven generally are not aware of the higher levels, but there is intermediate communication between them and they influence each other indirectly. Swedenborg exposes this reality throughout his discussion of the hidden spiritual sense of scripture.

Swedenborg sees atmospheres as well. For those who wonder at this account, how there could be so many things in heaven similar to that on earth, Swedenborg explains that heaven is essentially the world of ideas, where everything we think immediately comes to pass. You want to be with someone, there are there.  Heaven was created before material creation, and all that exists is symbolic of something that pre-existed in heaven:

"The things above the earth, as the sun, moon, and stars, and also those in the atmosphere, as clouds, mists, rain, thunder, and lightning, are likewise correspondences. What proceed from the sun, his presence and absence, as light and shade, heat and cold, are also correspondences; and so, too, what follow therefrom, as the seasons of the year, spring, summer, autumn, and winter; and the times of day, morning, noon, evening, and night.
"In a word, all things that exist in nature, from the least to the greatest, are correspondences.[a] That they are correspondences is because the natural world with all things in it, exists and subsists from the spiritual world, and both worlds from the Divine. It is said also "subsists" because everything subsists from that from which it exists, subsistence being perpetual existence, and because nothing can subsist from itself, but from what is prior to itself, thus from the First, from which, therefore, if it be separated, it perishes and vanishes altogether." (Heaven and Hell, n. 105-106)

The material world is essentially a lower level of heaven, a lower dimension, but is a base gross form of it. It is the middle point between heaven and hell.  This is the origin of our free will between good and evil. As for the symbolic representation of this material world, I have discussed some of this in this blog under the label of "Universal Order of Design." In short, everything a person can imagine or create already existed in heaven. So that's a lot to explore.

OTHER AREAS OF HEAVEN, AND EXTRATERRESTRIALS

In heaven Richard knew there were other continents, islands, and oceans. He was not allowed to know anything about them, but he knew they existed. He states that there is life on other planets, but that is all he says on the matter.

The impression I get from Richard is that he is a very traditional Christian, and many times in religion one creates an "artificial box" that limits one's thinking. These limits, biases and prejudices that we form in this life will have an effect on our eternal life, and can limit our understanding. Swedenborg saw that those who had not prepared themselves for eternal life, and had not addressed the way they lived before they died, often had to stay in a lower level longer than others.

So what is outside of Richard Sigmund's area, who is a Christian minister?  Swedenborg stated that there are large different societies of heavens. The "Christian heaven" is just one of them. There is a completely separate heaven for Muslims and other groups. And this is something people may not be prepared for, it is outside their thinking. All are arranged in relation to each other according to the way they lived, the way they thought, and according to one's knowledge of God. On several occasions, Swedenborg was allowed to visit the heavenly realms of extraterrestrials. One of the main differences between those from earth and extraterrestrials is that these other societies tended to be less materialistic, and much more obedient in life to God's will and have a more inner direct spiritual contact. They tend to be telepathic and use non-verbal communication.

GOVERNMENTS IN HEAVEN

Richard makes a brief statement, saying that there are governments in heaven, even though it is an "absolute theocracy." This is confirmed by Swedenborg:

"Because heaven is distinguished into societies, and the larger societies consist of some hundreds of thousands of angels (n. 50), and all within a society are indeed in similar good, but not in similar wisdom (n. 43), it necessarily follows that there are also governments; for order is to be observed, and all things of order are to be guarded. But governments in the heavens are various, of one sort in societies which constitute the Lord's celestial kingdom, and of another sort in societies which constitute the Lord's spiritual kingdom; they differ also according to the ministries of the different societies. But in the heavens there is no other government than the government of mutual love, and the government of mutual love is heavenly government. ...From these things it may be evident what sort of governors there are, namely, that they are in love and in wisdom more than others, and thus from love will good to all, and from wisdom know how to provide for its being done. Such governors do not rule and command, but minister and serve; for to do good to others from the love of good is to serve, and to provide for its being done is to minister." (Heaven and Hell, n. 213, 218) 

THE MYSTERY OF THE ORIGIN OF THE SOUL

This is one area where Sigmund may have been given slightly more information than Swedenborg. In heaven Richard noticed that there were people there "who had not died yet." He saw them and wondered about this mystery. He had many questions concerning the mysteries of God, which he was not allowed to know. However he kept asking, until the angel on his right sternly said, "The mysteries of God are none of your business."

So, we now know there is something here that has not been revealed yet, and on this matter I am somewhat an agnostic. On this point Swedenborg was in slight error, or mixed up the scientific knowledge of his day which was somewhat still based on Greek philosophy. In some passages he states that the soul originates from the seed of the father, and the external body from the mother. This idea originated from his own scientific knowledge, not from revelation. We now know from genetics that the external body is determined by both the father and mother. However in other passages Swedenborg gives a more correct view, and says that the seed is merely the vessel by which the soul enters the body. This happens at conception. Life begins at conception. On the subject of reincarnation, Swedenborg said that the origin of past life memories comes from shared memory of spirits who have entered our mind - and when the spirit enters one mind, he or she thinks he/she is that person. Swedenborg experienced this directly, so discounted reincarnation. Past life memories will tend to be of those who are of a similar nature/personality to us, for we all belong to a group of similar souls in the spiritual world, even while living.

A PROPHETIC AREA OF HEAVEN

There are prophetic areas of heaven - Richard saw the black tornado of judgment - he saw revival, and judgment. There was a white pine pulpit. Two fists came through the sky from the shekinah glory. The right hand was gold which represented God's blessing, the left hand was steel which represented God's judgment. He saw the falls of God's glory: a stream of water fell into vapor on earth. He was shown that on earth we could rise up to that level - through the mists to God's glory. He then sees the tidal wave, the last great move of God - it was seven tiers tall - he was told that it prophetically represents seven signs:

1. The last move of God will be in out of the way places, day and night.
2. Signs and wonders will increase, and be fought against.
3. Laws of physics will be suspended so the miraculous can flow.
4. Laws of time and space will be made known to man.
5. Knowledge of men shall increase, and never be based on fleshly things.
6. Seven-fold tidal wave, the last great move of God, breaking on the shores of eternity. The greatest part will be poured out in rural areas. "I seek my bride in humble places. I was born in a stable."
7. Awareness is given my people in days and weeks just before My return. Mass multitudes will be involved. The revival will be to people who give all praise to the Lord. It is coming to root out and destroy the phony. It will keep the faithful, and it will be the introduction to the coming of Christ.

Next he saw the amphitheatres of Abraham and David, where people could see how promises were fulfilled.

In this topic, Swedenborg somewhat put himself in a box of his own thinking. He warned against prophecy, as it will infringe against free will; and at least in his time he said miracles were not allowed as it was better to see the truth of a matter internally, not from external evidence. But one thing is clear: Swedenborg was shown that in the future there will be a New Church, which will supersede all the previous Christian churches before it. As for the revivals that Richard saw, this may be taking place now through the Pentecostal movement, as they are more open to miracles than the Swedenborgian church, and hold to a similar doctrine of the Trinity. However the church is somewhat plagued from within by "phonies" who will be rooted out as more discernment is provided. As for the Second Coming, that was revealed in its completeness to Swedenborg. And knowledge of the Second Coming will now be given to others. There is no "set time" for the Second Coming as I think that can take place at different times for different people, but that is another subject.

A VISION OF PRAYERS

Next Richard saw angels going in and out of a building, carrying incense censors, representing the prayers of people. The angels would carry these prayers before the presence of God.

On this matter, Swedenborg confirms that prayers are represented in heaven by incense, but emphasizes prayers should not be just words but accompanied with good intent, otherwise they are just words. On this matter he provides a Divine law of order: God will sometimes provide something only if one asks for it. It is a law of order for a person to ask first, then God will provide, if according to that which is good.

DIFFERENT CLASSES OF ANGELS

Richard saw at least seventy different classes of angels, but the warfaring angels were the most dramatic for which he gives a detailed description. Similar classes of angels would look like family members, and have similar clothing. Some angels were tall - "12-15 ft tall", and some had swords. He was told they were warfaring angels on their way to do battle. He stepped back a bit when he saw them but he was told, "You have nothing to fear, they are doing their Father's business." Some had flaming swords, shields and spears, and they would arrange themselves in formation before going out to do battle when needed. He said some had the power to speak a word and cause an entire nation to crumble and sink into the sea. All was derived from the power of God, and they each had specialized jobs. He looked and said, "Look at those mighty angels." The angel standing with him stood at attention and said, "Behold, the warfaring angels of God. They are mighty to the pulling down of strongholds of the evil one." The angels never act alone, but always under the auspices of the Lord Jesus. Many angels are put into action when people pray to Jesus. There were many different angels for different purposes. Some angels can take the form of people and appear that way to others on earth.

Swedenborg had much to say on the different classes of angels, too much to recount here. He did see some of the warfaring angels, and here is one passage where he describes their power:

"That angels have power those cannot understand who know nothing of the spiritual world, and of its influx into the natural world. They think that angels cannot have power because they are spiritual, and so pure and unsubstantial that they cannot even be seen with the eyes. But those who look more interiorly into the causes of things, take a different view. They know that all the power which man has, is from his understanding and will — for without these he cannot move a particle of his body — and the understanding and will are his spiritual man. ... in the spiritual world the power of angels is so great, that if I should bring forward all that I have seen in regard to it, it would exceed belief. If anything there resists, which is to be removed because contrary to Divine order, they cast it down and overturn it merely by an effort of the will and a look. Thus I have seen mountains, which were occupied by the evil, cast down and overthrown, and sometimes shaken from one end to the other, as in earthquakes; also rocks opened in the midst even to the deep, and the evil who were upon them swallowed up. I have seen also some hundreds of thousands of evil spirits dispersed by them and cast into hell. Numbers are of no avail against them, nor arts, cunning, and leagues, for they see all, and disperse them in a moment. " (Heaven and Hell, n. 228, 229) 

ANIMALS IN HEAVEN

Richard saw heaven had animals, some were animals that he had never seen before on earth. Some of them could speak. He saw winged horses. One had a body of a bull, the neck of a camel, and the head of a horse, and an angel was sitting upon it.

On this matter Swedenborg said that only humans live after death, animals do not. Animals do appear in the other life, but they represent the corresponding ideas and affections of the angels around them. I would say here that whereas humans each have an individual soul, each of the animal species perhaps belong to a "group animal soul," but that may or may not be true as Swedenborg was not shown that, and may have again been influenced by his own thinking. Thus animals are born into all the knowledge that they need to know, which is commonly called "instinct," whereas humans can learn whatever skill they want through free will. For humans, it is one's own free will which determines what group one belongs to in heaven. Swedenborg does confirms that there are winged horses - the Pegasus - in heaven, and the Greek myth was derived from that. And for the curious, he does mention unicorns but only in passing.

A CASTLE OF HOPES AND DREAMS

One building that Richard saw was a huge castle suspended in the air, totally crystal clear. The castle was full of people and books, and the people inside took care of business inside the castle. Later the Lord explained to him: this is the castle where the hopes and dreams of His people were fulfilled. The castle is where God keeps the hopes and dreams of what he wants to fulfill in our lives.

Swedenborg did not see anything like this, except he did see other building with crystal walls, and that at times angels communicate with people through their dreams, which he describes in detail.

THE THRONE OF GOD

Finally, Richard was brought before the throne of God. It was a huge domed room, with pillars, statues of fire, and thousands of steps going up to it. Each step was significant and prophetic. As he ascended, things became more magnificent and splendid. Angels would come and go, and he heard one leaving saying, "He is all I thought He would be, and so much more."  When he entered the throne room, he saw millions upon millions of people prostrate on their faces, worshiping God. The throne faces every direction at all times, and was huge. From any part of heaven one could see the throne of God. All who approached the throne were in much humility and awe. He could see a Being on the throne, but He was covered with a cloud of glory that radiated from Him. He felt the Being on the throne was looking at him, and he felt as small as a grain of sand on the seashore, and a reverential fear fell upon him. In the throne there looked like there was a bandshell, and Jesus was there. It seemed important for Jesus that Richard notice him there. Many more details of the throne room are described by Richard in his book, it is quite dramatic.

In front of the throne, he saw a laver from which flowed the blood of Jesus. It flowed from the throne. He described it as "liquid plasma" and "waves of glory." Out of the throne flowed God's love and answers to prayers. The presence was very strong, and although many people enter heaven, many of them have to wait before coming into the presence of God in order to withstand the glory of His presence. 

On this point, Swedenborg states that all of heaven exists and subsists on the Divine love and Divine truth that proceeds from God, who is as the Sun at the center of heaven. His form is for the most part hidden, and as explained before, God veils his presence so that humans can withstand it as described here.

One point I want to emphasize here, is something was revealed in symbolic form to Richard Sigmund whether he realized it or not. Note that Jesus wanted him to notice that it was he who was on the throne. For in the New Church, it is known that the theological concept of a trinity of three beings is a falsehood. There is one Being, Jehovah, who revealed Himself in human form as Jesus Christ. The trinity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one of the Divine itself, which no man or angel can see, the Divine Human, the bodily form of Jesus, and the Divine proceeding. Everything that Richard saw in his afterlife experience confirms this - he sees the outflowing of the Divine power or energy as the Holy Spirit. This outflowing Divine power is the blood of Jesus, it is that which cleanses people when they receive the truth of His Word. Swedenborg stated that at the center of heaven was a central Sun, in the middle of which was the Divine Human, which was Jesus himself.

RICHARD'S SECOND ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS

Gazebo of Prayer, by Thomas Kinkade

Richard was picked up and carried from the throne. A voice said, "You are destined for an appointment with the Master." He was brought to a field where there was a gazebo, and he saw Jesus on a platform, who had scars on his face and neck. They were open wounds that were not healed. His feet were scarred. He wore a seamless robe of light, engulfed in a glory cloud of light. Jesus turned, and when he did he fell on his face. Jesus touched him and Richard somehow stood up. Jesus said, "Sit, I have somewhat to say to you." He sat down in a golden chair. Jesus said: "When you were a child, I came to you." (Richard says here: "I was seven, he came down in a golden stairway. He came again in my youth.") Jesus continued: "I have called you as a prophet to the nations. In many ways you have succeeded. In many ways the evil one hindered and overcame you. But fear not, I have overcome him. I was there when you were born. I was there when you were four, and the evil one tried to destroy you." (Richard says he had measles and other sicknesses, and his mother witnessed a miraculous healing when he was four.) "Son I am going to take you to the other place. I want to do more through you. Richard, I need your help. You were never designed to be more than what you are. This is heaven, where I want my people to come." Thousands of people were listening what Jesus was saying to him. Jesus then told him some private things about his life. He said he was going to cause great revivals to take place in small places, and He talked to him about many other things. He held out his hands: "All is taken, and brought together."

A DESCENT INTO HELL

Jesus then said, "Come, my Father desires that you see the other place." Immediate Richard had dread and did not want to go. Jesus looked at Richard and said, "There is no disobedience in heaven." And then Richard was ready to go, as he knew he would be safe with Jesus. Jesus picked him up. Instantly, they descended into a nasty grey stench like a rotting carcass. He was taken to a flat area, to the gate of destruction, made of a black material. For everything in heaven, hell had its opposite. There were hideous beings, very grotesque, as tall as the angels that were guarding the gates of heaven. When they saw Jesus, they screamed in horror. There were flames of punishment, and Richard felt a doom and despair. He heard people cried out - demons would take them and torture them to the same level of pain they were in. People were naked - there was no one there who was not old enough to know what sin was. Jesus told him to tell people what he saw. "I want you to tell others of this place and warn them, that unless they are washed in my blood, unless they are born again, this is where they will spend eternity." There were demons all around screaming at the presence of Jesus. Some begged to be let out of there, but their judgment was fixed. Richard cannot describe everything he saw, because when he recalls it it makes him violently ill. He does not want to remember, but he can say there is nothing there but absolute horror. He would see skeletons walking about with flesh hanging from their bones. People were raped. Serpents would devour people. They would be restored, and the punishment would happen all over again. Demons would tear people apart. Demons put hot coals in a woman's mouth, and they mocked her saying, "You really thought you were getting by with something." People were put in cages and then dipped into a lake of fire. There was a man who had an arm which took 100 years to rot off, and at the end, it would be restored, to rot again. Another had part of his head blown off and he was forced to go looking around for the rest of his head. There was no end to the different kinds of torments. There are degrees of punishment in hell - those who knew the most were punished the most. After seeing this Jesus said, "Son, you have fulfilled what God wanted."

The above description sounds awful, and Swedenborg saw many of the same forms of punishment.  He makes it quite clear that no one goes to hell unless he deserves it, and actually, some in their evil actually prefer it. In reality, we go where our desire takes us, God judges no one. For there are people who will intentionally do evil to other people, we see that constantly in the news. That is where the evil get their enjoyment - seeing others suffer and fail. There is a law of order: every good contains within it its own reward, and every evil its own punishment. The punishments of hell are not designed to torment, but rather, from God's mercy they are designed to prevent the evil from rushing into a worse kind of evil. For in the afterlife, all external restraints are removed, and one automatically follows one's desire. In the end, the punishments of hell stop when the evil decide to do nothing, which for many takes time.

One thing I will discuss here - Swedenborg confirms that all children in their childhood go to heaven:

"Let them know, therefore, that every child, wheresoever he is born, whether within the Church or out of it, whether of pious parents or of impious, when he dies is received by the Lord and is educated in heaven, and according to Divine order is taught and imbued with affections for good, and through this with knowledge of truth; and afterward, as he is perfected in intelligence and wisdom, he is introduced into heaven and becomes an angel. Every one who thinks from reason may know that no one is born for hell, but all for heaven, and that man himself is in fault, that he comes into hell; but little children cannot as yet be in fault." (Heaven and Hell, n. 329)

And what does it mean to be "washed in blood" and to be "born again"? It means to cleanse oneself from sin through self examination and repentance, asking God for help, and to reform one's life and acknowledge the good that you do is God working within you. All who do good by the truth that they know will go to heaven, even if they do not know the true identity of Jesus (see Matt. 25).

THE END OF THE JOURNEY

They then ascended back to heaven. Richard asked, "Who am I going to tell?" Jesus said, "Tell others about a place called heaven, and the other place, the place of separation." He then held his face in his hands, and bent it upward so that he looked into his face. He said, ""Don't ever forget how much I love you, and how much I have done for you. Never forget that I love those that you are going back to,  and the place that I have prepared for them, and how much I love them."

Jesus said, "You are going back." Richard sighed. Jesus rebuked him, "The will of my Father is never grievous. Stand to your feet. You must go back. You will go back to heaven, you will have angelic visits." Then Jesus hugged him. And suddenly he was back in his body, which was full of pain. He felt himself being healed from within. He heard a voice, "He has been dead all these hours." He felt his bones and joints heal, and then someone said, "Its about time to embalm him." And that is when he sat up and said, "I AINT DEAD YET." Someone hollered, "That guy is alive." A doctor said, "I pronounced him dead, and he is dead." But he was sitting up. Other doctors and nurses came in, and he began to tell them of where he had been, and what had happened. A doctor said, "This must be a miracle of God."

EPILOGUE

Richard stated that he continued to have angelic visits after his Near Death Experience. He describes it as quite unique - "one out of a hundred" or "this type of revelation is more than any one man can have." Completely unbeknown to him, another did have a similar and even greater experience. Not eight hours, but twenty-seven years of experience. I think we can now say that the experience of Emanuel Swedenborg is no longer unique. The similarities are remarkable, yet different enough to give us a better understanding on certain spiritual matters.

So for those Christian ministers who have censored themselves and their congregations concerning Emanuel Swedenborg, perhaps they should take another look. We now have a traditional Christian minister who had the same experience as Swedenborg. He knew another popular minister, Jack Coe. And maybe those who read the revelation will understand the meaning of Jesus' last saying to Richard. Before he left Jesus told Richard to tell his people to prepare themselves for His coming. "Prepare yourselves, and get ready, because I am coming back soon, at a time when people don't think I am coming back. I am coming back."

AUDIO RECORDING OF THE BOOK "MY TIME IN HEAVEN"

For those of you who would like to share Richard Sigmund's story with others, here is an audio recording of his book. It is oriented to those who go to church, but that is because this is his version of heaven. What will be provided for each individual is what will give them the most enjoyment. A lot of it is repetitive and there is annoying church organ music between chapters. However I had skipped through some details, and it is good material for understanding what awaits us.