is all complete, he steps back, takes
in the whole picture and says, “Oh,
that’s very good.”
Others have conjectured that
God was especially happy because
this was the day that He was able to
hand over all His work to man. Man
was to have dominion over the fish
of the sea, the birds of the air, and
over every living thing. God could
finally take a break – and that was,
for Him, very good!
But what do the Writings of
the New Church teach about the
sixth day? Why is it so special that
God would call it not just good,
but very good? The answer lies in
our understanding that this story
is not about the literal creation
of the physical world, but rather
about the re-creation of the human spirit. All along, the story has been about
the growth and development of a human being from the first glimmer of
spiritual consciousness to fully awakened spirituality. Here’s how this process
is described in the Writings:
When God says, “Let us
make man in our image,”
He is speaking about the
present moment. He is
speaking about how He is
working with the angels
to give us a new spirit. . . .
All of this is taking place
in us now – to the extent
that we cooperate with
the Lord’s leading through
the ministry of angels.
The times and states of a person’s regeneration in general and in particular are
divided into six, and are called the days of one’s creation. This is because a person,
from being hardly human, gradually becomes fully human. In this way, little by
little, a person attains to the sixth day, and becomes an image of God. (Arcana
Coelestia 61)
In other passages, the Writings explain more fully what it means to become
“an image of God.” The key is in understanding the words, “male and female
He created them.” Spiritually understood the creation of “male” and “female”
refers to the two potentialities that can make us fully human – our intellect
(described as “male” in sacred symbolism) and our will (described as “female”
in sacred symbolism). That which makes us human is this very maleness, our
intellect, and this very femaleness, our will. Both of these capabilities – the will
and the intellect – are present in each of us, ready to be developed.
A will that is truly human receives the good which is constantly flowing
in from the Lord, and an intellect which is truly human receives the truth
that is constantly flowing in from the Lord. It is only then that a marriage can
take place in the human mind. This happens when the truth we have received
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