n e w c h u r c h l i f e : j u ly / au g u s t 2 0 1 6
convinced that part of the problem is that the continuous internal sense which
it reveals gets lost to many lay minds because of the intervening material.
So he set out to abridge it in such a way that the internal sense, and the
gems that we find throughout the work, could be kept without the fuller
explanation of details. The “abridged” version he offers is perhaps 40% as long
as the original. He has left out the sho rt sections between chapters (which
appear in other works) and he does not include the chapters from Genesis,
since people may easily read the work with the Old Testament by their side.
He has also left out the many sections where the Lord explains the details of
the internal sense by referring to other places in the Old and New Testaments,
and offering their internal sense. These passages, so valuable to scholars, made
it harder for some readers to keep the context of the internal sense and the
truths it reveals.
Willard has done this work his own way. By that I mean that anyone who
undertook such a task would have to make decisions about how to create an
abridged version. Over 15 years of daily diligence, he has carefully edited
passages to keep the essential internal sense intact, many times revising what
he had previously done to get it just right.
He also consulted with many ministers, whose names appear in his first
volume. My personal opinion is that he has done a superb job. I am in awe of
what he has accomplished, and delighted at the thought of its potential value.
I know that some people will wonder about an abridgment of a work of
the Writings. But I would point out that we all do this. Each time a minister
uses a passage in the lessons for a sermon, especially if he cuts parts out,
he is abridging. Each time we do studies and “compare one passage with
another” (see Arcana Coelestia 6222:3; 7233), we are taking each passage out
of its original context and combining it with other passages. We are clearly
encouraged to do this. Even the Writings themselves use sections – often parts
of sections – of the Old and New Testaments in quoting. Many books have
been written in this way, using parts of the books of the Writings.
The great value of what Willard has done is that it takes into account the
reality of many people’s lives – that they may never read the complete Arcana.
But, presented with a shortened version they will not only get a sense of the
wonder of the internal sense of two books of the Old Testament, but also
discover the gems that are to be found only in this work.
Here is a partial list of major teachings found only, or only in full detail,
in the Arcana.
1. The details of the Lord’s life on earth. His spiritual growth and battles
with the hells are revealed in a detail which is not found in other
doctrinal works. For example, as an infant the Lord was horrified
364