new church life: november/december 2017
culture, or an example of something that serves self, that necessitated a strong
and unpopular message.
In this we return to the overarching challenge addressed in this study:
how to access the timeless truths of the Word – the things that will always be
true, in all cultures and throughout all time – despite the fact that we ourselves
live in a particular culture with its significant pressures. This is another reason
we need a written revelation to check us.
In this regard I share a quote by my father, the Rt. Rev. Peter M. Buss Sr.,
from a paper he wrote in 1995 on “The Word of God”:
I believe very deeply that if we consider the Writings [aka Heavenly Doctrines]
anything less than the Word, we will begin to pick away at them, questioning this
or that unpalatable truth, assigning certain statements to Swedenborg’s cultural
bias, detecting in him the flaws of a dated European culture, holding that we are
more advanced in our thinking now, and so on. They won’t be hurt by this. The
Lord protects His own. But our church will be weak, and churches which have an
uncertain faith don’t stand for very long.
6. Avoiding Any Kind of Dismissiveness
Related to this goal of letting the Word lead, we come to another sobering
challenge in our efforts to see the timeless truths of the Word. We know that
we don’t get to pick and choose which teachings to follow and which ones to
dismiss. We can’t do away with certain teachings that we wish were not there.
Two Scriptures come to mind to illustrate this point. The first is the Lord’s
tunic at the scene of the crucifixion:
Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. They said
therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it.” (John 19:23-24)
We know from the Arcana and other places that the tunic represents
the Word as to its internal sense, which is seamless or hangs together as one
unit. (Arcana Coelestia 4677:6; Apocalypse Explained 64:4, 195:21) There’s a
powerful directive here, namely that we should strive to see any given teaching,
no matter how challenging, within the context of the Word’s overall messages.
The second Scripture is the “belt” of Aaron the high priest and his sons.
(Exodus 29:5) This too is a symbol for “the holding together of all the truths
and goods of faith in connection.” (Arcana Coelestia 10014) It is “a common
bond to ensure that everything has the same end in view.” (Ibid. 9829) It is that
guiding set of doctrinal principles ensuring that “the things of love and faith
[are not] broken apart and scattered.” (Ibid. 9341:6)
Most of us could point to examples from our experience where this
tendency of dismissiveness is evident. Sometimes it comes in the form of
focusing on the generals of doctrine, and paying less attention to the details.
Other times it is seen in a person who loves certain things about the message
of the New Church, but is not yet in a place to accept other parts. Or there
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