book reviews
Osteopathy and
Swedenborg
By David Fuller, DO
Reviewed by the
Rev. Reuben P. Bell, DO
A
n important new book has emerged from the New Church community,
and is becoming a standard for people of more than a single interest.
Osteopathy and Swedenborg, by David Fuller, DO, is three welcome works
in one: at long last a biography of Emanuel Swedenborg that does justice to
his scientific genius; a coherent treatment of the origins and principles of the
New Thought movement as the Swedenborgian phenomenon that it was; and
a thoroughgoing treatment of osteopathy as the philosophical progeny of the
two. For reading or reference, this book sets a new standard for scholarship in
osteopathy’s complex genealogy.
Osteopathy and Swedenborg is about a lot of things. It’s about osteopathy,
of course, as the name implies. And Swedenborg. And how the one owes its
philosophical roots to the other. And it’s about the American New Thought
Movement as the crucible for osteopathy’s formation. What we find in Fuller’s
comprehensive treatment of these things is an explanation for how osteopathy
must have arisen from such a rich environment.
Because of its comprehensive scope, Dr. Fuller provides us a “site map” of
sorts in the front matter of the book. In his “Advice to the Reader” he tells us,
This book is written for a wide range of readers: those with an interest in
osteopathy, those with a background in Swedenborgian ideas, and those who
are new to both.
I would add that if readers are well versed in Swedenborgiana, they will
still learn new and important things. The same thing applies to osteopaths: we
will learn new and important things as well, about the origins and principles
of our profession. And the beauty is that newcomers to both will not be
overloaded with too much to know. Such is Dr. Fuller’s style.
We find that we are about to embark on a journey through Emanuel
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