number 17 items that I am aware of:
• About 17 centuries after His First Advent the Lord made His Second
Advent in the form of a revelation from the Lord through his servant
Emanuel Swedenborg.
• In 1770 the last book of this revelation, True Christian Religion, was
completed.
• In the 170th day of 1770 – that is, June 19, 1770 – after the completion
of this book, the Lord called together His twelve disciples who had
followed Him in the world and later He sent them forth throughout the
spiritual world to preach the Gospel: that the Lord Jesus Christ is king
and His kingdom shall be forever and ever.
• 17 years after the completion of True Christian Religion, and after
Swedenborg had passed on, the first New Church worship service
occurred in London on July 31, 1787.
The number 17 is prominent in these four bullet points. This is in line
with the teaching in Arcana Coelestia 853 that the number 17 denotes a new
beginning. This interweaving of the number 17 in the dates of events clustered
around the time of the Second Coming Advent of the Lord appears to be in
perfect harmony with its enormous importance to the whole human race. It
also reflects the fact that every last detail of the Lord’s Second Advent was
under the care of Divine Providence, as are all things in the created universe.
Philip Richards
Canberra, Australia
Comfortable in My Role
To The Editors:
Thank you for your words of wisdom, Peter Boericke: (A Wake-Up Call: Will
the General Church Survive and Thrive? New Church Life, May/June 2015, page
262)
I have not resigned from the General Church, but do serve elsewhere.
Having banged my head on the General Church door long enough I decided
perhaps the best way things might change were if people were to see a woman
minister in action. I know that has def