Heaven and Hell - Swedenborg Foundation

HEAVEN AND HELL 166
without magnificence; but in the spiritual kingdom they are
more or less magnificent.
224. I have also talked with one of the preachers about the
holy state in which those are who listen to the preaching in the
churches. He said that everyone is pious, devout, and holy in
harmony with his interiors, which pertain to love and faith, for
holiness itself is in love and faith, because the Divine of the
Lord is in them. He also said that he did not know what
outward holiness is apart from love and faith; and when he
thought about it he said that perhaps it is something
counterfeiting holiness in outward appearance, either
conventional or hypocritical; and that such holiness is kindled
and sustained by spurious fire from the love of self and the
world.
225. All the preachers are from the Lord’s spiritual kingdom;
none are from the celestial kingdom. They are from the
spiritual kingdom because the angels there are in truths from
good, and all preaching must be from truths. There are no
preachers from the celestial kingdom because those who are
there are in the good of love, and they see and perceive truths
from good, but do not talk about them. But although the
angels in the celestial kingdom perceive and see truths there are
preachings there, since by means of preachings they are
enlightened in the truths that they already know, and are
perfected by many truths that they did not know before. As
soon as they hear truths they acknowledge them and thus
perceive them; and the truths they perceive they love, and by
living in accordance with them they make them to be of their
life, declaring that living in accordance with truths is loving the
Lord. 163
163. Loving the Lord and the neighbor is living in accordance with the
Lord’s commandments (n. 10143, 10153, 10310, 10578, 10645, 10683).