The Doctrine of Charity - Swedenborg Foundation

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CHARITY 224Endeavor, in a man, is will. Therefore, though he does not do athing in the body, if he holds it to be allowable, then the effort orwill remains; and this is the act itself in the spirit. Therefore to takecognizance of his sins and know what they are, is to takecognizance of and know his thoughts, and to know from themwhat he holds to be allowable, as well as what he desires, and whatthings of his thought he favors. For example, if he thinks whetherwhoredom is a sin, and how grave a sin; whether hatred andrevenge are sins; whether thefts, and the like, whether haughtinessand pride, contempt of others, and avarice are sins; and then theman must remove disguises, if he had cast any over them, that is,the things by which he had confirmed them, and must consult theWord and see.5. Anyone may see that he who acknowledges that a sin is a sin[can see the sins within him]; but he who makes them allowable inthought, and not allowable in the body on account of the world,cannot see them. It is as if one should turn the mirror away that hemay see his face; or as if one who would see his face should put aveil before it.Self-examination. 29 (1) If it is only as to the actions, it discoverslittle; and this not enough; [give] the reason. (2) But if it is as to thethoughts and intentions, it discovers more. (3) And if it searchesout what the man regards or does not regard as sins, then itdiscovers [all]. For whatever a man within himself regards asallowable, that he does. To regard as allowable is of the will, isendeavor, and in spirit is done; and it will be done in the bodywhen obstacles are removed. And such are Machiavellians.6. (4) Good before repentance is spurious good; and also charity, forgood is of charity. For evil is within the man inwardly; because it isnot opened, and therefore is not healed; and genuine good cannotissue forth from evil. The fountain is impure. Good that flows forthfrom evil may appear good in the outward form, but the quality of29. This paragraph is written in the margin of the original manuscript.[—Translator]
CHARITY 225the man is within it, as he is inwardly. Everything that a man doesis therefore an image of him. Before the angels he himself appearsin his image, yea, out of himself, which I have seen a thousandtimes. The good, therefore, that anyone does with the body mayappear good before those who see only the external; but within, thewill and intention lie concealed, which can be, because he wishes tobe thought sincere and good in order that he may captivate soulsfor the sake of honor and gain. In a word, the good is eithermeritorious, or hypocritical, or diabolical; and is done to deceive, torevenge, to kill, etc. But at death, when a man is let into hisinteriors, this good is taken away, and becomes open evil.7. Every good that a man does to the neighbor is of charity, or ischarity. What quality of charity it is may be known by the threepreceding [tests], namely: (1) How far he shuns evils as sins. (2)How far he knows and takes cognizance of what things are sins. (3)And how far he has seen them in himself, confessed them, andrepented of them. These are the indications to everyone of thequality of his charity.8. (5) Consequently, the first of charity is to look to the Lord andshun evils because they are sins. Every good that a man does to theneighbor for the sake of the neighbor, or for the sake of truth andgood and thus for the reason that it is according to the Word, orfor the sake of religion and thus for the sake of God, which istherefore from a spiritual love or affection, is called a good ofcharity, or a good work. So far as this is derived from the man it isnot good, but so far as it is from the Lord through the man. TheLord does good to everyone chiefly through others, but yet in sucha manner that a man scarcely knows but that it is from himself. Hetherefore frequently moves the wicked to do good to others; but itis from an affection of the love of self and the world. This good,indeed, is of the Lord, or from the Lord; but the man is notrewarded for it. But if a man does good not from a merely natural,but from a spiritual love or affection, he is rewarded. His reward isthe heavenly delight of that love and affection, in that it endures toeternity; and this is in proportion as he does not do it from himself,
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Page 3 and 4: ContentsTranslator’s Note1. The f
Page 5 and 6: CHARITY 221Translator’s NoteThis
Page 7: CHARITY 223is to shun them as diabo
Page 11 and 12: CHARITY 22713. (1) Not to will to d
Page 13 and 14: CHARITY 229eternal life, and yet do
Page 15 and 16: CHARITY 23131. So in a thousand oth
Page 17 and 18: CHARITY 233(5) The good of the inte
Page 19 and 20: CHARITY 23554. Genuine charity itse
Page 21 and 22: CHARITY 237an essence. Therefore wh
Page 24: CHARITY 240laws, are enacted as for
Page 27 and 28: CHARITY 24392. It is known that suc
Page 29 and 30: CHARITY 245receptacle. So with the
Page 31 and 32: CHARITY 247114. (5) Whatever procee
Page 33 and 34: CHARITY 249123. But this is so with
Page 35 and 36: CHARITY 251130. The general good co
Page 37 and 38: CHARITY 253this, that everyone ther
Page 39 and 40: CHARITY 255151. When therefore a ma
Page 41 and 42: CHARITY 257the Lord as the “door
Page 43 and 44: CHARITY 259continually loves peace.
Page 45 and 46: CHARITY 261He loves the general goo
Page 47 and 48: CHARITY 263accepted by the Lord, an
Page 49 and 50: CHARITY 265177. That such things ar
Page 51 and 52: CHARITY 267within him; and everyone
Page 53 and 54: CHARITY 26911There are diversions o
Page 55 and 56: CHARITY 271diversions vary accordin
Page 57 and 58: CHARITY 273diversions are the only
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CHARITY 275(2) No one can have char
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CHARITY 277the Lord, he would not d
Page 63 and 64:
CHARITY 279far he does good from Go
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CHARITY 281himself. And because the
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CHARITY 283206. (6) As far as anyon
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CHARITY 285neighbor does not love h
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CHARITY 287evils in oneself, and re
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CHARITY 289213. But that these thin
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CHARITY 2915. The signs of charity
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