new church life: march / april 2014
years and eight months of his life.
Swedenborg had grown up as a Lutheran, with a bishop for a father, and in
a culture where both parents were expected to teach the Bible to their children
and servants – at every dinner. Swedenborg had also gone to church regularly.
He was very familiar with the Bible.
But during his spiritual awakening, the Word became important to him in
a whole new way. No one around him was having the type of experiences he
was having, but the Word showed that Isaiah and Ezekiel and John on the Isle
of Patmos had gone through something similar.
In conclusion, Swedenborg’s call or spiritual awakening was a long,
multiphase process with two key ingredients: the Word and spiritual
experienc \ˈH