New Church Life November/December 2016 | Page 36

new church life : november / december 2016
men , that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven .” ( Matthew 5:16 )
Spiritual qualities , spiritual goods and truths , are not just abstractions , but are embodied in people . They form the very core of every person , and make us what we are – images of God , each one unique , with infinite variety .
So the boundary between the natural life of a person and the religious faith he lives by is porous . As the Writings say : “ All religion is of life , and the life of religion is to do good .” ( Doctrine of Life 1 )
The essence of a person is determined by what that person loves , believes and thinks about – the principles he holds dear . It is these inner , spiritual qualities , and the sphere that goes forth from them , that especially touch the lives of others and affect them most deeply .
It happens that Norman had a very warm , outgoing , engaging personality . He was definitely a “ people person .” It ’ s hard to imagine anyone not liking him . But the love and respect we have for someone is based on something more than just the outward disposition ; it is inspired by our perception of the spiritual quality of the person within .
When we perceive that someone is a good man , who loves the Lord and seeks to use whatever abilities he happens to possess to help others , this is what affects us the most . The external aspects of his personality are more or less incidental .
So in remembering our friend Norman Riley today , we will focus , not so much on the outer story of his life – interesting as it is – but on the spiritual principles , drawn from the Writings of the New Church , that he especially loved . Think of these as the “ pillars ” that supported the Church that the Lord was building in his mind . We will mention four of them in particular .
Bear in mind , though , as we speak of “ doctrinal truths ,” that “ truth is the form of good .” The essence of truth , the soul of truth , the heart of truth , is goodness and love . This is the fountain that all the truths of revelation , the truths of faith , spring from , contain and communicate : love .
And “ love is the life of man .” ( Divine Love and Wisdom 1 ) As the Lord told His disciples : “ The words that I speak unto you , they are spirit , and they are life .” ( John 6:63 ) Our lives are defined by what we believe to be true , and what we believe to be true is determined by what we love .
The first of Norman ’ s loves that we will mention is the love he had for the Lord ’ s Word .
It was indeed the lamp that guided his feet and lit his path during his journey through this earthly life . And he saw in it – from Genesis through True Christian Religion – a revelation of the Lord and the process of glorification He went through , and of our own spiritual growth and regeneration .
The Lord said : “ The lamp of the body is the eye : if therefore your eye
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