clash, and so may opinions, personalities, religions and cultures.
In the world around us, trees and rivers have branches; in the human
body, the bronchial tubes that bring air to our lungs and the aorta that takes
blood from our heart have branches; on the spiritual level there are branches
in philosophy, government, science and other systems of thought.
On earth, rocks are heavy and a bright day follows a dark night; spiritually,
someone may bear a heavy burden, go through a dark night of the soul, and
finally come to the light.
The natural world is a “theater representative” of the spiritual world.
“Every single thing in the sky above and on the earth beneath is representative
because it has come into being, and is kept in being, from the influx of the Lord
through heaven.” (Arcana Coelestia 1807)
Human beings inhabit both worlds simultaneously – our minds in the
spiritual world and our bodies in the representative world of nature. We
therefore have an instinctive sense that there are depths of spiritual meaning
within nature and in our own natural existence. Who can fail to see a symbol of
resurrection in the transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly? Who doesn’t
know what is meant when television is referred to as a cultural “wasteland?” Or
when, during the lead-up to a conflict, there is said to be a “storm brewing?”
Nature and human nature are inextricably linked and affect each other. The
natural environment affects us, physically and spiritually. It influences how we
feel and think. And we, in turn, have an impact on the natural environment,
our thoughts and feelings guiding us in our stewardship of it. Human beings
constitute the linchpin in this interaction between the spiritual and natural
worlds.
(WEO)
nature was designed with us in mind
Knowing the doctrine of correspondences is a great help in understanding
Scripture, but even without that knowledge there is life in the Word, the Spirit
of truth, that affects everyone who reads it humbly and sincerely, seeking to
learn how to live rightly. It is similar regarding the relationship between the
two worlds, spiritual and natural; it is not just symbolic but a subtle, dynamic,
living relationship, like that between a person’s mind and body. Nature affects
us very directly, physically and spiritually. The Word and nature are both
foundations of truth.
Take, for example, the health benefits of negative ions in the air (oxygen
atoms with an extra electron). In nature they are most prevalent around
moving water, at the beach or near a waterfall, for instance, and also after a
thunderstorm. They make you feel good mentally and physically.
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