Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) was a Swedish scientist, nobleman,
and theologian who spent his life investigating the mysteries of
the soul. Born in Stockholm to a staunchly Lutheran family, he
graduated from the University of Uppsala and then traveled to
England, Holland, France, and Germany to study the leading
scientists of the time. He gained favor with Sweden’s King Charles
XII, who gave him a position on the board of overseers of the
Swedish mining industry. Later, he was granted a seat on the
Swedish House of Nobles by Charles XII’s successor, Queen Ulrika
Eleonora. Between 1743 and 1745 he began to have visions of heaven,
hell, and Jesus Christ that resulted in a stream of books about the
nature of God, the afterlife, and the inner meaning of the Bible.
He devoted the last decades of his life to studying Scripture and
presenting his own unique theology to the world.
Lee van Laer, poetry editor for Parabola magazine, holds a degree
in fine art from St. Lawrence University and is a visual artist,
musician, photographer, poet, and writer. He is the author of
several books about the ideas of G.I. Gurdjieff (Chakras and the
Enneagram, The Law of Three, and The Universal Enneagram) as well
as The Esoteric Bosch, about symbolism in the art of Hieronymus
Bosch. Van Laer resides in the Hudson River Valley and is an
active associate of the New York Gurdjieff Foundation. See his
website at www.nefersweetie.com.
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