1. THE FAITH OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH

A statement of faith, set out in both universal and particular terms, is placed at the beginning to serve as a preface to the book which follows, to be like a doorway leading into a church, and a summary presenting in a short compass what follows at more length. It is called the faith of the new heaven and the new church, because heaven, where the angels are, and the church among men form a single unit, just as the internal and external sides of the personality make up a single individual. This is why a member of the church who possesses the good of love which arises from the truths of faith, and possesses the truths of faith which arise from the good of love, is, so far as the interiors of his mind are concerned, an angel of heaven. Therefore too after dying he comes into heaven, and there enjoys happiness depending upon how far the good and truth are linked. It should be known that in the new heaven, which is at the present time being established by the Lord, this statement of faith serves as its preface, doorway and summary.

234. VI. The literal sense of the Word produces a link with the Lord and association with the angels.

The Word produces a link with the Lord, because He is the Word, that is, Divine truth itself and Divine good itself contained in it. The link is produced by the literal sense, because in that sense the Word is in its fulness, holiness and power, as was shown above in the section on this subject [214-224]. That link is not visible to man, but lies in the affection for truth and the perception of truth. The reason why the literal sense produces association with the angels in heaven is that the spiritual and celestial senses are contained in it, and these are the senses the angels possess; the angels of the Lord's spiritual kingdom possess the spiritual sense of the Word, those of His celestial kingdom its celestial sense. These two senses are unwound from the Word, when a person who regards it as holy reads it. The unwinding takes place instantly, and so therefore does the association.