Denies
Bible contains errors at literal level; inerrancy applies to inner sense
Swedenborgianism denies the inerrancy of the Bible at the literal level. Textual variations, translation issues, and apparent historical inaccuracies occur in Scripture. However, Swedenborg taught that the inner spiritual sense of Scripture is absolutely inerrant and divinely given. The spiritual meaning beneath the sometimes-flawed literal text is perfect and infallible.
This allows for honest historical and textual criticism of Scripture while maintaining its divine inspiration and authority. The task of the interpreter is to discover the underlying spiritual sense, which remains constant and true across all variations at the literal level.
Key Distinctions
- Inerrancy scope:
- literal text has errors; the inner spiritual sense (revealed by Swedenborg) is inerrant
- Hermeneutic approach:
- correspondence method — Swedenborg's revealed inner sense illuminates all doctrinal meaning
Scripture References
Sources
- Emanuel Swedenborg, Arcana Caelestia