Salvation through conjunction with God by shunning evil, practising charity
Swedenborgian salvation centers on conjunction with God through active moral and spiritual regeneration. Salvation comes through shunning evil (repentance), practising charity and good works, and living faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not a forensic or juridical arrangement but a living, reciprocal relationship.
Swedenborg emphasizes that God wills all to be saved and provides sufficient means for salvation to all. Free will is essential; humans must choose cooperation with divine grace. There is no Calvinist predestination, no double predestination, and no concept of souls eternally damned against their will. Instead, those who love self above God freely choose separation from Him (hell), while those who love God freely embrace conjunction with Him (heaven). Salvation is both given through baptism (initiation into Christ) and perfected through ongoing spiritual regeneration.
Key Distinctions
- Justification means:
- conjunction with God through shunning evil and practising charity; no forensic imputation
- Election type:
- universal salvation willed by God; free will essential; no Calvinist predestination
- Baptismal regeneration:
- baptism as initiation into the Christian church; spiritual regeneration is the inner reality
- Eternal security:
- hell chosen freely by those who love self above God; heaven freely embraced by those who love God
Scripture References
Sources
- Emanuel Swedenborg, True Christianity
- General Church of the New Jerusalem, Doctrinal Statements