Above, portrait of Emanuel Swedenborg, and the Lincoln Park Chicago monument to Swedenborg, whose vision of the new Jerusalem (Revelation, chapter 21 in the Bible) inspired city planner Daniel Burnham. Swedenborg looks benevolently toward the city, holding a copy of "Secrets of Heaven" to his heart. 
SAVE THE DATES:

Sunday April 12, 3:30 PM central: We will continue our 12 Gates study. See Zoom link at right. 

Thursday, April 16, 6 PM
Dell Rose will begin our season-long "Book of Job" study via Zoom. See link at right. 

Sunday, April 23, 3:30 PM
The 12 Gates study continues via Zoom. 

Thursday, April 30: Part 2 of "The Book of Job" with Dell Rose. 

"I appreciate your events so much–they are thoughtful, sane, and restore the soul!"
Victoria, Chicago, IL 
If we despise our neighbors or regard people as our enemies for merely disagreeing with us or not showing us reverence or respect, our life is a life of self-love. 

If for similar slights we hate our neighbors and persecute them, then we are even more deeply entrenched in self-love. 

And if we burn with vengeance against them and crave their destruction, our self-love is stronger still; people with this attitude eventually love being cruel.

–Emanuel Swedenborg, "New Jerusalem" section 68. 
"Thanks for the welcoming format of  lectures at the Swedenborg Library...warm & relaxing." 
Bill, Wilmette, IL
Welcome to the Swedenborg Library in Chicago
Our circulating book collection offers a range of contemporary books on spiritual topics, as well as the work of the 18C Swedish scientist and theologian Emanuel Swedenborg. 

The Swedenborg Library is located at 77 W. Washington St, 17th floor, Chicago, Illinois (in the Chicago Temple Building at the southeast corner of Clark St. and Washington St., across from Daley Plaza.) The library is open on Wednesday and Friday afternoons, from 1–5 PM Central Time, and by appointment. 
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For upcoming programs, click on the "Coming Programs & Events" button at left, and view the brochure PDF. Coming up next:
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Sunday April 12 at 3:30 pm central: 12 Gates: A Journey To the Heart of the Swedenborgian Tradition, with Dell Rose
On April 12, we continued our deep dive into Swedenborgian theology in our 12 Gates series, with a discussion of Personhood.

To join the Zoom, click this link:

View videos of the earlier sessions: 
On February 15, Dell presented Swedenborg's theology on angels; part 2 will be presented on Feb. 22. To view the Febrary 15 session, click here: Youtube link to 12 Gates 3: Angels, Part 1
In the second session, we compared theological definitions found in Frederick Buechner's book "Wishful Thinking: a Seeker's ABCs" with those of Swedenborg. To view the  presentation video on Youtube, click here: 
In sessions 3 and 4, we discussed how mainline Christianity often avoids discussing demons and evil, and Swedenborg's illuminating ideas on this topic. The video links are below:

In these programs, we discussed what purpose demons can play in our spiritual development and why they are a necessary aspect of free will. 

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Zoom: Starting Thursday, April 16, 6–7:30 PM Central: The Book of Job, a new series with Dell Rose

The Book of Job is a challenge to any conventional understanding of the inerrant goodness of God, and to the Deuteronomistic understanding that the Lord always honors those who do good, and punishes those who do not. The fact that it was included in the Biblical canon at all remains a mystery. Yet, for many, it is one of the most profound texts in the entirety of the Hebrew Bible.


   This multi-part course will teach the fundamentals of the book of Job, its narrative structure, origin, and its massive contribution to the literary quality of Persian-era biblical texts. Finally, we will consider Swedenborg’s own assessment of the text, and ask why is this text so challenging for a Swedenborgian reading? And does it need to be? Please purchase ahead of time Edward Greenstein’s Job: A New Translation (Yale University Press, 2019)


   As with all of our literary courses, we can take our time. The dates provided are guideposts, but of very little actual import. We will have them on a Thursday at 6 PM central time, as with most of our programs, and hope to finish before Armageddon. April 16, 23, and 30; May 14, 28; June 11, 18; July 9. 


Zoom Room: 558 403 3057

Password: Swedenborg


Zoom Link for April 16, Book of Job


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For more upcoming programs in April, click the "Coming Programs and Events" tab in the left-hand navigation bar.
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New Library Videos Available on Youtube:
A video of the March 8 LaPorte New Church service, led by Dell Rose is now available on our Youtube channel
To view the service, click this link: LaPorte March 8 worship service




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New Video: Goethe's Faust: Art As Religion, with Dr. David Kretz  

The video of this Zoom program from January 22 available on our Youtube channel (search Swedenborg Library Chicago) on Friday, January 23 after noon central time. Here's the link to save you time searching: 

Goethe's Faust: Art As Religion


Dr. David Kretz is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Humanities Program at Yale University. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago’s Committee on Social Thought and in Germanic Studies. 

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Scholar Dell Rose joins the Swedenborg Library
Dell J. Rose develops and hosts programs for the Swedenborg Library in Chicago. Dell holds the position of Swedenborg Doctoral Fellow with the Swedenborg Society in the United Kingdom, and he is a doctoral candidate at the Centre for the History of Hermetic Philosophy and Related Currents at the Universities van Amsterdam. His research focuses on the intersection of Western esotericism and political reform, particularly with Swedenborgianism in 19th century Britain. 

To read Dell's latest article, click on the "Readings" navigational tab at left, and you will find his article "The House of David" at the top of the PDFs there, or click here: Readings. 

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To join online discussions of others who are reading Swedenborg's work, or to view video presentations, visit one of the sites below:

The Swedenborg Community online: Click Here.

Off The Left Eye videos (organized by topic area:) Click Here.
For blog discussions of Swedenborgian and contemporary topics, or to download books: 

See Events & Programs for information on our upcoming programs. We look forward to seeing you then. Use the Contact Us form for information on our collection.
  
If you will be in downtown Chicago and would like to visit the Swedenborg Library, we are open Wednesday and Friday afternoons from 1:00-5:00 pm, and by appointment. Click on the Calendar link in the top left column for our hours and schedule. 

For more info on upcoming programs, click on the "upcoming events" bar in the left-hand column.

  

PAST SPEAKERS AT THE SWEDENBORG LIBRARY INCLUDE: 
Dr. Kagan Arik, Julia Bachrach, Marc Ian Barasch, Denise Breton, Herbert Bronstein, Sophy Burnham, Kanjin Cederman Shonin, Rabbi Menachem Cohen, Phil Cousineau, Rev. Jikai Dehn, Rev. Dr. George Dole, Tim Evans, Matthew Fox, Dr. 
Anya Foxen, Rev. Kuni Fumioka, Barbara Geiger, Mercy Gilpatric, Jack Gilroy, Terry Gunnell, John Haller Jr., Dr. Kelly Hayes, Fatima Imam, Kenneth James, Sunny Dawn Johnston, Jim Kenney, Dr. David Kretz, Dr. Keri Ladner, Christopher Largent, Stephen & Robin Larsen, Erik Larson, Rev. Dr. James Lawrence, Jerrol Leitner, Dr. Tiina Mahlmäki, Dr. Wayne Martindale, Rev. Robert McCluskey, Rabbi Dr. Jay Michaelson, Ron Miller, Dr. Raymond Moody, Dr. Avery Morrow, John Moulder, Dr. Bjarke Nielsen, Sarah Odishoo, Dr. Vadim Putzu, Paul Quinn, Dell Rose, Rev. Dr. Jonathan Rose, Ahmad Sadri, Kristen Schaffer, Ann McNamara Smith, Richard Smoley, Dr. Jason A.J. Storm, Edward Sylvia, Brother Wayne Teasdale, Dr. Alfred Thomas, Dr. Brandon Underwood, Dr. Mariano Villalba, Pauline Viviano, Rev. Wilma Wake, John Wasik, Dr. Drake Williams, Dr. Brook Ziporyn.