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Swedenborgianism

Definition: Founded by Emmanuel Swedenborg (1688-1771), Swedenborgianism was an important vehicle for the transmission of paranormal and occult beliefs in America during the 19th century. Swedenborg would probably today still be famous for his scientific accomplishments if it had not been for his abandoning science in favor of mysticism. Among his early discoveries were the functioning of the brain's pituitary gland and he even created plans for a submarine.

Swedenborg followed a Platonic philosophy of idealism in which the spiritual realm was more "real" than the physical world. There, is, however, a corresondence between everything in the spiritual and physical realms - he called this his "law of correspondences". Thus, when a person dies, they travel to some spiritual level which corresponds to whatever level of moral development they achieved while alive. The goal of life, then, is to simply reach as high of a moral level as possible. These beliefs were later adopted by most New Age philosophies.

After his death, followers created the Church of New Jerusalem around his teachings, even though while alive he professed that he didn't want to found a new religion. Today we can find Swedenborgian congregations all around the world and his writings have been translated into many languages