Was Swedenborg a mystic? That's a question that can sometimes evoke a bit of controversy among his readers. The correct answer to the question, of course, depends on how you define "mystic." To some people the term suggests dark, mysterious, irrational dreams or visions related to the occult That is not the perception we get from Swedenborg's books, so if you think of a mystic as being of that character you won't want to include him. But Wilson Van Dusen has another definition of "mystic," a very simple one: a mystic is one who has had the direct experience of God. Accordingly, Swedenborg is definitely a mystic in his book-probably the greatest one ever.

Van Dusen was a clinical psychologist at a state mental hospital in California. He discovered Swedenborg early on and found the Writings to be most useful in understanding some forms of mental illness. Then he wrote several successful books on related subjects. Two of the better known are Natural Depth in Man and The Presence of Other Worlds. It is likely that he introduced more new readers to the name Swedenborg than any other author of the twentieth century.

During the 1974-75 academic year, while Peggy and I were living in Bryn Athyn, it so happened that Van Dusen arrived there for a visit and gave some informal talks. There was much excitement surrounding these, and we felt fortunate to be able to attend them. Over a decade later, when we were driving through northern California and passing through Van Dusen's hometown of Ukiah, we gave him a call. He invited us over to his home, where we had a most interesting conversation-mostly about his life and wide-ranging interests. Of course he remembered his visit to BA. He was interested in the General Church and all other new church organizations.

Now, more than two decades since we last saw him in Ukiah, I am enjoying one of his more recent books, Beauty, Wonder, and the Mystical Mind, which has been donated to the church library by Nina Freeman. Here Van Dusen makes it clear that he himself is a mystic, but of course to a lesser degree than Swedenborg. He describes what mysticism is like in its many forms and in its relation to all world religions-especially those of the East and Buddhism in particular. According to him, we all have somewhere within us some latent mystical ability, and it would serve us well to put some effort into developing it. He says (p. 99), "There is nothing mysterious, secret, occult, esoteric, or exclusive in mysticism,….it is for all people everywhere."

In just the last year or two Van Dusen made his final transition into the spiritual world. It must have been an experience for which he was well prepared.