In the tenth chapter of the Book of Genesis, listed among the descendents of Shem, the son of Noah, there appears the seemingly insignificant name of "Eber". There in verse 21 we read: "And children were born also to Shem, the father of all the children of Eber…" The following two verses identify Eber as being Shem's great-grandson. The genealogy notes that two sons were born to Eber. Their names were Peleg and Joktan. The text then moves on, seemingly leaving Eber as just another footnote. Much of the genealogy is repeated in chapter 11, but again, there is nothing there to note Eber as anything other than a stepping stone on the way towards introducing us to the figure of Abram (Abraham). There is a final brief reference to Eber in the book of Numbers. There we find a prophecy regarding ships coming from Cyprus that would afflict Eber among others (24:24). However, this reference may also appear somewhat insignificant in comparison to the grander themes and images presented in the Old Testament.

Despite Eber's apparent non-importance, he is still noted by many scholars as being the one whose name formed the origins of the people known as the "Hebrews". The name "Eber" literally means to "cross over". This base forms the root of the word Hebrew, which literally means Eberite, or descendent of Eber. Yet despite what would seem like a natural linear connection between Eber and the title Hebrew, some scholars dismiss the link. To them, the word "Hebrew" refers more to Abram's crossing over of the Euphrates River after his call out of Ur of the Chaldeans. Some of the same scholars note that the expression "to cross over," also has the implication of travelling, or of being a sojourner in a place, rather than being a settler. This again is seen as a reference to Abram's travels through Canaan that took him ultimately to Egypt. Using this type of rationale, Abram, or Abraham as he was to become, has been seen by some as the origin of the term "Hebrew". This again leaves Eber as nothing more than a footnote in history.

It may seem at first surprising that Eber, who receives such a brief mention in the Word and is so easily dismissed by scholars, is referred to in over sixty passages in the Heavenly Doctrines for the New Church. This fact alone means that Eber deserves our attention. There is a common theme that can be seen in these New Church references. Each in its own way describes Eber as a critical link in the evolution of human thought and language, from an Ancient style, to a style much more reminiscent of today. These references also point to a substantial transformation in the life and history of the Lord's church on earth.

Ancient thought and writing was full of spiritual imagery. The language of these people was one of parable. Spiritual and celestial concepts were captured in narrative stories that could be remembered by children especially. These ancient people were able to see corresponding symbols in the world around them. Wise people could recognise the heavenly qualities being displayed in natural things. They gave names to objects that reflected the qualities they represented. They assigned names to people, families and nations based upon the same recognition of qualities.

Each of the people mentioned in the early chapters of Genesis was named after human qualities. And, while we are taught that groups of people may have demonstrated these qualities, no individual persons with such names are intended in these stories. There may have been individuals with names such as Cain, Enoch or Noah, but it is not these people who are being referenced. Instead, the names capture categories of thought, will and action. These are universal qualities, personified in narratives that we can learn, enjoy and therefore retain in our memory.

All of this changed in the time of Eber. We are taught that:

All things put historically, from the first chapter of Genesis to Eber in the eleventh chapter, signify things quite different from those which appear in the letter, and the historical series is only made up history, after the manner of the ancient people (AC 1020).

Eber clearly marks a transition. He appears in the story following the Flood. Mankind had experienced unprecedented upheaval. A new era was dawning. The Ancient Church, as experienced by the people before the Flood was no more. Spiritual understanding and worship would forever be changed. Part of that change required a new type of revelation. People were no longer inclined to, or satisfied by made up histories, as had been the case before. There was a new desire to feel a sense of connectedness from generation to generation. Collections of people began to be known by their connection to a common ancestor. This was the case with the Hebrews. And, the Heavenly Doctrines seem to make it clear, that the Hebrews drew their name from Eber.

The Ancient Church that had permeated lands and peoples over a wide area had fallen and was decimated at the time of the Flood. Isolated remnants of faithful people, described in terms of Noah and his family, remained to continue the Ancient Church beliefs and traditions. A new time was dawning and a new Church was required to preserve the Lord's Word with mankind. Eber was the first institutor of this new era known as the Second Ancient Church. This was the church of those known as the Hebrews. It seems clear that Eber was an actual living person. For the first time an actual person had been described in the Word. Eber was not simply an indicative title describing human qualities. He was a real person.

Scholars have tried to date Eber and others based upon the ages given in the Old Testament. But, because the numbers there represent states of people rather than actual years, we have no idea of when Eber lived. What we do know, is that the religious traditions introduced by Eber and his descendants were substantially different from those practiced by the First Ancient Church before the Flood. The most significant difference was the establishment of the rituals of burnt offerings and sacrifices. These had been unknown by the ancient people of the church that had gone before (AC 2180, 10042). It is possible that these practices were borrowed from groups of people who fell outside of the former Ancient Church. It is also possible that Eber and his family invented them themselves. We have no way of knowing.

Considering that burnt offerings and sacrifices were instituted by Eber, it is interesting that Genesis 8 describes Noah offering burnt offerings as thanks to Jehovah for saving his family from the Flood. We know that this story is symbolic in nature and therefore deals with spiritual issues regarding attitudes towards worship. Yet, it is curious that these attitudes were described in terms of a practice that had not yet been initiated. Perhaps, as some have suggested, this story was written as an accommodation to those later people who knew of no other worship than that which took place with burnt offerings and sacrifices. Again, we may never know.

The story of Eber and his Hebrew descendants provides proof of the Lord's unending love for all people and His willingness to bend their ways without breaking them. In regards to sacrifices and burnt offerings we read:

Burnt offerings were made from cattle, from lambs and goats, from turtle doves and young pigeons,…These were the clean beasts, each one of them meaning some particular heavenly quality. And because they meant those things in the Ancient Church, and in subsequent Churches represented them, it is clear that burnt offerings and sacrifices were nothing else than representatives that go with internal worship, and that when they are divorced from internal worship they become idolatrous (AC 922).

These sacrifices were never commanded by the Lord (AC 10042: 4). However, they were "tolerated among the sons of Israel who were from Eber, especially because a worship once begun and rooted in the mind is not abolished by the Lord, but is bent to signify what is holy in religion" (Apocalypse Explained 391 :2). The Lord through Eber began a church where people could capture the ancient spiritual messages within a new external form of their own choosing. The Lord had never intended that people kill animals and roast them on fires as a way of proving their love and loyalty to Him. But, in His love and His wisdom, He could bend these practices so that the spiritual messages of religion could be contained within them.

Over time, as the descendants of Eber drew away from the internal message and focussed solely on the rituals of worship, sacrifices and burnt offerings became empty things, devoid of spiritual life. It was then that the Lord came on earth and abolished sacrifices, replacing them with the sacrament of the Holy Supper.

We are not in a position to judge what type of person Eber may have been. The literal story in the Old Testament sheds no light on his life, while the Heavenly Doctrines focus on the transition of the church from one era to the next, not dealing with the personality of Eber himself. We know that he was from Damascus in Syria. The story in the Word says that he lived for 464 years, but we know this number is only symbolic.

The only other truly unique feature of Eber, is the fact that he knew the name of Jehovah as his God. This worship of Jehovah distinguished the early Hebrews from the nations that surrounded them. These early people knew and worshipped only one God. He was Jehovah. But, in what the Old Testament describes as just five generations, in the house of Terah, Abram's father, many gods were worshipped. For this family, the principal god was known as Shaddai. The name of Jehovah had been lost to them (AC 1992, 3667).

Eber therefore represents both the beginning and the high point of the church that bore his name. His church had both ritual and spirit. It knew that there was one God named Jehovah and they stood out from their neighbours by using that name. Eber was raised up, in the Lord's providence, to pave the way for a recovery in the religious life of the Lord's people. The fact that those who followed withdrew from the Lord in many ways, does not undermine Eber's contributions and his unique place in human history.

The free Lunchtime Concert at the Roseville New Church, 4 Shirley Rd Roseville, is on Tuesday 12th and is to be given by a Romanian singer, Adriana Paul.

The Lord, Maker of the heavens and the earth, infinitely wise, infinitely loving, took on a human body and nature and came down to our earth to save the human race from destroying itself. We've heard that many times from Swedenborg's clear unemotional prose, giving the reasons for the Lord's first Coming, and the simple though moving account in the Gospels of His birth in a stable in Bethlehem. But when you come to think about it, isn't it amazing? It can make us exclaim using the Psalmist's words, "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it." And then there is the wonderful providential care for each of us, and also the great marvels that are being discovered about the universe and even about a human being. Considering this, the more awed we are, the more humble we feel.

The Psalmist again:

"O Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is Your name in all the earth! Who has set Your glory above the heavens……..
When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him? And the son of man that You visit him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and have crowned him with glory and honour."

"A little lower than the angels," is a good description of the peoples of earliest times. Though we are not told a great deal about those people of the Most Ancient Church, we do know that the childhood of the human race was a wonderful time. They loved the Lord and each other, they spoke with angels, were taught through heaven, and their marriages were beautiful. They lived a simple pastoral life, but were wise in a way that has not happened since, perceiving heavenly lessons in all the things of nature. It was the Golden Age. 

Sadly, after a time, they began to turn away from the Lord. This is taught to us in a picturesque way in the story of the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Their fault was the eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, meaning they began to trust themselves to decide what was good and evil. It is not accidental, I'm sure, that this sad fall is mirrored in the themes of most of the earliest fairytales, in which there was one thing a young man, or more often a girl should not do, for if that command was disobeyed, great misfortune would come about. The Garden of Eden story itself reads rather like a fairytale, for that was the early style of writing, to wrap a spiritual meaning in a simple tale. 

The Churches that followed have fallen in a similar way. The Lord gives people free will; He wants them to love Him freely, as that is the only way to heavenly happiness.

Now the Lord has given a new revelation through His servant Emanuel Swedenborg. A little over 200 years ago Swedenborg finished that mammoth task. A new Church began, and it has been earnestly endeavouring to spread the Lord's message in many countries. Warning was given that growth would be slow, and certainly people in great numbers are not eagerly embracing the wonderful new teachings. A series of articles in a weekend newspaper seems to highlight this. People, well known in the arts and other professions are being asked how their lives might change if they knew they had only one year to live. You would think that if these people believed in God and had some knowledge of the true meaning of life it would show, but it hasn't in any I have read. The reply of poet and playwright, Michael Gurr was typical. He wonders whether he would behave better and also try to be more useful, or maybe it would give him licence to behave badly. He can't imagine giving up writing for that is a compulsion, but adds that probably he would go back to writing poetry, for with poetry he says, "You get more of it out." That's a bit mysterious, but an interesting thought and it suggests another article.

What can we do as individuals to help the church grow? For the church is not first an organization; each person can be a church we are told. Swedenborg's first rule of life is: "Diligently to read and meditate on the Word of God." If we all read from the Word each day, and meditate, it would make quite a difference. Also, apart from the value to ourselves we would be helping the angels, for we are told that when a person reads the Word reverently, the angels perceive a deeper meaning and get great delight from it (see AC 8615:3, 9357).

Then there is an interesting number in the Spiritual Diary (now "Spiritual Experiences"), about the importance of hearing teaching from the Word. It is because of the correspondence of the ears to obedience.

"That which enters only by the eye, enters into the understanding and lays itself away in the memory, but those things which enter by the hearing enter into the understanding and at the same time into the life" (no. 5851).

That seems to point to the value of attending services of worship. If we have our priorities in order we will do both, won't we?

As parents, one of our primary goals is to help our children learn to love the Lord and His truths so that they can one day live with Him in heaven to eternity. Children love hearing stories from the Lord's Word over and over again. They respond instinctively and affectionately to truths about the Lord and His teachings. The Office of Education has developed this program to support you in meeting the spiritual needs of your children. 

Starting in September and going through June, your family will receive a package each month based on a story from the Word with spiritual concepts that have been carefully chosen for young children. We are again starting at the beginning of a three-year rotation, with the wonderful Creation Box project. Since we have three age levels-A (0 & 1), B (2 & 3), and C (4 & 5)- even if your children participated three years ago, they will be receiving new materials. And, or course, we will be revising and improving! Each package typically includes an illustrated story (2 & 3, 4 & 5) or talk-about picture (0 &1), projects and materials to bring the story to life, musical selections related to the theme, parent pamphlet and inspiration cards, and optional activities for enrichment. 

The cost of this program will be $30 US for each child that you enrol. Only one shipping charge will apply per family. In the United States, shipping costs $20 US per family; in Canada, shipping is $30 US per family. Overseas addresses will be $45 US per family. (Interoffice mail has no shipping costs.) Please note that scholarship and incremental payments are available. We do not want a lack of funds to stop you from receiving this program.

To sign up, call Sheila Daum at 215-914-4966 or email her at sldaum@newchurch.edu; she will be happy to assist you.

Over the past ten years, a group of clergy and laity, has been revising a New Church translation of the Word. The translation of the four Gospels that we revised was done by Rev. John Clowes in England about two hundred years ago, from the original Greek in the light of the Writings. We have also revised Rev. John Whitehead's translation of the book of Revelation from the Apocalypse Revealed. In doing this revision we used the vocabulary study done by Rev. Louis Tafel one hundred years ago, which shows how the Writings render each Greek word into Latin. Building on these previous studies, with the aid of computer tools developed specifically for this work, we have recently completed, and modernised to some extent, a consistent New Church revision of the New Testament. 

It is our hope that in the near future the whole of the Sacred Scripture will be available. But rather than wait several more years, we thought it best to publish the New Testament at this time. This will serve a current need in the church, and allow us to gather valuable comments and suggestions from readers for a translation of the whole Word. Like the Sacred Scripture itself, the work of translation is not static but living. Our principal aim is to show the English reader what the Lord actually says in His Word, recognising that any translation will fall short of this to some extent. With this version of the New Testament we are also including a companion work explaining the principles from the Writings we used in this translation and the reasons behind the choices we made for particular verses and vocabulary.

The volume we now offer to the New Church is printed in very readable 13 point type, in a red, hardback volume of 240 pages. We hope to have the book back from the printers by the end of November and available as a Christmas gift. The cost is $12.00 US, plus shipping; and for $2.00 more we will gift wrap it and send it with a card. If you would like to order this book, please contact.

Hubert and Margaret Heinrichs, 7729 Herstra Court, New Tripoli, PA, 18066, phone: 610-298-8370, email: 105172.3421@compuserve.com. If you have questions about the translation itself please contact Rev. Andrew Heilman at the Kempton New Church, 610-756-6140, or e-mail andrewj@entermail.net.

Alternatively please contact the pastor Rev Garry Walsh on (02) 9580 1589 for more information or email Garry at newchurch@optusnet.com.au

Dues notices were sent out to members last month but we would be most appreciative of any donations to Theta Alpha Guild. Our uses are:

1. Providing General Church children in Australia with a gift at June 19th.
2. Sending greeting cards (eg. Get Well cards) to church members
3. Supporting the Hurstville Society Sunday School.
4. Housekeeping of the church's multi purpose building "Baringa".

If you would like to help please send your donations to:

Patricia Walsh (Treasurer)
157 Faraday Road
PADSTOW NSW 2211

The ladies of Theta Alpha thank you for your assistance.

This occasion will take place at 12 noon at The Manse and will include a brief Meeting and a Christmas Talk by Rev Garry Walsh. Please remember to RSVP Laurel Walsh on (02) 9594 4205 by 24th November and to bring a savoury dish to share. Dessert and drinks will be provided. Personal invitations will be sent out during the month.

The New Church (Australia) Annual Family Retreat to be held from 6th to 12th January 2003 will be hosted by the Canberra group at Kiah Ridge, near Tahmoor (NSW). The 170 acres site is surrounded by a National Park and the Bargo river. It has open fields and plenty of bush to walk in. All of the rooms have ensuites, and the modern brick buildings are first class. There is a large swimming pool, a volleyball court, tennis court and lots of sports equipment we can borrow. The week is filled with structured activities and balanced with plenty of free time. All on-site activities are included in the price. There is plenty of time to catch up with old friends and opportunities to make new ones. It is easy to find, conveniently located 12km's off the Freeway, 1.5 hours from either Goulburn or Sydney. Bus or train to Bargo.

For more information please visit: www.newchurch.org.au/canberra

The camp is fast approaching so if you haven't already booked then do so soon. Enquiries re subsidies for General Church families and individuals should be directed to Murray Heldon 35 O'Brien's Rd, Hurstville 2220 (02) 9579 5248 email: murrayheldon@optushome.com.au.

Further Information: Mr. Cor Visser-Marchant
(02) 6254 4837, 0416 243 242 cor@cor.net.au

Bookings: Either online through website (see above) or contact
Mr. John Talbot 25 Davis Cct, Murrumbateman NSW 2582 john_talbot@bigpond.com (02) 6255 9245

Engagement (Delayed report) Congratulations to Sonia Hicks and Adam Linden on their engagement which was announced on 4th August 2002.

Wedding As announced last month a most eagerly awaited event is the wedding ceremony for Kristen Heldon and Sam Johnson. The wedding will be at the Roseville New Church, 4 Shirley Rd Roseville at 4pm on Saturday November 2, 2002. All are welcome to attend.  

Tom Taylor continues to make progress following his leg amputation. He is working hard at the gym (physiotherapy treatment) and is determined to overcome his disability.

Congratulations to Vera Buck and Shirley Taylor on becoming octogenarians in October. They join husbands Dave Buck and Tom Taylor, Dot Heldon, Norm Heldon, Trevor & Audrey Favell and Grace Horner on our team of OBEs

Birthday Greetings to Jesse Horner (3rd), Brian Heldon (8th), Cathy Kermond (11th), Ashley Walsh (27th), and Lori Heldon (30th)

Note: All events are located at the church at 22 Dudley St, Penshurst 2222 (off Hillcrest Ave) unless otherwise stated. Contact the pastor Rev Garry Walsh on (02) 9580 1589 for more information or email Garry at newchurch@optusnet.com.au All are welcome and refreshments are served after church each Sunday.
Saturday	November 2nd	4 p.m. Wedding - Kristen Heldon and Sam Johnson
Sunday	November 3rd	10.00 a.m. Worship and Sunday School
Wednesday	November 6th	10.00 a.m. Discussion Group
Friday	November 8th	6 p.m.. Young People's Evening at Roseville 7.00 p.m. Dinner and Doctrinal Class
Sunday	November 10th	10.00 a.m. FAMILY SERVICE
Monday	November 11th	7.00 p.m. Young People
Tuesday	November 12th	12 noon Free Lunchtime Concert at Roseville 8.00 p.m. Business Committee Meeting
Wednesday	November 13th	10.00 a.m. Discussion Group
Sunday	November 17th	10.00 a.m. Worship and Sunday School followed by Annual General Meeting and Special Society Meeting
Wednesday	November 20th	10.00 a.m. Discussion Group
Friday	November 22nd	7.30 p.m. Doctrinal Class
Sunday	November 24th	10.00 a.m. Worship and Sunday School
Monday	November 25th	7.00 p.m. Young People
Wednesday	November 27th	10.00 a.m. Discussion Group
Friday	November 29th	8.00 p.m. Sons Meeting

November						December
			Matthew	Arcana Coelestia					Luke	Arcana Coelestia
1		Fri	25:1-30	4538-4539		1		Sun	2:21-52	4658-4660
2		Sat	25:31-46	4540-4545		2		Mon	3	4661-4664
						3		Tue	4	Chpt. XXXVII;4665
3		Sun	26:1-30	4546-4551		4		Wed	5	4666-4670
4		Mon	26:31-56	4552					Christmas readings
5		Tue	26:57-75	4553-4560		5		Thu	Genesis 3:15	AC 250
6		Wed	27:1-31	4561-4565		6		Fri	Genesis 49:10	AC 6373
7		Thu	27:32-66	4566-4570		7		Sat	Psalm 68:18	AR 591
8		Fri	28	4571-4574
			Mark			8		Sun	Psalm 132:1-9	AC 4594
9		Sat	1	4575-4581.1		9		Mon	Isaiah 7:14-16	AC 1414
						10		Tue	Isaiah 9:1-7	CL 81
10		Sun	2	4581.2-11; 4582-83		11		Wed	Isaiah 11:1-10	AE 314.3
11		Mon	3	4584-4585		12		Thu	Isaiah 35:5-10	AC 2383.9
12		Tue	4	4586-4591		13		Fri	Isaiah 60:1-6	TCR 761
13		Wed	5	4592.1-8		14		Sat	Isaiah 61:1-3	AC 2523
14		Thu	6:1-29	4592.9-14; 4593
15		Fri	6:30-56	4594-4598		15		Sun	Micah 5:1-4	AC 4594
16		Sat	7	4599		16		Mon	Malachi 3:1-4	AC 3398.4, 5
						17		Tue	Malachi 4	AC 6752.10
17		Sun	8	4600-4601		18		Wed	Luke 1:1-25	AE 724.7
18		Mon	9	4602-4605		19		Thu	Luke 1:26-38	TCR 92
19		Tue	10:1-31	4606-4610		20		Fri	Luke 1:39-56	AE 710.31
20		Wed	10:32-52	4611-4615		21		Sat	Luke 1:57-80	TCR 688
21		Thu	11	4616-4621
22		Fri	12	4622-4623.1		22		Sun	Luke 2:22-40	AC 9256.5, 6
23		Sat	13	4623.2-3;4624-26		23		Mon	Matthew 1:18-25	AC 1414
						24		Tue	Matthew 2:1-15	AE 324.10
24		Sun	14:1-31	4627-4634		25		Wed	Luke 2:1-20	AE 706.12
25		Mon	14:32-72	4635-4638					Luke
26		Tue	15	Chpt. XXXVI		26		Thu	6:1-19	4671-4674
27		Wed	16	4939-4644		27		Fri	6:20-49	4675-4677.1-4
			Luke			28		Sat	7:1-23	4677.5-10
28		Thu	1:1-38	4645-4647
29		Fri	1:39-80	4648-4651		29		Sun	7:24-50	4678-4680
30		Sat	2:1-20	4652-4657		30		Mon	8:1-25	4681-4684
						31		Tue	8:26-56	4685-4688