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HIS CORRESPONDENCE WITH DR. OETINGER. 149
XXV.
SWEDENBORG’S CORRESPONDENCE
WITH
DR. OETINGER,
PRELATE OF MURRHARD, IN WURTEMBERG.
Oetinger was a man of distinguished learning and piety, and highly respected by his-
countrymen.* He was the aiithor of many works, and attained the highest dignity in
the church ; he was appointed by his Serene Highness the Duke of Wurtemberg to the
prelacy of Murrhard. He was one of the first in Germany who became acquainted
with the writings of Swedenborg. He translated many things from the Arcana Calestia,
and the Earths in the Universe. He also published an analysis of Swedenborg’s Natu-
ral Philosophy, and compared it with his Heavenly Philosophy.
From an unpublished MS. of the life of Oetinger, written by himself. Dr. Tafel has
extracted the following: At page 129, he says, " I wrote the second part of the Earthly
and Heavenly Philosophy in the presence of death ; this, I thought, was to be my last
work, but I recovered, and Swedenborg’s book On Heaven and Hell came to hand,
which I translated, and extracted from it the first part o^ Earthly and Heavenly Philos-
ophy, and sent it, having submitted it to the censorship, to the press at Tubingen. In
the meantime the prelacy of Murrhard became vacant. I was well aware, although I
had been proposed as prelate ten years before, that I had many enemies, and, therefore, I
wrote a candid letter to his Serene Highness, upon which he sent me two letters in four
days, appointing me prelate. The book which I had written appeared afterwards, but
the Consistory was much incensed at its appearance, and called upon me to justify my-
self. I was at Stuttgart about twelve months, and returned again to Murrhard. I then
devoted myself to the work entitled Philosophice Scripturance, but was again compelled
by the Consistory to appeal to the Privy Council. The consistory interdicted me from
publishing anything either within or without the country. Upon this, my son, a physi-
cian, published a work, under his own name, entitled Metaphysica et Chemica. After
this I wrote to Baron Swedenborg at Stockholm, who replied to my letters ; the corres-
pondence may be seen in Dr. Clemm’s German Theology, ^c."
Oetinger says further, in the Biography already mentioned, " Swedenborg sent me
his books, De Telluribus Planetarum, De Amore Conjugiali, and also his last work. He
Vera Religione Christiana. Swedenborg also sent me some other letters, one of which
linsertedin the translation of the Earths in the Universe."f Dr. Tafel adds, " I found
in the year 1831, at the house of the learned Dr. Veesenmeyer, at Ulm, this very letter,
written by Swedenborg himself, and was kindly permitted to take a perfect copy of it. "4:
Oetinger translated the Heaven and Hell, the Earths in the Universe, and some extracts
from the Arcana Codlestia. He also took a lively interest in the dispute which took place
in the Consistory at Gottenburg respecting the theological writings of Swedenborg.
Hence arose a storm of bitter animosity against this worthy man, in which he suffered
much mental anguish. In his Biography he says many things respecting his state ol
* See some account of Oetinger in the Intellectual Repository, Jan. 1830, pp. 1-4.
t This letter may be seen in the New Jerusalem Magazine May, 1790, p. 3.
t See also the same work, p. 35, where this letter is inserted.
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